‘She’s a Londoner on a serious mission and one I wouldn’t dare mess with. I love the star tattoo on her left arm and her expression. She’s looking dead ahead and walking fast, as if telling Camden tourists to stay well clear of her way, whilst keeping a firm grip on her mobile. That’s the London attitude.’
‘This man was standing near the Costa across from Kentish Town station. I just loved how his beard almost merges with his hat to become one. Did he get the sunglasses from the shop behind him? One reason I take photos of older people is I that I always wonder if anyone still does. So I do my part but I somehow wish I could meet them again and let them have a copy of the photo.’
Goodden was born in the UK but raised in a village in France. So you can imagine how he felt arriving in London for the first time age 16. “I ended up in Camden like most tourists,” he says. “Never had I seen such a place: punks, rastamen, people who don’t conform to the norm: it just cemented Camden as the coolest place on earth.”
‘I was waiting for my wife one afternoon just by Kentish Town station and saw this guy at the library. He was listening to music, soaking-up the winter sunshine across the window without a worry in the world. It was a stark contrast with the madness of the street. I felt a bit jealous of his calm.’
With a dislike for authority “and what’s considered normal”, even to this day, Nicholas feels at home around our patch. How did he get his subjects to pose? “None of the people I photographed in my series called The Great Londoners was ever aware I took their photo.”
‘Another shot I took in the lower end of Kentish Town Road. I’m particularly drawn to capturing moments of rest, those breaks in our hectic lives: people alone, lost in their thoughts. I like to think he is enjoying his break, not really wanting that cigarette to ever end.’
‘I saw this woman coming a mile away and I wasn’t going to miss on that photo. She was walking up Camden High Street from Mornington Crescent on a sunny autumn morning which explains the shades. She’s a true local and looks as if she’s on a mission. I’ve had a few people scream “Kurt Cobain lookalike”, whilst others pointed at the Learn English sign above her head.’
‘Winter’s always a tricky time to take photos. It’s cold and all you want to do is be at home with a lovely roast chicken. That particular evening I stayed out for an hour until I couldn’t hold my camera anymore. Rush hour in the evening means people are less likely to notice me. They’re just too busy rushing home. This woman was on the phone and had great style I thought. And then I saw the fox wrapped around her neck. I had to take the shot and she was too busy with her call anyway to even notice me.’
At the age of 14 he left home to study to be a chef for five years in a French cookery school. “It developed my sense of composition. There are lots of similarities between cooking and taking photos. You find the right ingredients that work together, your “frame” can also be your plate; and then in 2000 I bought some decks and vinyl and have been DJing hard techno ever since. I also dabble with illustration. Photography is only a part of my passion for creativity.”
‘This was shot on Kentish Town Road. I’ve seen this man many times before and wanted to photograph him. On that particular spring day his hair was very neat and his jacket probably kept him too warm. I often wonder what is going on in people’s minds. A reason I don’t tell people I’m taking their photo is it’s the only way you can capture their real self. It leaves way more unanswered questions than answers.’
The main thing, Goodden stresses, with these images is that he thinks “all of them are beautiful. I would not publish photos which could be mistaken or misinterpreted for mockery. Instead I try as much as possible to present them with as much grandeur as possible. I was attracted to photograph them because they look great. They are the Great Londoners.”
‘ One warm summer morning I saw this lady standing in the middle of the pavement. It was a Sunday on Camden High Street between Camden Town station and Mornington Crescent. She’d just bought some fruit and seemed more interested in what was going on down the street than listening to whoever it was she was speaking to. I liked her facial expression so I took the shot.’
And people in high places agree too, as he’s picked up awards, being included in the 20 Most Influential Street Photographers of 2015 and, this year, as one of the Top 20 UK Photographers on the web.
‘This is my favourite shot of the entire series. I relate a lot to this man for some reason. I love the beautiful morning light falling on his balding head. He isn’t your typical or obvious Camden dweller, in fact he’s very smart and feels a little out of place. He was so absorbed in his thoughts that he’d probably forgotten about that cigarette in his left hand.’
Find out more: nicholasgooddenphotography.co.uk/london-blog or follow him on Twitter @NicholasGoodden