interview by Heidi Kewin & Cheryl Ezekiel
We met Essie at Kiosk, a tiny independent coffee shop tucked away in the cobbled streets of York. As the aroma of freshly brewed coffee filled the space, so too did Essie’s enthusiasm for photography. Perched comfortably, she guided our conversation with warmth, speaking candidly about her journey as a photographer – from working at Vi, formerly a small coffee shop in York, to choosing her own path of capturing life with her lens.
Over time, Essie has made connections. From working at Vi, she created bonds with customers and other small businesses. “It makes it easier because I care about hospitality. It can be hard to market yourself as a business.”
Clients became friends, she told us, who trusted her with her eye and expertise. By prioritising building relationships with clients and proceeding with the work, Essie holds herself responsible for making her clients feel relaxed in front of the camera. “I’ve tried to focus on being a friend before a photographer — I try to make people feel more comfortable around me because trust usually follows that. The most work I’ve done is for Black Wheat Club [a bistro nestled in the centre of York] and I remember when we had our first meeting before I started shooting for them, they said: ‘We trust you. Just do your thing.’ And that was very special for me. I prioritise building relationships with clients because people naturally settle in better when they feel comfortable around you. You can easily tell when someone is feeling awkward. It’s not just me pointing a camera at them – it’s me trying my best to make them feel their best.”
“I did a couples shoot for some friends and one of them absolutely hates being in front of the camera, and I told him to look at his partner and he’d be fine. When you’re looking at the person you love and thinking about how much you love them, your body will naturally relax. You don’t have to pose for that. And when you look at the photos, the ones where he looks the most relaxed and content are the ones when he’s not looking at me — he’s looking at her.”
Essie does not shy away from creating her own style rather than conforming to another. “I prioritise warmth in my editing,” she told us, adhering to a certain palette in order to retain her aesthetic. Editing and creating a personal style comes with its cons, Essie told us: “I don’t ever want something I’m so passionate about to become less to me because I’m paid to do it. But if I ever won the lottery, I would offer massive discounts or do work for free because I just love it so, so much.” Hopefully, she keeps her word.
Retaining photography as a hobby while still producing client work is how she maintains this passion, having learned how to execute style over time and continuing to experiment with it. Essie enjoys seeing her journey progress on social media as it is a documentation of her journey in achieving her artistic style.
“I like things to feel almost lived in. A lot of my work is unposed and is exactly how the moments happen. For example, when I’m taking photos for a restaurant, I really enjoy the tables with used napkins on them, and plates with sauce everywhere. I like things to feel like the way they actually feel to be in them.”
This prompted us to recall one of Essie’s recent shoots, where she placed a fried egg hanging from a washing line on a peg and photographed it, to which she chuckled. “I enjoy things that don’t really make a lot of sense. Not everything needs to be curated, and not everything needs to have a specific purpose of why it’s there and what it’s doing there. Laundry is such a normal part of life, and so I liked using that in a different way than how it’s normally used.” Her family is full of vibrant, creative people, which boosts her own creativity in a very stimulating environment.
Anyone who is familiar with social media will understand that algorithms can be time-consuming, but Essie does not lose her passion, allowing the algorithm to freely take its course. People relate with what she cares about, whether it looks cool or makes sense. The fried egg photo stands as Essie’s most popular photo.
“I spent a lot of time trying to be what everyone else wanted me to be, even in my personality. Growing up, I’ve come to realise that the things I appreciate most about people are the things that aren’t always super pretty and curated. I’m learning to enjoy my personality more now, because these are the things that separate me from another person.”
When asked how she felt about pursuing photography over university or traditional routes, Essie claimed: “It can be really difficult because it’s common for photographers to have a really specific niche – for example, a wedding photographer or a restaurant photographer – but this felt almost too constricting for me. When I first started dating my husband, we would always talk about how he had so many passions and hobbies, and I didn’t really have anything like that. Coming to the decision of being a photographer was a moment that made me think, ‘Yeah, this makes so much sense, and it feels right.’”
“I don’t try to hide the fact that I’m new to this, or act as if photography has been my lifelong dream, because it hasn’t. I don’t want a hierarchy with myself.”
When Essie married her husband in California, she wasn’t aware of how much she would be influenced by her own wedding photographer, Kari Tello. “I chat with her quite regularly now, since becoming a photographer. She embodies a lot of things I care about. Her style is very beautiful and warm, but also her mindset is very similar to mine, in that we both want to capture how it feels as well as how it looks.” Essie also touched on the comforting aspect of having someone more experienced in the industry to turn to.
When asked about what the key difference was between shooting for a restaurant and shooting for couples, Essie’s answer was instant: “I want couples to remember that they did something special and they have photos to remember it. I want it to feel real, rather than ‘We got these photos from a staged photoshoot we did.’ For couples, these could be the photos that they then show to their children when they’re married. I want to encapsulate the season of life that they’re in, as if we’re freezing it and preserving it.”
Of course, asking Essie about the future of photography wasn’t something we could miss. “AI irks me so much,” she exclaimed when asked about the influence of it on her work. To our surprise, “Most photographers will use AI in their editing, such as to remove unwanted elements in a photo.” But Essie is a firm believer in not using AI to come up with ideas – choosing to believe in her own creativity. We recalled a recent news moment where Vogue used an AI model – which Essie described as “heartbreaking”, stating we should learn to produce things, not generate them digitally. “What is the point? Creativity is such a cool thing.”
“People ask me if I am worried about AI taking my job, when recently, a really stupid thing happened. I was trying to use AI to remove some people from the background of a graduation shoot, and it turned them into a little, strange-looking woman – so at this point, I am definitely not worried.”
We concluded the talk by asking Essie if she had any advice for young creatives who also want to carve their purpose in the world. “It’s actually crazy how you turn eighteen and are immediately flung into the question of ‘Well, what are you going to do with your life?’ It can be easy to miss things that you could be so good at and you’d have no idea. I don’t think it’s ever too late to start caring about something.”
“Take photos without a purpose,” she told us. “Take pictures just to take pictures – and experiment with lots of different styles. Just figure out what you enjoy doing. Keep some photos for yourself, too – not everything has to be for social media. Everything will fall into place when it needs to.”
Essie concluded by saying, “For people finding their passion much later in life, focus on what you find beautiful and care about. Capture it in your way.” In her journey, she has learned that experience isn’t everything. She believes that no one can criticise you as long as you’re passionate and eager about something. She also added that it can be easy to miss things you could be so good at and it’s not too late to care about something.
“My relationship with Jesus also changes the way that I view the world. Knowing that each thing was created with such purpose and intention helps me to try and see the world through that lens. Finding ways to capture people, places and things is a way that I try to bring glory to God. I believe there is such beauty to be found and I love having a way to show that.”