Q&A
Ed’s series of self-portraits distinguishes and emphasises aspects his persona. Used as a self-exploratory body of work, he has shown how we all have various features that build up our personality, some more dominant than others.
Could you tell us a little bit about these images and the thought process behind them?
This is a series of self-portraits that had the purpose of distinguishing different aspects of my personality. However, they were singled out aspects and therefore exaggerated.
The work is focused on identity and the idea that life is just a series of choices. Every aspect of a personality is the result of a choice that someone makes, what they find important to them and how things make them feel.
The portraits themselves were also a form of self-discovery, inspired by many photographers’ self-portraits that I had seen previously. It’s an area that I think every photographer experiments with at some point and an area that felt comfortable to me during my experimentation.
Is this something that you intend to further pursue?
I have already progressed with some other self-portrait work and I would like to move into more experimental images in the near future. The longer I take images, the more I learn, and then the more I want to apply that knowledge to my work.
We understand that you're currently studying a degree in photography, how do you think that this has influenced your work?
I honestly think that in any course, the lecturers themselves have a huge impact on the work of the students. My work has changed dramatically from the start of the course. In the beginning, I’m fairly sure I was telling people that I hated taking portraits; now I can’t seem to find an image I’ve taken without someone in...
I’ve been lucky to have had some helpful feedback and encouragement from the course which has enabled me to gain confidence. I think this is the most valuable thing to have in a course.
What inspires your work? Are there any particular photographers who have influenced you?
Anything can inspire my work. Sitting at home being bored tends to be when most of the interesting things happen.
So many photographers have inspired me – Francessca Woodman, Duane Michals, Larry Clark, Lucas Samaras, Ed Templeton… etc.
What kit do you use to make your images?
In these images I used my Nikon d200. However, I’m using film more and more at the moment, especially with a Hasselblad 500c/m. There’s something far more satisfying with film, I haven’t found the same feeling with digital yet.
What do you hope to be doing in five years time?
Laughing.
And finally; Thunderbirds or Stingray?
I hate them both.