Torquille (Tor-kwill) De Jonge (Dee-Yong). Torq to those who know/talk/shoot with him.
Born in Vancouver – some years ago, he was born a happy baby, and when the doctor slapped the life into him, he knew he was destined to take great photos.
He had never held a camera until his Dad handed him his old Agfa when he was about 10, during a mountain hike…and was captivated by the results, and has never been without a camera since…except once in Greece during his mid 20’s when he felt “heck, any old camera will do”, and was subsequently unhappy taking one roll of pictures on an almost-disposable camera…until he came upon a trusting Australian girl who lent him her professional camera for 1 week and he took 37 rolls of film, and came to believe in trusting, beautiful female strangers…
Upon the realization that photography had become his career: he simply knew that the main goal of this passion is to make women look even more beautiful through the magic of the camera lens. When working with his clients, he has the ability to bring out a special part of their personality that, when transposed into a photograph, makes one breathless while gazing at it…and the next comment is “how stunning/sultry/beguiling” the woman looks…and “how did he get that look”…and “how did he decide on that effect”….etc.
The alluring photos he creates with, and because of, his subjects, he shows the women as strong, mesmerizing, and devastatingly stunning…or simply fresh and pretty. Overall, client images very likely have a candidly erotic tone, a la Helmut Newton, whom Torq aspires to be the modern emulation of…or the image may just as easily become part of a whimsical landscape…sleek and decadent in its beauty…
“…it’s what you see, and what you don’t see…” is one of the ways he makes his subjects the tantalizing focus…
Torq is happiest while looking through the camera’s lens and that happiness is infectious. A photo shoot
with Torq is fun, focused, and personal…and it’s all about the subject – the subject is the center of his attention…nothing else matters at that moment.
He gets to know his clients and how they want to be seen through the camera…and he then attains that for them.
Torq has a huge portfolio of clients, and yeah, he also has a lot of BFFs: beautiful female friends.
As he moves back and forth between Vancouver and England, client requests have him scheduling as many shoots as he can in the space of a day.
And the women are saying: “Can’t wait to shoot with you again”; “you made me look like a model at my very first photo shoot”; “so excited to be working with you”…. “your final edits of my pics are stellar”…”you are amazing, see you Monday”, “love your style”…
You will find his work in model portfolios, on social media sites, on entertainment blogs and online magazine websites, etc.
You will be able to lay eyes on his latest shots wherever you are now standing…whether it be a gallery/venue/event…
Or scrutinize his work here on the site.
At a restaurant, the cook said to Helmut Newton. “…your images are excellent. You have a great camera.”
Newton said to the cook after the meal: “your food was magnificent. You must have good pots…”