Stockland Martel

In honor of this being the first day of school for most kids across the country, I thought I’d feature Luca Zordan, an especially gifted photographer of children. Although it’s not quite accurate to say that Luca photographs kids. His subject is actually childhood and all of the joy, wonder, potential, and magic that it represents. He captures the feeling of discovery that a child experiences as they come up in the world, and because he’s so attuned to kids—he and his wife have three daughters—his images always read as authentic and universal.

“Sometimes when I look through the lens at a child playing, laughing, or exploring, my camera becomes a time machine and I feel myself transported to memories of my own childhood,” says Luca, who has shot for magazines like Elle Junior, Grazia, and Junior, as well as ad campaigns for clients such as Replay & Sons, Catimini, Chicco, Guess, The Children’s Place, Oshkosh, and Crayola.

Luca, who was born in Venice, Italy, did not start out as a photographer of children. While studying art history in college, he worked as a darkroom printer for a famous  Italian ballet photographer and, after relocating Milan, went on to assist fashion photographers David Bailey, Oliviero Toscani, and others. He embarked on various personal projects during this time, including a series of panoramic New York photos that won him a European Kodak Award in 1992.

In the mid-’90s, Luca changed his focus to children, as he was drawn to their honesty and their inspiring sense of freedom. Having relocated to Miami (he’s now based in New York), he became the primary U.S. photographer for Vogue Bambini. And through the years, his dedication to photographing children as they are, and celebrating them as individuals, has only deepened. Luca has donated countless hours of his time collaborating on photo books whose mission is to raise money for kids in need. These include & Sons: Children Around the World, which benefited Doctors Without Borders, and The Children of China and The Children of Africa: South African Edition, both of which raised funds to enrich the lives of children suffering the effects of HIV/AIDS.

“I travel quite a lot,” says Luca, “and no matter where I go, the children are all beautiful in the same way—the Chinese, the English, the Icelanders, the Peruvians, the Japanese, the Africans… Let them play, let them run, let them jump, and you will always see the same inspiring enthusiasm for life.”

Here’s a look at Luca’s work. To see more, visit stocklandmartel.com/talent/luca-zordan/photography. Also of note: Featured personal project: Luca Zordan and “Sofia’s World” and Interview: Photographer Luca Zordan and stylist Tracey Jacob on shooting children’s fashion with unexpected sophistication.

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