Photographer Brock Elbank says he likes people that stand out, and he is finding them in a new series he is doing that celebrates freckled faces. Elbank says that almost all of his subjects endured teasing at some point in their lives because of their freckles, but he is a fan of the freckled look. According to Elbank, some of his photography sessions with his freckled models have bordered on being therapy sessions in which his subjects recount stories of how they have been treated as a result of their freckles.
However, Elbank believes that the freckled look is one that should be valued. He points out that when you walk along a street, so many people look the same. A freckled face is something arresting and different.
Some of Elbank’s subjects have more freckles than others. One woman was covered in freckles and reported that she had never been teased or had any problems as a result, but Elbank says she was an exception. However, he says that many of his subjects have made peace with their freckled looks and like their freckles. He also gets emails from people who see his series of photographs and write to him about their own experiences of being teased about their freckles as children.
Elbank finds his subjects in many places. For example, one young man was seen by his wife at a Gloucestershire organic farm. Elbank has done nearly 100 portraits and wants to continue the project in hopes of showing others how beautiful people with freckles can be.