In Focus: Kristian Leven
For the past few years Kristian Leven has had a keen interest in street photography. Heading out and photographing on the street provides him with an opportunity to work in an environment without any restrictions, and an endless array of possibilities. His work has been recognized and exhibited at street photography festivals in San Francisco, Brussels and London.
Learn more about this UK photographer in our short In Focus interview below. [Header photo: Adam Johnson]
Why are you a photographer?
I love capturing moments, and telling stories. That may sound a bit cliched these days, but ultimately that’s what drives me to head out and take pictures. I’m fascinated by the human condition, and I realised early on that having a camera in my hand can get me into situations and push me to explore places and societies I never would’ve seen or met without one.
Your Kolla collection contains fleeting moments. By and large, is that what you're on the constant search for?
Absolutely. I love the challenge of heading out and looking for those split second moments that express something - a feeling, or an emotion, whether that’s laughter, peacefulness, surprise etc.
How did you overcome the feeling of intrusion which is oftentimes associated with street photography?
Good question - I think it’s about being in the right mindset. When I’m out shooting in London for example, I honestly don’t feel as if I’m doing anything wrong with capturing daily life around me. I’m not looking to embarrass or upset anyone - I’m just looking for stories, and little moments that I think people would find inspiring or enjoy looking at. But sometimes it’s a cultural thing - I recently shot in Ethiopia, and despite shooting in exactly the same way, I’ve never had so many ‘no photos’ in my life. All you can do is respect their wishes, put your hand up and walk away.
Something I’m looking to focus on more in the future is developing a series of images that are tied together aesthetically and thematically
Can you take us through a perfect photography experience?
It’s hard to describe, but basically when you’re out shooting and you’re feeling as if nothing is going your way, and you’re ready to throw in the towel, when out of nowhere, something happens that just fills you with enormous excitement and a sudden surge of creativity. You can’t really process it, but you know something special is happening, and you do your best to make the most of it, because from experience you know that within seconds this moment will be gone.
What's next in your journey as a photographer?
I’ve been thinking about that a lot recently. What are the trips I’m doing for? What’s the end goal? Something I’m looking to focus on more in the future is developing a series of images that are tied together aesthetically and thematically. I also want to shoot a lot more in the UK, and that’s something that I’m gonna start focusing on next year.
View Kristian's work and shop his limited edition prints.
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