JONATHAN CHERRY: What was the last photography book you picked up?

SALVA LOPEZ: After saving for a while, finally I got “Sleeping by the Mississippi” by Alec Soth.

JC: Give examples of two people who inspire you?

SL: I guess one of the most inspiring and helpful people has been my friend Carlos Albalá. In part, thanks to him, I found a way to follow.

Anyway, my relationship with my girlfriend Ana is very rich. We both are progressing together in photography, and this shared progress is very special.

Moreover, I could name lots of people, books and blogs very inspiring to me. I think what is most important for a photographer is to be always aware of everything and being kind of “sponge” of the world surrounding us.

JC: What equipment do you use when photographing?

SL: What I have always is my small Contax T3 by me. For projects more planned I use 6x6 or 6x7 (Rolleiflex and a 6x7 Pentax). I really love the depth and texture they have. However, in the not too distant future I would like to introduce myself to the large format world.

For all professional work I use a Canon EOS 5D MKII; nowadays, they ask you for the results the same day you are shooting! Besides, it is safer for doing that kind of work.

JC: What is ‘Roig 26’ all about?

SL: Roig 26 is a project that I have been making over the last 5 years; During this time I’ve been living with my grandparents in “el Raval”, a neighbourhood in the centre of Barcelona.  In these years I’ve photographed moments and details of their lives. They have been in that flat more than 60 years, and my grandmother was born there. The space itself is their life’s stage.

This is a very special and emotive series for me. These years had been the best of my entire life, and these pictures are a memory of them.

But this series still isn’t finished, these last months I’ve been taking more photographs and I’m trying to finish it. My idea is to make a book that I hope to have ready in a few months.

JC: What is next in the pipe line for you photographically?

SL: I still don’t know … I want to focus on a project for a long while and work it hard. Actually, I’ve received lots of information through some courses, books, etc. I am a little blank-minded…

Lately, I’ve started to walk around a river near Barcelona which is very important to its history. However, I still don’t know what I can I get from there … I believe that’s a good project, but it requires time which I don’t have right now.

Besides, I’m doing an introspection of some of my old nightmares through photography. I would like to do another book with that, but as always, I still need too much work on that issue.

What I know for sure is that I will keep on taking photographs with my small camera to all the interesting things I see, and uploading it to my photoblog. 

JC: What makes a successful portrait?

SL: In my opinion, the one who arrives beyond being a beautiful picture, and tells me something about that person, although it was a very personal vision or even a fiction.

JC: Any other thoughts? 

SL: Enjoy!