A Conversation with Tom Collins ~ Colourful moments and seaside culture
Introduce yourself, where you’re from/located and what type of photography you primarily shoot.
I’m Tom, a graphic designer and photographer from Barry, Wales. I live here with my partner Hannah. In my spare time I mainly shoot street photography so a lot of that revolves around the local area where I live.
How did you get into your chosen medium? Do you remember the catalyst that influenced your decision to begin your journey?
Going way back I did photography at school where we learnt the basics of film, the history of it, the darkroom and the magic of that process, although I found the technical side of photography alot more difficult and I was drawn more to the experience of doing it. I went on holiday with my parents and I had a school project to document it. I think that’s the first time I really did anything closely related to street photography. I didn’t really do any photography for 10 years after that.
Hannah had an old Canon DSLR and we just started a community magazine, so I started to take pictures around Barry and for local businesses as a form of gathering content. The first time I started street photography in particular was after the pandemic when I just felt a bit trapped and tired of being stuck at a screen 24/7. So photography has become a great source of mental well-being for me. Being out in the world, observing and documenting life unfolding, brings me a lot of fulfillment.
When admiring your work, a few other artists come to mind (Josh Edgoose, Faizal Westcott, Dan Baker). Do you have any photographers or artists who have influenced your creative style when composing or editing your photos?
Martin Parr is probably an obvious influence, he was really the first photographer I learnt about who did ‘street’ photography. I love photographers who explore where they live and explore the point of view with the experience of being somewhere for a long time, photographers like Paul Graham, Tom Wood, Nico Froehlich, Niall McDiarmid. People that see beauty in everyday life. I’m also drawn to the perspectives and colours of Harry Gruyaert and Saul Leiter. I watch a lot of photography videos on YouTube and I think that gave me confidence to actively pursue photography because I realised there are so many possibilities of what you can do with the medium.
How do you strike a balance between capturing bold aesthetics and maintaining the authenticity and integrity of the street scenes you photograph?
Good question, I tend to not overthink what I shoot. I take a lot of photos and I pick the best ones to share. The balance is through whittling down the photos and figuring out what works and what doesn’t, when I go out I’m drawn to colours and certain compositions and scenes and it's difficult to describe what I think in that moment. I like frames to be quite minimal and not overly cluttered and align in a certain way.
Can you share some insight into your creative process when looking for a composition or framing your photo?
I’m drawn to colour, shapes, lines, how the light hits a scene. I don’t like things to be too busy, I want to look at a photo and think that everything has its place in the frame and you’re not distracted by something else, which is probably influenced by my design background. I need clarity, an image that could complement a sequence or that tells or contributes to a narrative in some way. In terms of composition, I’m not someone who thinks you need to get it 100% right in camera. I enjoy the process of searching for possibilities during every part of the process.
Many photographers strive for a cohesive visual style in their body of work. How have you developed and refined your unique aesthetic, and what advice would you give to photographers looking to establish their own distinct visual identity?
While I try to make my work cohesive, style is something that evolves over time. It emerges from the constant and consistent actions of taking and editing photos, as well as your passion for it . As you engage in this process, you naturally get drawn towards a particular direction, and you’ll find your own authenticity through that. I rarely question my style because I believe the way I take photos is true to who I am and the instinctual way you approach it defines your style.
I think every choice you make affects your style, the lens, camera, the way you walk, your confidence, then you also bring life experience and an attitude to it. I love Daniel Arnold, and part of his philosophy is ‘don’t try and take a good photo’ because of all the baggage and predictability that comes with that, sometimes it’s enough to just turn up and be present to capture what’s happening around you.
Can you talk about how the vibrant colours of the local seaside influence your photography style, particularly the use of reds and blues in your images?
I find seaside towns such an interesting part of UK culture and I think many photographers who shoot at coastal towns feel the same way, it's a special place where everyone comes together in search of a good time or a break. Certain seaside towns like Barry are awash with colours and peculiar things, people behave in a way that you don’t really see anywhere else. Being a designer I’m very drawn to colours, shapes, typography, textures and the mismatch of everything above. I feel like it all comes into play at the seaside and anything goes. You just have to be there to capture it. Following colours can be a great way to guide you when you’re struggling with what to capture on a particular day, I think this approach trained my eye to notice details more and gain a focus on what’s going on around me rather then just becoming a tourist you’re an observer using a camera to relay the experience of where you are and how it feels to be where you are. I look for colours and try to find relationships with what surrounds it or in a sequence, even letting it shape a narrative as a way of embracing the idea of trying to discover something new.
Do you have any other creative hobbies you’re interested in that people don’t see shared on social media?
I have been in and out of different creative pursuits, I was in a band for 15 years and put a lot of work into trying to get as far as I could with it, producing, playing live etc. Improvisation was a big thing for me, playing guitar for hours until the ideas ran dry. I moved into design through doing posters for venues and developed design into more of a career. I tend not to share a lot of that on social media because from a consistency point of view it doesn’t make sense, but hopefully I’ll find a way in the future to mix everything together into a project.
Do you have anything creative you’re working on or excited about for the future?
I’m in the process of creating prints and zine of my work, having not done either before its a bit of a learning curve. I have a few ongoing projects which will hopefully develop into some larger in future. I’m doing a bit more video too, but it’s still quite new to me. Apart from that as long as I can keep creating, experimenting and having the freedom to do so I’ll be happy.
