This is a page about who I am and a bit about what I do, but if you were looking for something else on my site, then you’ll probably find it on my front page, or at the top or bottom of the site. If that’s not the case, then please reach out to contact@mortenthorn.com.

I have spent most of my life in my home country of Denmark. And what most Danes won’t be able to guess when meeting me is that I grew up in a small town just North of Germany away from most bigger cities. The classic trope of being from a small town and wanting more is always one I’ve related to. Always wanted to travel and looked up to backpackers who hopped on a train and just went - something I at the time would never have had the courage to do.

And as a family, we didn’t travel much. Besides a small trip to London with the design boarding school I spent a year at, we’ve only taken a few trips to resorts around Europe close to us. After school and during most vacations I would take courses at the local art school, and I drew a lot at that time. The unfulfilled ambition has though been complimented with a lot of recognition of my privilege - something I didn’t appreciate too much at the time.

After my schooling, I finally gained the courage to travel far. I applied and got a job in New Zealand as part of an internship program, but was ultimately denied by the strict work visa restrictions of the otherwise dream country to visit. I felt beat down and quite demotivated. This happened twice.

Living so close to Germany all my life I wasn’t very fond of the country, but also realized how ignorant I was. So I challenged myself and ultimately got the best out of the situation and went to South Germany instead. Specifically Würzburg, Bayern - the most romantic city I’ve ever lived in.

The second time was during my studies. I have a BA in Designculture & Economics, and was dead set on studying abroad for a semester. After several applications and meetings with different guidance counselors, I finally scored a dream position at Osaka University. I was so excited. But as I started studying in 2018, and the semester abroad is planned for the later semesters, you can probably guess what happened.

I count myself lucky though, as I still got to go abroad. After spending 10 days at a quarantine hotel near Gardemoen Airport, I was on my way to Bø, Telemark - a little town between the Southern Norwegian mountains.

For all my life I’ve been interested in aesthetics and the creative process, but besides using my phone's camera there and now I didn’t get into photography before relatively recently.

During my time in Germany, I bought a second-hand Olympus OM-D E-10 with a kit lens and later blindly bought a 45mm f1,7 prime for it. I can’t remember why I bought that specific camera other than looks, and as far as I remember I never really learned how to properly use it. I loved it, but not enough to bring it with me wherever I went, and the last time I did it got stolen.

After my time in Norway, my girlfriend greeted me at Kastrup Airport, and we now live together in Copenhagen. It was here I fell in love with photography and bought the cameras that would launch my hobby and business.

By far, the best piece of advice I listened to was not to fall into the trap of becoming a gear collected succumbing to GAS, and instead learn to use the gear I had and use it extensively until it’s clear that my ambitions and skills surpass the camera's features. I wanted to start simple and make sure I would use whatever I bought, and I’m so happy I did.

The first camera I bought was the compact videocentric Sony ZV-1. I needed to be sure I didn’t make the same mistake as I did with my previous Olympus and not bring it with me wherever I went. If I was going to buy a camera, I had to first and foremost buy a camera I was going to use.

And I did take it with me wherever I went, and only upgraded after filming a small documentary in Marocco with it for my friend Maria's socially sustainable business. At this time I knew this was what I wanted to go into. Photography and videography.

Wanting to buy nice and not twice, I bought into the full frame hype and went with the Lumix S5. It’s an amazing camera and I quickly sold my Sony ZV-1 in favor of rigging up my newer love. I forgot what it was I wanted and needed.

To travel, while documenting my experience of the world while helping businesses and people through my skills with a camera.

And the bigger and heavier full-frame camera didn’t support that mission. I didn’t bring it with me wherever I went.

As said by everyone, the best camera is the one you have with you.

And as I didn’t bring my Lumix s5 with me, I hadn’t yet found the right camera for me at the time.

Now, I’m moving over to the beautiful Fujifilm system, and am happier than ever with my setup. However, if you’re looking for camera advice, then this is not an endorsement or recommendation. I chose this for my work and it works very well.

It took some twists and turns to end up in this direction. You can’t steer a parked car, and while I’ve steered my car in several directions, then I couldn’t have steered it in this direction without turning it on a couple of years ago when I started my journey as a business owner, entrepreneur, or whatever label you prefer.

I started out taking a course in starting an SMMA focusing on paid social, but could never really identify myself fully with the business model. I do however have a passion for helping people and business in a way that is more meaningful for me, and after going through different coaching sessions, internships, and client collaborations, I found my current direction.

Three different types of people would hopefully love what I do.

The first is regular people like you and me, because I love to help people get beautiful photos of themselves during memorable moments they never want to forget.

I went to Cyprus in November 2023, and we talked to another Danish couple. One could easily see they were living in that moment, which I photographed and sent them. I love they now have that to remember it by.

Do you remember how you looked 4 years ago? How those around you make you feel?

I hope you do, and even more, so that you have a reminder of it on your fridge, your photo albums, or on your wall.

If you want to have that from an upcoming event you have planned, then please reach out.

Reminiscing with your loved ones 4 years from now is one of the greatest gifts in our busy and distracting daily day.

The second is photographers because I love the craft and we share that. Even if you only photograph with your phone.

I’ve personally struggled with the idea of what makes a truly great photograph. Struggled with crippling perfectionism and imposter syndrome.

I challenged myself when I went to Milano, Italy in January 2024, and took some graphic and simple photographs, focusing on shapes and light. I want to inspire you to photograph the boring and the unassuming, and to photograph whatever you find interesting.

That’s one of the reasons for the photography-heavy zines I now make from each longer trip I make. I want you to look through them and analyze the angles, the light and color, and how the composition works in each photograph. 

The zines are also for you who is just curious about my travel experiences and documentation of how I see the world, whether you have been to that particular place or not.

Otherwise, I can recommend going to my YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok to see more of what I do.

The third is businesses because we are all visual creatures and communicating your mission is vital to getting you in front of your target audience.

Whether it be environmental product photography or an event, then please reach out.

Thank you for making it all the way down here.