Today we’re honoured to share our latest feature with emerging photographer Leia Ankers, who has rightly gained much recognition for her beautiful documentary and portraiture photography , particularly her most recognisable project ‘The Same as You’

We’ve been wanting to run a feature with her for a while now, ever since we saw a selection of her images on display at The Photo Parlour during Nottingham’s Off Centre photo festival back in 2019. So we’re thrilled that she found some time around her MA studies late last year to share some insightful words with us.

How Has The Pandemic Impacted Your Practice / Daily Life?

I mainly used my time in the first lockdown sharing my series ‘The Same as You’ on social media and my website for the first time. I hesitated for some time whether to share the series or not, I’m a bit of an overthinker! but I took full advantage of online platforms during the first lockdown. I was grateful for technology, as it allowed me not to feel so alone with my practice and pushed me to share my work.   

I must admit I rarely picked up my camera or made photographs during the pandemic. My mindset was in a different place in the second wave due to me seeing my partner going through a sudden loss of his grandfather to COVID-19. My main concern and priority were to support my loved one during this grief in uncertain times. 

So, Tell Us About Yourself

I’m a British documentary and portrait photographer. I spent a lot of my childhood at home due to my disability, I was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at age 3. I discovered photography in these years and used it as a way of having fun and coping whilst I was at home. 

These personal differences from a young age introduced me to the experience of stigma, of being the ‘Other’ and as I got older, I decided I wanted to take this into my photographic work. I wanted to change the way that people with dual sensory impairment and additional disabilities are perceived by society. This is how ‘The Same as You’ began, my aim to represent the perception of disability and to raise awareness. 

Are You Working On Anything At The Moment?

Currently I’m studying my MA at LCC and continuing to make images for an ongoing series of work, which I started after my series ‘The Same as You’ in 2019. Unfortunately, this series has been on the back burner since the pandemic but I’m slowly getting back into making work for the series.

How Have You Used Photography To Improve Your Mental & Emotional Wellbeing?

Growing up I was very shy, and the thought of conversations used to terrify me. But as soon as I had a camera in my hands this mental block disappeared, almost like magic. This is when I realised, I had found my purpose, the thing that makes me tick. When behind the camera, I’m in a flow which allows me to focus my energy not on outside concerns and worries but solely on the moment, Photography became and still is a therapeutic tool for me, a form of mindfulness. Photography helped me heal wounds that I created myself from a young age of stigmatising myself through my differences and I’ve used photography as way to channel and express my feelings. It's essentially guided me to find acceptance within myself that I thought I would never experience

On Reflection, As We Emerge From Isolation, What Lessons Will You Carry With You As You Look Towards The Future?

The pandemic taught me how to slow down, I changed the pace of how I was living rather than being on a frenetic treadmill. This is probably counterintuitive to many, but I’ve learnt rest is productive.

👋 Check out more of Leila’s work via the links below

Instagram: Click Here
Website: Click Here

All Images used with permission ©Leia Ankers