Jess Fine Pledges Authenticity.
Interview by Edie Hopgood.
Photographer, Jess Fine, captures life's passing moments with one swift click. Heralding from London-Town the now Melbourne-based photographer’s practice is ever-growing. From capturing the sub-cultures, the scenes of London and Bristol to breaking into Melbourne’s fashion orbit, Jess’ ability to tell each subject's unique story through her stills sets a new bar. Authenticity is at the centrefold of her practice, striving to record the world around her whilst simultaneously remaining true to her process.
EDIE HOPGOOD So, what prompted your move to Melbourne?
JESS FINE I moved here a year and a half ago. I'm originally from London but I lived in Bristol for around seven years, four of which were for study.
It's honestly the classic story, so fucking cliche. I was in South East Asia and my money ran out three months earlier than I had originally planned. Some of my friends were moving to Sydney and asked if I would come with them. I didn't really know anything about Australia but I knew, for some reason, that Sydney wasn’t for me. One of my friends used to live in Melbourne about two years ago and she suggested I move here. So I just did it.
EH So you came straight from South East Asia?
JF Yeah, I came from Bali which was spontaneous, but good, because I am a chronic overthinker—always planning ahead and thinking ‘what if this goes wrong.’
EH I’m the same. I’m like ‘What if I die if I pack the wrong shoes,’ shit like that.
JF Don't worry, I was like, ‘What if I forget my charger?’ like they don’t have iPhones in a different country.
EH What was your life like growing up in London?
JF I lived near Camden Town, which is in North-West London, and then I moved to Bristol when I was 17. I moved to study Fashion Communication, it was a three year degree, but during second year COVID hit. Two to three months into that year I moved back home to London because at the time everyone was freaking out and going back home. Our project briefs during COVID were still photoshoots, but over FaceTime. We had to FaceTime a model or a friend, position them in a room and take screenshots, and that would be your final photo submission.
It was such a horrible, depressing, weird time and the last thing I had the capacity for was trying to think of ways to be creative over FaceTime. I dropped out that year and went back and re-did my final year when COVID had passed, and this was when I started taking photography more seriously. I had lost my original uni group and joined a new group, so I came back and it was random classes with random people.
EH Sometimes that brings out your best work though, I feel like all the best artists are loners. You need to have that humbling stage where you’re like ‘I haven’t got a lot going for me right now,’ but then you don’t have any distractions.
In your work, there’s a lot of focus on community. How does your community that you have here differ to the one that you have in Bristol or London?
JF Obviously living in Bristol for some time, I built a whole creative hub. Then I moved to Melbourne and it was like starting from scratch. I didn’t know fucking anyone, I felt like a little kid again. I had worked so hard on building my confidence up over so many years through different social situations and networking events, and then I came here. It's hard to not feel like you’ve regressed, because you’re like ‘Why am I suddenly terrified of everyone?’
EH I guess you’re learning a social environment from scratch again, everybody interacts and kind of converses in very, very different ways here.
JF I've actually been thinking about this quite a lot. I feel like the best way I can describe it is that Bristol is a very small city and you kind of fall into a huge group. You're just there existing with all of your favourite people every day, all sat at the same spots. Day or night you can rock up, not ask anyone what they're doing, but you just know that people are going to be there. That was the social life I was living for so many years, and I loved it. Then I moved to Melbourne and the main difference here is that I have lots of pockets of different friends.
Since moving to Melbourne my photography has definitely become more fashion oriented, whereas back home, it was more based on street style, subculture and community. It comes back to the solid community I have at home, and that circle being structured around place or being. When I moved here, I felt like I wanted to take my work down a different path and experiment with new things. I’ve had a very different mindset in each city I’ve lived in and all of them are so beautiful in their own ways.
For me, that contributes to the journey of moving through the progression of my work, because you never want anything to stay stagnant—that’s why you see a lot of creative people up and moving—I always need to just be moving somewhere. I find it hard to stay put and sit with things.
EH I know you chase authenticity in your work. What steps do you take to ensure that comes across in your imagery?
JF Well, I want to feel immersed in the experience instead of just walking past and capturing something point blank. If anything, I want to capture the feeling attached to it. A lot of my photos are of friends or people that I know of, but if it is someone random, I make an effort to get to know them and make them feel comfortable. There are so many people out there whose lives you aren’t privy to, and you can see someone really cool but at the end of the day you know nothing about them.
There's something so beautiful about street style or other authentic modes of shooting. Photography often tries to follow too many rules. I'm not here to make you look perfect because that's not how humans are in their natural environment. My favourite thing is looking at photos that I feel connected to or that I can relate to. Even if it’s pictures of people playing football, for example—I don’t play or even really care about football, but instead of trying to connect with the sport, I instead focus on the individuals just truly being free, immersing themselves in what they love.
EH I did see a university project of yours focussed on football fans as its own subculture. Could you explain to me what the dominant subculture is in Bristol and if you think one exists in Melbourne?
JF The main element of Bristol’s culture, which stands out to me the most, is music. Massive Attack is one of my favourite trip-hop collectives who originated from there. Portishead is another of my favourite bands, also from Bristol. I strongly associate Melbourne with its music scene too—although here the landscape leans more toward techno and electronic music. Both cities share an incredibly uplifting spirit and a strong sense of community. That collective energy, the feeling of being surrounded by people who lift each other up, is really something special and something I feel lucky to be a part of.
EH Do you ever feel like you're trying to catch up here, having not lived here for your whole life?
