‘I make a clear distinction between portraits and the photographs I take for
my personal projects that happen have people in them. The former focus on
the person portrayed; in the latter, the subject becomes the vessel for my
own thoughts and feelings.
The selection I made for Landscape Stories is a mix of people I photographed
for magazines and friends. One of those friends is Helen Woods who I
photograph regularly. Her portrait in this selection is a recent one of her
and her newborn son Caspar. Helen has a type of beauty that is ageless and
strong, she’s endlessly inspiring.
When I make a portrait I often get the feeling of diving into the subject’s
head. It’s an odd experience: it feels like the eyes of the person open up
and I can swim right through them.
The light is all important too: I guide my subjects to where the light is
best and use whatever I’m given to make all things fit. The location is
usually decided for me and if it isn’t I prefer to photograph people at
home. I tend to leave things as they are as much as possible, but sometimes
I move objects around to ensure nothing disturbs the composition. The
ultimate goal is to create a sense of stillness and calm so the subject can
let go completely.’