What would you not shoot?

When someone is obviously wearing something that just isn’t their style. When you see that person and it’s just so obvious that they have been paid a lot of money to wear something, and you are like, ‘That is so not your style.’ That’s when I think I am just not shooting that. And there are also things I would not shoot because it’s not my aesthetic. For me, it’s personal preference.

Do you think it’s possible to build a brand in street style, to build your own aesthetic?

I think it used to be. I don’t think it is anymore. Maybe a few people have managed to do it through the way they shoot. But I feel it depends on whether you are trying to make money off the back of it, I suppose, and how much you want to make. Those people who are really specific about what they shoot and have a very distinct look, they are going to shoot maybe a couple of people a day who suit that aesthetic. And that’s probably because they know someone is going to buy those pictures.

Would you shoot someone you didn’t recognise or who was not a known name in the industry?

When I used to do Style Hunter, that’s pretty much what I had to do. Just wander around and shoot people who I thought looked interesting, wearing an outfit that I found could translate to people. This trained my eye for finding interesting things as opposed to changing names.

Why did you leave street style?

It was never what I wanted to do and it helped my decision-making when the way we shoot changed so much. It’s like a sport now, the guys running and jumping over things to get a shot, pushing people, shoving people. I just didn’t really want to be part of it anymore. If everyone is getting the same photo, it’s absolutely depressing and boring. Also, so many photographers now piggy-back onto your shot. Sometimes you have 50 or even 100 people behind you and everyone is just taking the same picture. That isn’t interesting, is it?

What do you think the future of street style is?

I just wonder how long it can go on for because it is such a circus and it is isn’t monitored, so the crowds can just grow and grow. Maybe they will have to bring in permits for photographers. There is so much goodness in street style, you just don’t want it to get drowned out.

Street style photographers reveal what it really takes to be a fashion star