From snapping royalty to honing in on heritage: How this photographer found her visual identity

Louise Helmfrid first picked up a camera at the tender age of 10. Now, at 23, one could say that the Stockholm-based photographer’s career is in full bloom. Scrolling her Instagram feed, one finds images bursting with life, emotion and colour. “I love shooting people,” Helmfrid says. “People who inspire me are the ones who have a clear vision of what they want and how they want something.”

Growing up in a household where creativity was embraced in the form of music and painting, an artist’s seed was planted in Helmfrid from a young age. However, it was karate, of all things, that led her to photography. What started as a fun hobby of documenting her competitions gradually turned into a potential career. By her late teens, Helmfrid was already shooting the Karate World Championships in Tokyo. “I think that was one of the first times I understood that, okay this is serious – I can do this for a living,” she says.

Since the World Championships, Helmfrid’s portfolio has only expanded. Mastering ever y thing from creative fashion shoots to documentary photography, she has had the chance to capture some of Sweden’s most famed faces, such as King Carl X VI Gustaf and singer Cherrie. What Helmfrid enjoys the most, though, is connecting with her subjects. “I love assignments where I get to spend a lot of time with the people I’m shooting because then it gets more relaxed and I get to capture more intimate moments,” she says, noting an especially personal experience in which she documented a birth.

For her Vogue debut, Helmfrid captures the thing that inspires her the most: heritage. Hailing from an Indonesian diaspora in Sweden’s Uppsala, Helmfrid has always been fascinated by her roots. “I love having my projects being near and dear to me. Something that always has been interesting for me with photography is telling the stories of people of colour,” she says.

“Visualising identity, heritage and celebrating those things are something that I always come back to.” Heading out to Högdalstopparna, a viewpoint located in southern Stockholm, Helmfrid shot a stunning series that combines traditional Indonesian elements with modern flair. Capturing loved ones – her mum, sister and two friends – surrounded by lush Nordic nature while dressed in vibrant ensembles crafted from traditional Batik fabric, Helmfrid created images that, in her words, feel “very genuine and very me.”

Her face beaming, she tells me that being featured in Vogue Scandinavia is “huge for me, it’s just very exciting.” “I think it’s really fun to know that other people like what I do,” she says. “I feel imposter syndrome heavily, so these things make me stop and realise that I’m actually doing something right.”

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