Bored Panda reached out to Brock Elbank to find out more about his recent projects, although first, we asked about the beginning of his photography career and the initial inspiration for his work. Brock told us: “At the age of 14 I knew I wanted to try to make my living taking pictures, after being inspired by Anton Corbjin’s artwork on U2’s The Joshua Tree album cover in 1987, to be precise. Anton’s work during this period documenting bands was a constant source of inspiration, excitement, and a visual guide.”
Since many photo enthusiasts and beginners are wondering what to do to get to this professional level and become a fantastic photographer, we wanted to know more about his photo journey. Brock told us: “I did study to learn the basics of the form, I went straight from high school to art college where initially I was tossing up between graphic design and photography, then I went to uni to study photography. But even though I moved to London confident that I knew it all, you only really begin to grasp how steering a photoshoot is when on set, that’s when you really learn the craft. Whether I’m fantastic or not is open for debate, the subject matter I document is for sure.”
Next, we asked Brock about the inspiration behind his unique portraits. He said: “When I started out, it was in fashion and I always liked models that had a more individual look and as I gravitated to men’s fashion, often ‘street cast,’ as I found there were many great subjects out there. As a person and photographer I would describe myself as someone who is naturally drawn to the unique individual, I see beauty in what many see as flaws in society and the media, who hopefully presents these incredible-looking human beings in a positive light and assists in celebrating the human form in all its different unique ways.”
We were curious about the process of selecting models for the photo project and wondered whether the photographer himself searches for potential subjects or if individuals reach out to him to participate. Brock said: “When I embark on a new portrait series, either the organization that has commissioned the work reaches out to their members or I simply launch the series through my Instagram page, via an automatic response email outlining how to apply for the work. How are they selected, well, it’s never that someone applying isn’t right for the series, it’s simply about balance, diversity, and documenting as wide an array of subjects as possible.”
Asked about models' reactions to being invited to his photoshoots, Brock explained: “It tends to be a mixture of emotions because many of these incredible individuals are really stepping outside of their comfort zone to be documented for any series. Many have not sat for a portrait of this nature, so probably the lack of knowing the process may cause nerves, but I am drawn to the slight sign of vulnerability because this to me shows real strength, a real sign that this person wants to move forward.”
Next, we wanted to know if any of Brock’s projects have been a part of an exhibition that people could visit and see live. He told us: “Yes, I have, and this is always the conclusion goal for any body of work, as sharing a space with the talent able to view their works up close larger than life-size is an incredible feeling. Anyone who is creating anything wants to show some level of their work in my opinion, especially when your aim is sharing minority groups, presenting people from all corners of the globe to raise awareness in a positive way. We’ve exhibited BEARD in London, Berlin, Sydney, and Kristianstad Sweden, Freckles in Sweden, and How Do You C Me Now? in London, the U.S., Scotland, AND even featured as part of The Portrait of Humanity exhibition in Space!”
Finally, we were interested in some ongoing projects. The photographer told us what he is currently working on: “Scars have been my most recent series that was abruptly put on hold during the pandemic, as people couldn’t travel and nobody was allowed to visit my home studio. I remember in March I had 21 overseas subjects confirmed and lined up for the coming months and within a 6-day period they one by one had to sadly cancel, along with two further series and two exhibitions.”
Lastly, Brock Elbank shared with us some more details about the foundation he set up in early February 2022. He said: “We set up The Brock Elbank Foundation to have a team of people that had skillsets I did not have to assist me to continue doing this type of work, because there are many subjects that we feel need to be documented, shown in a positive light and guide the viewer into their unique worlds, so they can learn and understand something they may have never seen before.”
