We were lucky enough to catch up with William Temple to discuss the stories he tells with his inspirational photography, and how Replichrome I: Icon helped him with his recent switch from film to digital.

I have spent most of my career as a photographer shooting with film, but a recent move to Borneo forced me to convert completely to the practicalities of digital shooting. At first I wasn’t sure this was a great development, but since I ditched my DSLR, downsized to a more inconspicuous camera, and began using the Replichrome I: Icon presets, I feel like I have regained the exciting possibilities and endless variety which shooting with film used to provide. I now use Replichrome I: Icon for both documentary work and commissioned pieces.

I have had opportunities to shoot some astounding cultures and beautiful people around Asia in the past few years; in my local city, Kampong Ayer, or the ‘Water Village,’ which rises out of the river on stilts opposite the modern city centre, has become a subject which I visit frequently.

The miles of slatted walkways, which connect the rambling houses, afford privileged snapshots into a way of life completely different from the ostentation of the mainland. I often shoot in the late afternoons where I pass mothers rocking lazy babies to sleep, and men lounging on the wooden decks outside their houses, always willing to exchange a smile with a wandering photographer.

There is a timeless feel about the area, with the bustle of 21st century life only evident in the buzz of passing motorboats taking residents to and from the city. I try to capture my experiences of the people I meet and places I visit: the atmosphere, the quirks, and the detail. Whatever I encounter, whether it is the incongruity of a fruit-seller’s grandiose signet rings, or the surprising sight of a man and his cockerel enjoying the evening sun together, I like to find the beauty, and the humour, in the scenes I witness.

WILLIAM TEMPLE: THE WATER VILLAGE