Despite their presence in our cultural memory as uniformed tour guides, each of the 36 Yeoman Warders, or Beefeaters as they are more commonly known, at the Tower of London must have served at least 22 years in the military, be a senior non-commissioned officer and be a recipient of the Long Service and Good Conduct medal, before they can even interview for the post.
This series of portraits explores photography’s ability to successfully communicate experience and stands in sharp contrast to the snapshot of the tourist gaze, commonly experienced by Yeoman Warders at the Tower of London. Each portrait was created after discussion with the sitter about their military experience, in a studio environment, in black and white, using long exposure and large format camera equipment.
This slowing down of the photographic process also references those methods employed by the Victorian artist Julia Margaret Cameron, who recognised that photography's increased accessibility did not necessarily equate to more communicative photographs. Like Cameron's own work, this series is an exploration into photography not as technical mastery, but as an expressive form.

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