JF Honestly, because I've only been here just over a year, I'm still in that mindset where I feel I always have to make the most out of my experience here. I have to remind myself that it’s important to reframe my mentality when I begin to feel overwhelmed with how much socialising that constantly surrounds me.
EH I know, I find myself thinking the same way. It's like, how lucky that there's too many cool events—I need to stop seeing it as something that's gonna hinder me.
JF Exactly. How fun that I get to go and see my friends, feel inspired by random people and I can produce a whole line of work from that.
EH Do you only shoot 35mm or digital as well?
JF When I was in England I was only shooting on film because I wanted to be in the moment. It's literally a one hit wonder—I'm taking it and I'm moving to the next thing. That was my vibe. I really wanted to bring that into everything I did, even if I was shooting festivals or events, I only took one shot per frame. Then I moved to Melbourne and I felt that I needed another avenue to feel like I’m progressing. So I went and did a random photography course in South Melbourne, and I learned so many additional things about photography that I hadn’t considered before.
I didn't have anything with me when I moved here, let alone my equipment. The course loaned me a Canon, which helped me learn so much and get comfortable using digital cameras over film. Honestly, I feel more confident and comfortable now working with digital than I do with film, which is probably why my work has changed so much.
EH I think that also talks to your geographical shift, too, with the process of 35mm aligning with the on the ground work that you used to do in Bristol.
JF Yeah, I've also gotten into a lot more post-production work since being here. I love doing a bunch of prints, scanning things in and fucking around with things on Photoshop. With digital shooting, you have so much more freedom.
For a long period of time, I boxed myself in and thought ‘Jess you are a street-style photographer who only shoots 35mm, that's your vibe, that's your niche,’ but it's not very commercial. I had convinced myself for so long that I didn't enjoy anything else, but I'm realising now that I can break into other avenues. I was honestly just too scared to try and fail, but it's all a part of the process. You have to learn, you have to fuck up. I will never stop shooting film though, because that's where I started. It's completely okay to try new things and then come back to old things too.
EH How did your work with DAZED come about?
JF I would just go on Google and type in like ‘DAZED contact,’ and all these random emails would come up. I would literally send so many messages to anyone I found, hoping for a reply someday. Then I saw they posted on Instagram seeking photo submissions for their DAZED Club 100, and I was like, ‘Fuck it, let me just send my photos over.’ They finally emailed me back saying they loved my work, and offered for me to shoot a festival for them called Wide Awake. So I went to this festival and it was the biggest imposter syndrome I've ever had. Then they asked me to shoot another festival last summer, Body Movements, and Mubi’s pre-screening of The Substance. I’ve also been included in other features showcasing some of my personal projects, which is dope! I am super grateful for that. too
I remember at uni, it’s such a classic, but they’d ask you to write down your top 5 job aspirations, and one of mine would always be to shoot for DAZED.
EH Manifestation, It works!
JF It does!
EH Out of all of your work so far, do you have an achievement that you're most proud of?
JF Honestly, probably my work with DAZED. That was just such an achievement for me because DAZED has been my favourite publication since I started becoming interested in fashion. For a title with so much influence and power within the industry, I think it’s beautiful how big they are on collaboration and inviting people into their community.
I do feel like, though, a big achievement doesn't always have to be a tangible thing, it could just be a mindset or you feeling confident enough to put yourself out there more. I think that in itself speaks volumes, more than, ‘I shot for this person one time’—it's a state of mind which you've worked yourself up to.
EH Definitely. I think if you are somebody that finds it hard to make the first push, when you do, you will often be left thinking ‘Why was I so scared to do this.’ It's very hard to take a leap when you're feeling comfortable.
JF Yeah, I really struggled when I first moved here because I felt very alone in a lot of ways, and as a result, took a bit of a hiatus from my creative work for a few months. A lot of my friends who are also creatives have really helped me feel inspired. Seeing their talent helps me to feel confident in my own. We should all build each other up more, I think that’s really important, and people forget to do that sometimes.
I feel like my confidence has blossomed over the past few months because I’ve really drilled into my head that just because I don’t know loads of people and I’m not from here, doesn’t mean I belong in this industry any less.
EH Yeah, there's always going to be people that you come across that confirm your talent in ways you could never for yourself. Being in an environment like Australia where people are constantly feeling imposter syndrome, it’s really hard to do it for yourself—kudos to the people that can.
JF One of my closest friends here, she's doing a PhD in cancer research—like she’s a scientist! Our fields couldn't be further from each other, but I think it's so important to be interested in what your friends are doing. She shows so much interest in my work, she'll sit with me and we'll regularly trade work stories. Just that exchange of communication with a friend or even a stranger can reignite a passion for what you’re doing because it makes you feel valued and that people care—not just about how professional you are or how good your work is. Nothing is more attractive than someone who’s driven and someone who’s doing shit for themselves, sometimes you just need one person to believe in you and to be like ‘Babe you're fucking killing it. You're doing great.’
EH Is there anything exciting you have coming up that you’d like to share?
JF I recently shot a really exciting editorial for a Melbourne-based magazine, which I’m so excited to come out with! The whole team was dope and I am hyped to see it all in print.
EH And do you have any ideas brewing for future projects?
JF I think I've fallen into the hole recently of kind of like forgetting to do my own passion projects. One of my biggest aims, which has been on my mind for many years, is that I really want to make a photobook that people have as a coffee table book, so hopefully you see that from me very soon.