South London photographer D.Wiafe has a knack for turning everyday scenes of urban life, into vivid stills that are almost cinematic in nature. D.Wiafe’s endearingly gripping photo series of British youth culture, such as ‘Borough Kids,’ show a tough yet endearing side of what it means to be young and British.

When he’s not shooting, D.Wiafe is a resident lecturer at Coventry University, and founder of the artist-teacher scheme ‘Our World Untitled.’ Inspired, we sat down with him for a bit, and got the info on his camera of choice, and more:

What have you been up to lately on the photography front?
Completing a series entitled ‘Girl Story’; a new piece of work that explores girl culture in the electronic age. I’ve also been mentoring and helping develop the next generation of photographers.

How would you describe your style?
I wouldn’t. My photographs have their signature qualities, but ultimately they’re a visual extension of myself: my thoughts, my interpretations.

Who would you love to shoot that you haven’t already and why?
Perhaps Sia, for her eccentricities as an artist and the intimacy of the narratives in her songwriting. I’d also like to explore, at some point, the gap between the traditional and modernity in contemporary Japanese youth culture.

What’s the worst experience you’ve had on a shoot, or trying to get a shoot with someone?
There have been clichés, such as being stood up on shoots or being asked to shoot a grime artist with their jeans hanging off their bums. The worst experience was a shoot with Kidulthood’s Noel Clarke. For aesthetic reasons, I had to replace the biography of Barack Obama he was reading with a Rudyard Kipling hardback. We didn’t realize that it had a Swastika on the front cover. When I gave the book to Noel, he had this look on his face, like “what’s this racist business?” It was then I looked at the front cover and noticed the symbol. It’s likely the symbol was published in its non-Nazi context... but valuable lessons were learned that day.

What is the make and model of your favorite camera and why?
My first camera, the Mamiya RB67. It’s an old model Mamiya that’s almost a relic now. I grew with this camera, came to understand my process and the play of light through it. This history has made it important to me.

How much did you spend on it?
I brought it on eBay years ago from a wedding photographer who was turning digital for £700. It hurt my pockets at the time, but has since been a worthwhile investment.

You mentioned that it’s your most reliable camera…how so?
It’s been dropped, survived British rainfall and yet works perfectly, and is still the camera I prefer to shoot my personal work on.

Does it take better shots than other cameras?
Not necessarily. There are more advanced Mamiya models and Hasselblad kits that technically give you more range in terms of aperture and lenses. For me it’s a love affair with its ability to endure and the amount of detail from light it translates to film.

What’s the best feature on the camera?
When it pops out of the camera bag, people take you seriously instead of mistaking you for a kid who just passed his Photography A-Level.

How many of them have you owned?
Thankfully, only one, though I can’t say the same about the film backs.

Can you show us your favorite shot that has been taken with that camera, and tell us why you like it?
One of them would be ‘Away From,’ from the Borough Kids series. It was one of those moments where you catch that perfect marriage between your personal vision, the sitter’s emotional depths and the camera’s ability to capture the detail in the scene and commit the lighting set-up to film.

What’s the worst camera that you’ve ever used and why?
The same Mamiya RB67. It can also be a temperamental piece of equipment if you don’t treat it with care. It’s a love/hate relationship.

~Donald Crunk @ Styleslut

All photo by D.Wiafe