Photographer Hannah Woodcock immortalizes her subject’s most intimate moments. Straightforward, honest, and empathetic, the Nashville, Tennessee-based photographer’s gift is capturing genuine emotion. By thinking from the perspective of her subjects, Woodcock documents monumental events in a way that recalls what the memory truly felt like. The photographer, visual artist, and poet is proficient a
t capturing beauty that others too often fail to notice. “I try to relate to my subjects and look through the lenses from their point of view so they feel comfortable sharing their real sides safely,” she explains. Born and raised on the East Coast, Woodcock has a frank directness that helps her see things for how they are. As part of a military family that moved around frequently, creativity became her foundation as a child. Through paper, pens, and pencils she released her intense energy. “I would become bored easily and was disruptive at times so my mom’s solution was to start carrying around art supplies with her,” she remembers in regards to her first exposure to art therapy. Drawing, collaging, and constructing elaborate structures out of commonplace household objects were some of the first ways that she channeled the creative visions she saw in her head. A lack of resources spurred her ability to find splendor in any situation. Woodcock first became fascinated by cameras upon discovering her dad’s collection as a child. However, it wasn’t until her teenage years that she was able to actualize her interest. “We didn’t have money to afford film so I would just take pictures with my mind,” she remembers. Casual walks around her neighborhood with her father’s Pentax SLR, combined with watching a favorite television show in which the protagonist was a street photographer, inspired her to explore the genre. She enjoyed snapping pictures of people from afar as a way to celebrate who they are. “I always gravitated towards unfiltered snapshots that convey a moment in time,” she explains thinking back to the traffic light poles, churches, and skyscrapers that fascinated her. Some of her favorite photos to date are still of antique cars and skate ramps covered in spray paint, which Woodcock sees as sincere representations of real life. Woodcock’s aversion towards the artificial, also influenced her gritty, photojournalism style spiked with a dash of a vintage, moody aesthetic. As a self-taught photographer, she has always been fearless in terms of trying out different angles, lighting, and editing techniques. By keeping herself in an innocent, anti-perfectionist mindset, and looking to renowned renegades like poet Walt Whitman and painter Vincent Van Gogh as muses, she experimented until she got it right. “Get your worst ideas out of the way to find one what works,” says the practical photographer who is proud of her lack of formal training. She still swears by her habit of weeding through concepts until she finds a great success. Woodcock’s immense creativity also comes from her career origins, which began with photographing unglamorous objects like storage spaces, apartment complexes, and takeout meals. As one who has never enjoyed posing, directing or intruding upon her subject’s space, she felt at home photographing food and architecture. They catered to her desire to find inventive tactics to make the seemingly ordinary look original. However, in recent years portraits have become Woodcock’s preference and most recent challenge. Since she was hired to shoot her first surprise engagement, she has found immense fulfilment in recording her client’s most important days—particularly those charged with intense emotions. “One of my favorite photos is of a newlywed couple with their arms wrapped around each other where the husband is kissing the bride’s forehead,” she recalls in regards to the tender moments she is skilled at spotting. While the spur-of-the-moment booking process has its demands, the resulting scrapbook of joyful images makes it all worth it. Woodcock’s knack for detecting, extracting, and documenting genuine emotion ironically stems from her upbringing in which she felt repressed. After spending a good part of her life watering down her sensitivity, she is grateful to have a career where she can encourage others to emote. “As someone who always felt stifled, I want to inspire others who also come from dysfunctional households to use art as a healthy coping mechanism,” she explains in regards to her passion for art therapy. As one who has been through a great deal of her own suffering, she feels fortunate to have found painting, writing, and photography as a healthy escape. While recovering from a stroke that resulted in a depression, as well as the death of a loved one by su***de, art was her means of catharsis. She hopes that by sharing her own story she can inspire others to find their own creative medium to connect, process, and handle all that life delivers.
“Whether it was bringing leftover food to people living on the streets after my shoots for Uber Eats or being hired to capture someone’s love story, art and all of the experiences that have come along because of it transformed my life from negative to positive,” she concludes.
