Tirion Jenkins, or ‘Tirion Eilir Haf’ when it comes to photography, has
grown up traveling around the world. A natural geographer and travel
photographer, Tirion photographs the world around her, capturing the play
of light wherever she goes. Her background in the performing arts makes her
outgoing and uninhibited. She is currently currently based in London
working as a freelance event photographer and graphic designer alongside
assisting in gallery management. Completely free spirited and taking
pleasure in a fresh challenge, she would move across the globe at the drop
of a hat should the opportunity arise.

Interviewed by Lauren Engel

Describe yourself in one sentence

A kooky young girl who dreams big and works hard to make those dreams a reality.

Tell us about your upbringing. How has it shaped the person you are now?
Travel is a huge part of my life, it has made me the person I am today and I’m sure it will determine the person I will be in the future. Offspring to wanderlust infected parents, I was swept to a new country almost every two years growing up. My memories of childhood resemble flicking through the pages of a National Geographic. As a young child, I grew up with the jungle of Borneo as my garden. I remember looking out the window and seeing monkeys swinging in the trees, they used to climb into our garden and dig up the pineapples we had growing. My three sisters and I would climb trees in the jungle, roll around in the mud for fun and got used to calling for dad whenever a snake would get in the house. When we were barely bigger than toddlers we moved to Australia and traveled around in a big six-person tent, my parents and four little girls, moving from campsite to campsite; from Perth on the West coast all the way to Byron Bay and finally settling north of Brisbane on the sunshine coast. We lived on 15 acres in the mountains of Conondale, had chickens as pets, a compost toilet, showered with buckets of water because of the drought and would browse the market at the eco-village ‘Crystal Waters’ down the road on the weekends. I tend to not tell people this story because it sounds like I’m making it up but I promise I’m not.

We next moved to Hong Kong for two years and then had a stint in France, where we lived in the medieval town Carcassonne eating pains au chocolat from the local bakery and quickly learning to speak French after being immersed into an all-French speaking school. After a few more years in Australia we finally decided to relocate to Hong Kong for high school. Hong Kong quickly became our home, we lived on Lamma Island, a ‘green’ fishing village island which has no cars and lots of bikes. I moved to London to study Geography at UCL (I think you can see where I got that idea from) and last year was spent living in Los Angeles, I studied World Arts & Cultures at UCLA and managed to secure an internship at a gallery which meant I could extend my visa and stay out there longer. After visiting Shanghai for a photography fair with the gallery in September I’m now back in London finishing my degree and hoping the future holds more travel.

“Offspring to wanderlust infected parents, I was swept to a new country almost every two years growing up. My memories of childhood resemble flicking through the pages of a National Geographic.”

Tell us what made you want to start photography
I became interested in photography when I was around 13, everything around me was so visual and it wasn’t that I wanted to document it, it was that I wanted to further explore what I was seeing around me. My parents bought me my first camera, a little red point and shoot to take to Yangshuo in China with me on a school trip. I remember China being a whole other world, Yangshuo has the most picturesque landscape and my obsession with photography grew. I saved up for my first DSLR when I was around 14, I taught english on Saturday mornings and jeopardized my health by not eating and scrimping on my lunch money. When I bought that Nikon D40 I took pictures of everything- leaves, flowers, raindrops, stones. I was obsessed with how visuals became enhanced through a lens.

How would you describe your photographs?
My photographs focus a lot on light – sunsets, early mornings, late afternoon. Sunlight filtering through trees, casting silhouettes, making things glow. I think that’s what I loved about LA so much. It’s golden, and pink and fiery red, California is like a dreamland.

Which photographers do you look up to and why?
It might sound cliché but my two favourite photographers of all time are Steve Mccurry and Tim Walker. Both extreme opposites in what they photograph, yet they both create and capture these stunning almost surreal images. I love all things colourful, and their pictures are colourful both in content and aesthetics.

What/who is your muse?
Sunlight. Sunlight inspires me and breathes life into me and it makes me want to photograph everything.

In terms of who, I think I’d say my sisters. They’re these three tall blonde beautiful girls and I’m kind of short and brunette. I toyed with some fashion photography when I was in Hong Kong, forcing my sisters to let me dress them up and pose for me while they were eaten alive by mosquitoes. They all later on went to do modeling work and I like to think I had a hand in that.

What would be your ultimate goal for photography?
I have this farfetched dream of simultaneously aspiring for both National Geographic and Vogue. When I graduated high school my Geography teacher bought me this huge National Geographic photography book, he signed it and presented it to me in front of the whole school and told everyone I wanted to work for National Geographic. I should probably start planning on how I’m going to get there, but like I said it’s mostly just a fantasy I like to imagine sometimes.

What is your perception about real love?
I believe ‘real love’ exists. I believe you can experience true, deep love for someone, but I also believe that ‘real love’ isn’t necessarily forever.

The moments you are lying in your bed..which thoughts come to you?
I think about the future a lot at the moment, I’m trying to plan where my next chapter will be when I graduate university which is both terrifying and thrilling.

What are the main differences you see in NYC/ LA
New York and LA couldn’t be more different. LA is the love of my life and honestly I can’t say I liked NY all that much when I went. LA is exactly how it’s portrayed in the movies, sun, smiles, sneakers for every occasion, sipping green tea in cafes. I was actually shocked how nice everyone was, opening a bank account felt like going to Disneyland. In New York I ordered a bagel and nearly got yelled at. New York is of course a lot more walkable than LA though- being able to go gallery hopping along the Upper East Side or catch the subway to go to Broadway was such a novelty.

Travel seems to be a big part of your life, what have you learnt from it?
Traveling has definitely shaped my character. I’ve learnt to pack up my life, get on a plane that same day and start a new chapter. I’ve learnt rough estimations of different currency conversions and time differences between countries. I’ve learnt to live independently and away from family how to keep moving forward. I think the most important thing I’ve learnt that is relevant to my life right now is that I can’t imagine a future that isn’t as internationally oriented as my past.