Teen photographer from Plumpton quits college to start entrepreneurial career

Last year Rosanna Filmer, from Plumpton, told her parents she was leaving school midway through her A-Levels and, with an old Nikon camera, began life as a freelance photographer. Now she has her own website, a steady flow of commercial and publishing commissions, and has won an award. Rosanna won her first accolade on a volunteering expedition to the Indonesian jungle. “I like the occasional adventure. You’re at school basically from when you start walking. I didn’t plan on going to university anyway,” she said. “I just wanted to get out there and start doing something. It’s exciting seeing what you do and don’t like.” With no training, but a strong eye, she ‘played around’ with photography before focusing on subjects she finds most interesting, such as ponies, which she grew up around and has a special connection. Inspired by Mark Harvey, a National Portrait Gallery-exhibited artist, Rosanna’s first job in photography was to take pictures for a website advertising the family’s stud farm at Plumpton Green. She has snapped a pony club, gained commission from farming organisations and portraits of pets, and carried out commercial work, including at Lewes Old Grammar to photograph former fellow pupils. “I seem to have a natural connection with animals, which helps me capture those elusive images, showing the animal’s individual character,” Rosanna said. “I want the viewer to be able to see all the expressions. What I admire about Mark Harvey’s pictures is that there is so much to look at and yet so little in them. Your focus is entirely on the horse. That’s what I aspire to.” View Rosanna’s work at www.rgfphotography.com