Photos by Joanna Maclennan

About Joanna Maclennan

I’ve been a professional photographer for the past 15 years. Having grown up in England, I moved to France in my early thirties and never looked back – though I still love visiting the UK. I’ve been based in Provence for over ten years now, where I live with my husband, our young daughter, and a goose.

I’ve always loved travel, different cultures and meeting new people – not to mention art, design and flea markets. Anywhere and anything that has a deep sense of time and place. My photography plays a huge part in this, while also being my greatest passion.

 I only work with natural light and mostly use an old Hasselblad camera. It requires time, with a very long exposure. They originally capture 6x6 images, but I have attached a digital back to bring it up to the 21st century. Still, the process is unhurried, which suits me perfectly. ‘Slow photography’ means seeking that precise shot, as opposed to firing off a thousand and leaving it to good fortune. Less is more. And through this process, I am able to get the depth and richness that I’m looking for, my photographs made atmospheric by differing textures and shadows. While much of my work is focused on interiors, I also do portraits and still lifes, drawn to faces and objects that tell a story. This approach has recently led me to experiment with wet plate collodion - a process that uses UVA light and creates portraits that are raw, real and very beautiful.

 I work for a variety of international magazines and newspapers - World of Interiors, House & Garden, The New York Times – as well as publishers such as Thames & Hudson and Gestalten. Clients include Magnolia Pearl, Christies UK, Jamb London and David Price Design.

 The nature of my work means I travel extensively through Europe, the USA and Australia.