Avid Wangaratta photographer Tanya Pawlowsky has raised $1000 for Mental Health and Wellbeing Local through selling photo calendars.

Beyond the calendars’ aesthetics, featuring stunning shots captured by Tanya of the North East region, lies a deeper meaning.

To support mental health awareness, each month spells out a letter of ‘mental health’, with the main subject of the photo corresponding to the letter.

Tanya felt compelled to make the calendars after losing one of her friends to a mental health battle and her subsequent mental health journey.

“I was in and out of hospital… it had a big impact on me,” she said.

“And because I went to see the Mental Health Wellbeing Team here in Wangaratta, I raised money for them.”

The idea to spell out ‘mental health’ derived from a moment in a café in the Bright/Porepunkah area when she noticed the ‘M’ and ‘F’ on the toilet block across the road.

From there, the concept just fell into place.

“I did the calendars because photography is my passion… it’s good getting my photos out there for people to look at,” she said.

The background of each page also alternates between black and white, representative of how mental health can feel like “you’re up and down all the time”.

“You’ve got the black and the white pages; when you’re in your dark side and then you’re bright side of thing,” Tanya said.

“There’s always a meaning and reason behind it.”

It’s not the first time Tanya has taken on this business endeavor, having previously sold wildlife themed calendars to raise funds for Peechelba Wildlife Rescue Shelter and cancer calendars, raising $1350 for Peter MacCallum, the latter of which also holds personal meaning for her.

"I was diagnosed with cervical cancer cells and that was really scary for me because I had to have a procedure in hospital," she said.

"My auntie, she passed away from cancer and then my grandfather passed away from cancer."

Tanya said she continues to put herself out there with her camera, and is appreciative of the community's support.

Keep an eye out for Tanya's photos and future work in the Wangaratta Community Noticeboard on Facebook.