Andrew Nelson b.1988
My photography style is vibrant and rich in detail. I'm drawn to iconic destinations, where I challenge myself to create something new. My work is rooted in my own style of street photography, with travel, abstract, and landscape contributing to my portfolio.
Although I've always loved photography, it took me years to begin. I had to overcome severe social anxiety before I could pursue something I'd always wanted to do.
Now that I've found the courage to create and share my work, I want to show people living with anxiety that creativity isn't something to hide from, it's something that can help them heal and grow. To show that the courage to create, despite fear, can become one of the greatest strengths they ever develop, a true mental health superpower.
“I want to show people living with anxiety that creativity isn't something to hide from, it's something that can help them heal and grow.”
Accolades
2x National Geographic UK Runner-up (2025 & 2026)
2x Published in Digital Photographer magazine (2024 & 2025)
Top 5 Digital Camera Magazine photographers of the month (2026)
Hasselblad competition winner (2025)
Hasselblad competition runner up (2024)
Published on Leica socials (2024)
Get to know me.
How did you discover photography?
One day in my teens, around 2007, my Dad came home from work with an Olympus E-410 DSLR. I’ve always enjoyed creative hobbies and this peaked my interest. At a young age I was passionate about cars, so I had a subject, a camera to borrow and a new form of creativity to explore. I really enjoyed it! And then I let social anxiety get the better of me… It would be a good few years until I picked up a camera again (2018), a good few years more before I conquered my anxiety and gained the confidence to take it seriously (2022), and a few years after that (2024) before I felt comfortable sharing my work with the world. In the years between I stayed close to photography as a fan, regularly visiting galleries and watching documentaries and YouTube videos, inspired by the creativity of others.
Who’s your favourite photographer?
I’m inspired by three photographers in particular. Andreas Gursky, Tom Hegen, and Edward Burtynsky. Their images are complex, dramatic, and packed with detail that makes you look twice. I love images that can be printed in large format, that can command your gaze for minutes, not seconds, and that you’re happy to see time and time again. I aspire to create images like this, in my own unique style.
What’s the best image you’ve taken?
I love one of my images from Tokyo. It was taken with an 82mm prism hand held over a 72mm lens at 1/45s. The buildings and signs are perfectly in focus in the background, and then a car splits the focus in half with beautiful downward streaks of lights from the headlights. In the foreground, a motion blur silhouette of a couple holding hands. The image is packed with detail, colour, and complexity.
To this date, its the only one i’ve printed and hung in my home.
What do you want to achieve?
Three goals:
Be published in National Geographic - DONE
Become a Hasselblad Master
Have a solo exhibition in a gallery
What are you shooting with right now?
Hasselblad X2D 100C
DJI Mavic Pro 4