Thomas Burroughs
© Thomas Burroughs
As a UK-based photographer, Thomas can often be found kicking around London looking to capture interesting scenes and characters. With a strong passion for street photography, Thomas is interested in the day-to-day interaction of the human element and the urban environment. Whether it be capturing the interplay of light, shadow and geometry, or using flash to create dynamic environmental scenes, capturing the beat of the street is what drives his passion for photography.
© Thomas Burroughs
What inspired you to curate this particular collection of photographs for your exhibition?
When I started to brainstorm ideas for my project for the London Photo Show, one of the ideas was to link my passion for music with photography. As a side hustle, I like to DJ and I have been doing this since the age of 16. It felt like a great opportunity to bring my passions together for this project.
Could you share some insights into the creative process behind these photographs?
Right from the inception of this project, I decided to use off-camera flash and slow shutter speeds so I could try and capture the dynamism and movement of people immersed in music on the street. This was a pretty steep learning curve as I hadn’t used flash that much before. It took a while to find the right balance of flash power and aperture that would allow me to shoot with a slow shutter in the daytime, which is when most of the images for my project were shot. The slow shutter allows you to perform a touch of shutter drag, blurring the image before the flash pops at the end of the exposure, freezing the subject. I enjoyed using flash in this creative way.
What emotions or messages do you hope viewers will take away from experiencing your exhibition?
I hope the viewers of the project can almost feel the music when they see the images. The project was fun to shoot and hope that comes across in the exhibition. Really, it is all about highlighting the power of music and our succumbing to it on the street. Dance like nobody’s watching!
Are there any specific stories or moments from your photography that you would like to highlight in this exhibition?
In all honesty, I wouldn’t say there is a very strong individual narrative to my work on this project. In a sense, it is more thematic as a celebration of music and captures the relationship of people with the medium.
How do you see your photography evolving in the future, and how might that influence your future exhibitions?
One thing I have learnt about shooting this project is to push yourself out of your comfort zone. That has helped me grow as a photographer. Using flash in street photography seemed like quite a daunting task at first, however as I started to get better handling of the technique, my confidence improved and that allowed me to shoot with less fear. Whilst I did not want any of my shots to be staged, there were a few occasions where I asked the subjects if they were ok for me to shoot. Approaching people in this way has helped me gain confidence and might be something I explore further in my photography.
What has been your experience with UPC in regards to this exhibition?
UPC has been a great experience. I can honestly say that I would never have taken part in the London Photo Show if it were not for UPC and the platform and support it has provided. I have also met some amazing photographers and friends from UPC and find this a great source of learning and inspiration!