Hikerdelic Inner Circle: Elle Brotherhood
Elle is a photographer and facilitator who works documenting creatives and independent companies. We chatted to her about community and always learning - she also gets involved with set design and art direction and runs workshops from her studio in Stockport.
What does creative flow look like to you?
My personal work is usually based around conversations I’ve had. Then there’s the chats with studio buds which always helps support, inspire and makes me laugh. Being surrounded by people who love being creative and chatting about random things also helps massively. I may take a walk around Stockport and put some tunes on and take photos with my film camera. If I’m feeling stuck I’ll wander down to Rare Mags and get some magazines. This often sparks
something. When I’m getting down to personal work in the studio I’ll put some incense on, some tunes or a podcast and get to gathering new images, print things out and get painting.
Tell us about a recent / upcoming workshop you're hosting.
I’ve started Photo Walks around Stockport that happen once monthly. In these walks we can talk about where each person is at with their photography. We chat about settings on the camera but my main objective is for people to think about their own style. What do they like to take photos of? What inspires them? Then we’ll wander around Stockport, with all of it’s facets and take a
look around.
What’s the most memorable campaign you've worked on / why?
I’m really thankful that I’ve worked on the Beaumont Organic seasonal shoots for the past few years. We’ll often go to a beautiful location that they’ve sourced and spend a few days photographing their latest collection of clothing. It’s always been a dream of mine to shoot on location abroad and last year we went to Portugal and shot for 2 days. To photograph in the sunshine is something else and makes a change from the climate we get in Manchester! Saying that I feel like all of the campaigns I’ve worked on are memorable.It’s all about the team and I learn something from each of them.
What do you love most about the community around you?
Our studio is based in Stockport, we set up our business here 5 years ago and ever since then I’ve fallen for the buildings and the people of Stockport. There are so many characters and I often take a walk through the town to gather inspiration. There will always be some random conversation with someone that I don’t feel you get in other areas. The community is so creative and a lot of us started our businesses with little funds and that’s why when you come to Stockport you’ll get people working on something they really believe in. We all want to grow the community in a creative way and are always looking to connect with
people and share any knowledge we may have. I’ll take a walk around the Old Town and pop into all of the shops and can have a good chat with the people in there and everyone is always so welcoming and funny. That’s what we need in the place we live right?
What’s next in your personal work?
I recently did a sale online of reasonably priced original painted prints, it was the first time I’d sold a bunch in one go! I’m going to continue with the idea of masking parts of the image with paint. It’s quite graphic and also focuses on the form of the objects. I enjoy looking at the design and craftsmanship of an object so I’ll be focusing on accessories, plant life, furniture and will throw some body parts in there. I think making personal work also helps develop my commercial
work. I’m always looking to learn and progress.
You can view more of Elle's work here https://www.onthebrink.studio/about-elle, she's wearing the Peak to precinct tee in Grey