High fashion meets urban culture in Leo Faria's printed work

One of the greatest names in Brazilian fashion and street photography, Leo Faria has merged the two genres into an art form. His eye-catching images juxtapose catwalk models and high fashion with gritty urban settings and his use of colour, mood and movement has earned him worldwide acclaim and magazine assignments all over the globe.

The Canson® Infinity Ambassador has recently completed a personal project, exploring how people from different cultures use clothes as a form of expression and how that differs – or not – across our interconnected world. Here, Leo discusses his work and why he believes the printed image is so important.

"I have a profound interest in human nature and a deep desire to get to know people from different cultures. I hope that my images help to broaden tolerance and to dispel misconceptions about ethnicity, religion, gender and sexual orientation. I want to help people see that a destination goes far beyond incredible sights, exotic food or shopping. A destination is also an encounter with a people and culture. I believe there is much more to life than one's personal experiences and beliefs. There's a world of possibilities, and that's what makes us so interesting. I'm trying to capture the differences and similarities between cultures and the ways they interconnect."

"What drives me to print a photo is wanting to create something 'real' from something digital. Printing enables physical contact with an image. I feel as though a photo only really exists once it has been printed. It's the crucial final step of the process, and the one I have the greatest emotional attachment to."

"I have a Canon imagePROGRAF PRO-4000 and a imagePROGRAF PRO-1000 in my studio. The 12-ink system provides rich colours and deep blacks and combines beautifully with the textures, weights and white tones of the Canson® Infinity range of digital fine art and photo papers. I have dozens of options in the printing process, so I'm able to get the best results imaginable. What's more, the fidelity and consistency is exceptional on a print by print basis, and the archival life is excellent."

"I don't have a favourite – I like to make use of everything that's available in the range. I printed more than 270 images for an exhibition on Canson® Infinity Museum Pro Canvas Matte. Entitled 'At the meeting of', the exhibition took place at the Centro Municipal de Cultura in Uberlândia, Brazil, and featured documentary photos I took all over the world during a six-year period researching different cultures.

"In two previous projects I used matte Canson® Infinity Rag Photographique and PhotoSatin Premium RC paper. As these papers are very different, they enabled entirely different techniques and effects, from the assembly stage to the final result. These are just my most recent projects: I've used all of Canson® Infinity's papers at one time or another."

"The papers were created at the Arches paper mill, which has been making top-quality art paper for more than 500 years. The mill uses a traditional cylinder mould for fine art papers, which means more time is spent on production, giving the paper a more authentic handmade look and feel. ARCHES® papers have an incredibly pure, bright-white finish without the use of optical brighteners, meaning no chemicals are added to the paper. They achieve the whitest white I've ever seen in fine art media and, because optical brighteners aren't used, that colour won't fade or yellow over time. Colour reproduction is fabulous, and the blacks are deep and intense. In terms of retaining the sharpness and texture of a digital image, it's revolutionary. It's like the difference between HD and 4K video – immediately obvious to the untrained eye."

"I always choose the paper that works best for a particular image. I think it's wrong to have a default preference. I've found it necessary to experiment and try out all the variations over time. With experience, the choice becomes intuitive. I'm now able to decide on the ideal paper for an image even at the shooting stage, but I'm always keen to experiment and try new things. The choice of printer and paper is absolutely critical to the final result. Using an incredible printer and choosing the perfect paper is every bit as important as the initial capture of the photo or the post-production stage."

"Certain papers can simulate the results of the chemical printing process in analogue photography. For example, Canson® Infinity Baryta Prestige has a barium sulphate coating which offers an appearance and aesthetic similar to traditional photographic papers but with very high-quality colour reproduction and chromatic spectrum. The wide range of textures, weights and styles of Canson® Infinity papers gives me full creative freedom when making prints."

"There are many demands made by Canson® Infinity in order for a printing studio to be certified as part of the programme. For example, the studio has to have a regulated environment with controlled lighting, and the walls must be a specific, standardised colour. Humidity and temperature must also be controlled, and there are procedures for handling the papers. From a photographer's perspective, having a print from a Certified Printer makes all the difference and brings added peace of mind because you're guaranteed the best possible quality and consistency, for prints that will last a lifetime."