It is indisputable that Tristan Buckland owes his love for photography to his mother. With his first picture book, Fragments, he creates “a chronological documentation of the photographs I took over two and half years from her initial diagnosis to the first six months after her death.” For the English photographer, his creative practice is therefore deeply emotional. The fragments of architecture, people or nature that he captures with his film camera become sincere stories to imagine.

How did you fall in love with photography ?

I turned to photography in a moment of adversity and in return it offered me liberty. Notably I like to work in film as I feel a deeper connection to each image and each moment that I capture. Thus, in reflection of the developed negatives not only did I begin to like and enjoy what I saw but also witness the emergence of a reflection of myself. I take what only I would see from any given reality or surrounding, bringing my own passion but also pain from my home life which in turn both seep into my work. This is when I realised that this was truly an expression of my creative self.

From flower displays to bus stops, each piece of life seems to interest you. How do you continually cultivate your inspiration?

I certainly see a pattern of concepts that my eye is drawn to, but I find that it’s the environment which captivates me and then what that world offers which excites me even more. My surroundings can open a window of infinite possibilities if I look close enough. I think in searching for those moments and the beauty of the everyday which can be so easily overlooked is what I truly like to photograph.

There’s always inspiration around, whether I’m looking or not, from paintings and films to posters, photography and nature. If something challenges me to look or think differently about how I view this world and how I’m capturing it, then it’s influencing my work.

How do you succeed to always take the best of fragments of objects, landscapes or people?

Always is an overstatement. At times I have only used maybe one or even two shots from an entire roll of film. I don’t like to edit, crop or manipulate any image in post-production, so if I get any number of shots from a roll of negatives that I deem ‘successful’ then those are the images with a spark, something the rest lack. However, I also believe that that’s where power lies, it’s through failure that we learn most, it makes way for personal development and growth. By constantly pushing myself, experimenting and failing I am also continuing to succeed.