Donald Linderyd, a Swedish photographer focusing on models and fashion. The View Magazine talks with Donald on his move to London, Scandinavian influences, his way of working, and about Chanel.
TV: Tell us a bit about you? Has becoming a photographer always been your goal?
DL: Photography has always been a passion and has always been a big part of my life, but it’s not until five, six years ago I started to think about photography as a career.
TV: Why did you moved to London?
DL: I’ve been back and forth to London from my native Sweden a few times over the years. Most of the time over the last 14 years I’ve spent here though. I initially moved to London to study and happened to get an interesting and challenging job and decided to stay. I really like the opportunities that London provides and the creativity it brings out in people.
TV: On your website you talk about the unique Scandinavian style, can you explain that?
DL: I think it has to do with the colour scheme I use and how I use light, but it is also an expression for the simplicity that I try to preserve in my images, which tends to be more prevalent in Scandinavian art, music and design than perhaps in many other parts of the world.
TV: Are you still exploring what makes your work unique, or have you found it?
DL: I think I will always explore and develop my style. I don’t think that you’re ever finished in any type of creative expression and that is the essence of creativity. There is always another picture to make, another song to write and with every piece we develop a bit further. I don’t expect my images to be the same in five, ten or even two years from now, compared to the images I create today. I would be disappointed if they were. I will always develop my style. There will always be a signature in my images that is me and the more I develop the clearer that signature will become.
TV: Tell us what inspires you, what are your other interests?
DL: I get inspired by most things, but in general I draw inspiration from music, film and other photographers. Landscapes, interesting locations, movement and light also get my creative mind working. However, I think the more I create the more creative I get. You can definitely learn to create and to be creative you have to practice. I can’t just sit around and wait for the world to inspire me. I have to make it inspire me.
TV: Putting together a team, what do you look for in each role?
DL: The most important factor is that everyone I work with share the vision. So far, I think I’ve been lucky to find people who’ve understood what I want to create and have shared my vision. I think it is very much team work and if everyone aren’t on the same wavelength and want the same thing, the project and the team won’t work and the image, the story and the message will fall apart.
TV: When do you decide on the retouching, during concept or after seeing the frames?
DL: It varies. Sometimes I shoot an image with retouch in mind or with a particular style of retouch and treatment in mind. Sometimes I have an idea and when I get back to the screen and see the images something else makes much more sense and is much more on theme. For me, I think that is the exception these days though. It was more common a few years ago. Now, I want to try to have as much of the shoot finished and planned before I actually shoot, including a post processing plan, so that I can concentrate on creating the best possible image for that particular story. That also gives me more freedom to be able to experiment, when I know that I’ve captured the images that I need.
TV: Which magazine or brand do you absolutely like to do a commission for and why?
DL: A story for Vogue would be amazing, simply because they are at the top of the tree. And shooting for Chanel… that is just so classic. Chanel designs are made for photography. It is the essence of fashion photography. One day.
TV: Thanks Donald!
Check out more of this Swedish photographer, Donald Linderyd, on his website.