Fergus Riley’s passion for photography was born in the skate parks of his youth. Not quite taking to the sport as much as his friends, Riley decided to capture them on his point and shoot. Introduced to the beauty of film through two 35mm disposables he bought for a summer festival, picking up the developed images ignited a spark, and Riley has been experimenting with the medium ever since. Inspired by the social landscapes photographed by Lee Friedlander, Riley’s subject matter spans portraiture, landscapes and movement. His current venture: “a video project about a man who makes eyeballs.”

Name: Fergus Riley

Age: 25

Location: London, originally Somerset

Camera of choice: Whatever I have access to. I’m definitely a culprit for not taking certain photos because I feel I don’t have the right camera on me. But really you should always just take the photo, even if it’s on your phone.

Preferred subject: I shoot a lot of people and movement, but recently I’m loving landscapes.

Favourite time of the day to shoot: Dusk, 100%.

Most recent photo you took: A scan of my worn-out running shoes.

How you first became interested in photography: I used to hang around in skateparks a lot, but was never as good a skater as some of my friends. My friend Sol had a camera and used to make skate edits, so I figured I would get a camera too. When we went to our first festival, my digital camera was too big to take, so I got two 35mm disposables instead. Afterwards, I took them to be developed at Boots and experienced that feeling of getting film back for the first time. I was hooked. I bought an Olympus MJU and got to work!

Biggest influence: My A-Level teacher, Gareth Fareham, had the biggest influence on my photography. He was a very inspiring mentor and introduced me to some of my favourite documentary photographers.

Favourite photography series/book: I have always loved Lee Friedlander’s series The Little Screens. So simple but never gets old. It’s everything a series should be for me: accessible, surreal and beautiful.

Current project/s: I’m working on a video project about a man who makes eyeballs.