Pinar Sener: Capturing Hidden Personality Through Artistic Dedication

An artist and photographer, internationally recognized portrait photographer Pinar Sener has lived many lives and learned many lessons to stand where she does today. This multifaceted experience is made manifest in her work, as she explores the many different versions of her subjects. Known for a distinctive artistic approach centered on identity and psychological depth, Sener’s work is a glimpse into honest complexity, moving away from notions of the ‘perfect portrait’ and toward a genuine representation of others.

Since she was a child in Istanbul, Sener has held a camera in her hand. Her first was a film camera, which demanded careful shots due to the cost of film. Sener got her first digital camera later on, and hasn’t stopped taking photos since, developing a disciplined, intentional style early in her career.

In her twenties, Sener left Istanbul for the Netherlands. It was in 2014, living in Amsterdam, that she decided to take photography seriously and launched her business. During this artistic journey, Sener lived briefly in Spain and Portugal, exploring different cultures before moving to Los Angeles, California, in 2019. Each relocation contributed to the development of her visual language and professional practice, allowing her to create art across international creative communities.

Her move to Los Angeles, unfortunately, fell just months before the start of the pandemic. “To deal with the isolation,” Sener said, “I ended up turning my garage into a makeshift photo studio. I started inviting friends over just to take their photos for fun. It was my way of connecting with people when the world felt so disconnected. It started as a way to stay busy, but it turned into something much deeper.”

Creating kept Sener going through the pandemic, and the experience refined her personal style. Having lived in so many different countries and reinvented herself a few times, Sener maintains the belief that no one can fit into a single definition. During photo shoots, she engages with this philosophy by extracting each version of a person, from the side they show to the world to the one they hide. This conceptual approach has become a defining characteristic of her passion.

“I think that’s why my art resonates,” Sener explained. “It’s not just a portrait, it’s a look at all the different layers we carry around.”

Over her more than 12 years of experience, Sener has applied her unique approach to portraiture across 70+ photography projects. Her work has been featured several times, including in editorial features such as “Hyun Gi Park” in KALTBLUT Magazine, as well as “I change shapes” and “Spring cleaning” through the Sticks and Stones Agency, a selective portfolio recognizing photographers of exceptional artistic merit.

Through dedication to the craft of photography, Sener has built a sustained, international body of work spanning Europe and the United States, with stylized portraiture and identity serving as her signature. Moving forward, she aims to continue expanding this portfolio through selective collaborations and concept-driven projects, contributing meaningfully to contemporary portrait photography. Ultimately, she seems to help others become who they want to be through art, using photography as a medium for self-exploration and representation.