Debby Besford Photography

THE ART OF ROLLER SKATING. As a teenager I was a competitive artistic roller skater, and for the last five years my personal project has focused on Female Champion Artistic Roller Skaters, a project naturally inspired by my own love of the sport. The idea of taking the portraits of the skaters at home came from my own experiences as a teen skater, where my proud parents took photos of me poised in my skates with trophies clasped in hand. These documented moments mark a truly important chapter in my teenage life and one that I feel can now be celebrated further for the girls in this project. My objective is to showcase this often forgotten sport with an original eye. Sadly, Artistic Roller Skating is often overshadowed by ice skating. The sport has many facets to it, from artistic figure and free skating to disco and street skating. I wanted to demonstrate a visual contrast by removing them from the ‘show’ of the rink and instead using the background of a domestic, intimate situation, reminiscent of my own. Location: Great Yarmouth.

This photographic project on Young Offenders was very special as I had the opportunity to visit twice and get to know the boys - before they left to work in the community. Due to the sensitivity of the subject I was not able to continue the work in more depth. It was a priviledge to be invited - And see so many positive sides to their environment and the relationship they had with one another and the staff - This centre is the only one of its kind in France.

Circo Raluy is one of the oldest travelling family run circus in the world. These extraordinary people gave me access to their daily lives in Barcelona, Spain. They are the Raluy family and have been performing for over a century. The Raluy Circus is a circus company founded in Catalonia , with unique characteristics both for its recreation of the circus's historical environment and for its exclusive family name. It still survives and entertains today.