My name is Morteza Eslahchi, but I go by Dr. Morty. I work as a researcher and university lecturer, but photography has always been my greatest passion.
I have been photographing all my life. The first time I truly felt like a photographer was during a school trip when I was 12 years old. I borrowed my family’s camera and started photographing the people I saw along the way. My parents were not very pleased because I was not in a single photo myself. Many years later, I realized that what I had been intuitively drawn to is called street photography.
In 2001, I began taking photography more seriously. During a journalism course, I gained a deeper understanding of the medium, and after the course I bought the camera I could afford, a simple Russian Zenit.
I love analog photography and work with everything from 35mm and medium format to large format. For me, the process doesn’t end when the shutter is released. The real magic continues in the darkroom, where each image slowly comes to life through light, chemistry, and time.
When I photograph, I strive to capture more than what is merely visible. I want to capture the atmosphere, the way the light falls across a space, the glances exchanged between people, and the small moments that often pass unnoticed. For me, photography is not just about documentation, but about preserving the feeling of a moment so that long afterward the image can still convey the same presence, atmosphere, and emotion that existed at that time.
I am a member of the Swedish Association of Professional Photographers (SFF). You can also visit my profile on the SFF website to learn more about my work and professional practice.
Photographer: Mattias Häggström