Rosaline Shahnavaz

Although Rosaline Shahnavaz is more of a commercial photographer than a photojournalist, I am inspired by her documentation of a young girl, Fern. (1) The image that were taken over a 1 year period have also been published as a book, titled Fern, after the name of the subject. I love the loose nature of them, and the almost snapshot-like aesthetic. As a viewer, I feel as though I am experiencing the authentic moments and emotions of the scenes. 

In an article found in the British Journal of Photography online (2), Shahnavaz comments,“I casted Fern for a campaign I was shooting, and we clicked right away. She showed up wearing thigh-high white PVC boots with about 600 button holes (God speed to the stylist) and she’d texted me the night before to see if she’d need to shave her armpits, because she’d been growing her hair for four months and really didn’t want to. We had a special dynamic straight away and I couldn’t stop casting her after that.” (1)

I’ve also been inspired by the aesthetic of Shahnavaz’s test shoots (above), which are very natural and organic.

(1) Shahnavaz, R 2017, Fern, photograph, viewed 14 April 2020, <https://www.rosalineshahnavaz.com/fern/>

(2) British Journal of Photography, 2017, Book: Fern by Rosaline Shahnavaz, viewed 14 April 2020, <https://www.bjp-online.com/2017/07/book-fern-by-rosaline-shahnavaz/>