So what’s your favourite shoot, and why?
One of my most memorable was the portrait of actress June Brown, known to most people as Dot Cotton from EastEnders. We went to her house in Surrey for the shoot; I photograph quite a lot of well-known people and it’s not often you given access to their homes. What makes the photo more interesting to me are the personal details. On the wall you can see a photograph of June and her husband, also an actor, performing together on stage. June smokes a lot in real life, so there was no surprise she was doing it for real when coming on set. The red nails and lipstick are also nice touches.
What else did you do?
We had to move a few objects around to set up the frame, I was keen to include an artificial cat that June has in her house. I also helped June pick out what to wear and thought green would contrast well with the shades of cream.
What interests you as a photographer?
I started my career with the Observer and still freelance with them, given the type of paper it is, I have been given a lot of access to celebrities and politicians. But what really interest me are the people as subjects – regardless of their fame. In my personal work I tend to sway towards people from marginal communities. It’s probably due to my upbringing, my parents migrated to the UK in the 1960s, so I like exploring themes of integration and how young British Asians identify themselves in the 21st Century.
Who do you look up to?
I admire painters like Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Turner, Gerhard Richter and Edward Hopper. All artists that have some relevance to the world of photography in their use of light and composition.
From photography, I admire Robert Frank, particularly his book ‘The Americans’. I love how he documented American street life during the 20th century. Another American photographer Vivian Maier for similar reasons. She was unknown during her lifetime and her archive was only discovered in 2007. Of course, I have to include the master of portraits Richard Avedon!
What keeps you going?
That old saying “you’re as good as you’re last job!” No matter how much I have achieved so far there is always more that can be done. Things keep evolving and it’s a continuous journey of making new pictures meeting new people.. I guess I’m never fully satisfied and I love having new projects to work on.
Take a look at Suki’s portfolio
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