With a bonobo friend, Democratic Republic of Congo
I’m a writer and a photographer, and I’ve been working as a journalist for over 20 years.
My passion is storytelling – combining words, photographs and moving images to try to connect people to subjects and places they may be unfamiliar with.
I’ve been lucky enough to produce photo stories around the world – in Afghanistan, Benin, Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, India, Rwanda, Somalia and Uganda, among others, touching on subjects such as conservation, climate change and tourism.
I also work closer to home. In 2015 I began a long-term documentary project – South London Stories – exploring some of the harsher aspects of life in the part of London that is my home.
It is ongoing, and I work with small, local charities and NGOs to highlight the vital and underreported work they do, and tell some of the extraordinary stories of the people they help. I work collaboratively with people, usually over the course of many months or years.
Today, as well as running South London Stories, I produce and manage digital content for editorial, agency and NGO clients. You can see examples of my charity and commercial work here and my portraiture here.
I also run photography workshops, and have previously worked with groups of refugees, young carers and advice centre clients.
My editorial work has been published by The Sunday Times, The Observer, The Independent, Condé Nast Traveller, Huffington Post, Evening Standard, Metro, Buzzfeed, MSN and others.
My corporate and charity clients include Afghanaid, The British Film Institute, ClimateCare, University of the Arts London, The Anne Frank Trust, The Foundling Museum, The Woolmark Company, Simon & Schuster, Glass Door, Sense About Science, Social Enterprise UK and the Institute of Physics.
For commissions, or to licence any of my images, you can reach me at james@jameshopkirk.com.
I look forward to hearing from you. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy my photographs and stories.
James Hopkirk, London, 2025