On Presence

2025

On Presence is an ongoing series of large-format portraits made with a 4×5 camera.

Each portrait emerges from an extended encounter between photographer, sitter and camera. Working slowly, often over several hours of conversation before an exposure is made, the project explores trust, attention and the conditions required for genuine presence to emerge.

The participants are people encountered throughout my life in London whose friendship, support, generosity or companionship have shaped my sense of belonging. Each was invited to take part because they represent a form of home.

The project considers the complex relationship between photographer and sitter. What compels someone to sit for a portrait? Is the desire to share directed towards the photographer, the camera, or the imagined future viewer? Does the significance lie within the photograph itself, or within the experience of being seen, listened to and held in another person’s attention?

Using the deliberate pace of large-format photography, the work seeks to create a space where vulnerability, trust and mutual recognition can emerge. The resulting portraits are less concerned with appearance than with the fleeting moments in which a person’s presence becomes visible.