50 years of PNE history in photos by Craig Hodge, longtime fair staffer
Craig Hodge says 2026 will be his final freelance PNE season after 50 years of shooting concerts, fair attractions and memorable on-site moments.
- After 50 years of photographing the Pacific National Exhibition, photographer Craig Hodge announced the 2026 fair will be his final season documenting the summer event.
- When Hodge started in 1976, "we were shooting black-and-white film and we had dark rooms on site," he recalled, before transitioning to digital workflows that eliminated on-site processing.
- One memorable assignment involved walking an elephant through the crowded PNE fairground in the 1980s, where the animal ate food off patrons' plates while the marketing manager handed out $5 bills in compensation.
- Beyond photography, the PNE became deeply personal for Hodge; his children grew up there and he met his wife, Darla Furlani, whose sister was Miss PNE in 1986.
- Hodge stayed long enough to photograph shows at the PNE's new Freedom Mobile Arch venue; elected to Coquitlam City Council in 2011, he is now running for mayor this fall.
7 Articles
7 Articles
50 years of PNE history in photos by Craig Hodge, longtime fair staffer - Fort St. James Caledonia Courier
It’s been a fun 50 years of photographing the PNE for Craig Hodge, who says the 2026 fair will be his final year of such freelance work there. He started in 1976 as a photographer with The Columbian, which evolved into Surrey Now and other newspapers, and soon took a PNE staff job to shoot the summer fair. “I started working for newspapers when I was 16, part-time, and I used to take my summers off to work at the PNE,” explained Hodge, who figur…
50 years of PNE history in photos by Craig Hodge, longtime fair staffer - Grand Forks Gazette
It’s been a fun 50 years of photographing the PNE for Craig Hodge, who says the 2026 fair will be his final year of such freelance work there. He started in 1976 as a photographer with The Columbian, which evolved into Surrey Now and other newspapers, and soon took a PNE staff job to shoot the summer fair. “I started working for newspapers when I was 16, part-time, and I used to take my summers off to work at the PNE,” explained Hodge, who figur…
The Free Press
50 years of PNE history in photos by Craig Hodge, longtime fair staffer
It’s been a fun 50 years of photographing the PNE for Craig Hodge, who says the 2026 fair will be his final year of such freelance work there. He started in 1976 as a photographer with The Columbian, which evolved into Surrey Now and other newspapers, and soon took a PNE staff job to shoot the summer fair. “I started working for newspapers when I was 16, part-time, and I used to take my summers off to work at the PNE,” explained Hodge, who figur…
50 years of PNE history in photos by Craig Hodge, longtime fair staffer - The Interior News - Smithers BC
It’s been a fun 50 years of photographing the PNE for Craig Hodge, who says the 2026 fair will be his final year of such freelance work there. He started in 1976 as a photographer with The Columbian, which evolved into Surrey Now and other newspapers, and soon took a PNE staff job to shoot the summer fair. “I started working for newspapers when I was 16, part-time, and I used to take my summers off to work at the PNE,” explained Hodge, who figur…
50 years of PNE history in photos by Craig Hodge, longtime fair staffer - Creston Valley Advance
It’s been a fun 50 years of photographing the PNE for Craig Hodge, who says the 2026 fair will be his final year of such freelance work there. He started in 1976 as a photographer with The Columbian, which evolved into Surrey Now and other newspapers, and soon took a PNE staff job to shoot the summer fair. “I started working for newspapers when I was 16, part-time, and I used to take my summers off to work at the PNE,” explained Hodge, who figur…
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