Which cameras do you use? ‘I use two medium format Hasselblad cameras that give square negatives in 6x6 cm size. I also use two medium format Fuji Rangefinder cameras that produce beautiful 6x9cm negatives. Due to the large size of the negatives produced by these cameras I’m able to print images to a large size without losing sharpness or detail.’ What advice would you give to someone interested in photography? ‘In photography there is no substitute for practice and reading. I still read everything I can find about photographic technique. For beginners, Ansel Adam's Techniques of Photography is great because its essentially a digest of his work. As you progress you can read his 3-book series, The Camera, The Negative, The Print. Lenswork is a great magazine to subscribe to. Its one of the few remaining publications dedicated to Fine Art Photography and it has a fantastic print quality and is great for inspiration. And then you just need to get out there and shoot.' How long have you been photographing? ‘When I was a kid growing up in Russia my friend’s father was an avid black & white photographer. He taught us how to develop and print our own shots and we just really took to it. My dad gave me a camera a few years later and I never stopped shooting. I set up philpankov.com in early 2004 and started exhibiting in galleries and shows around the same time.’