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InspirationPhotography

Tom Oldham's portraits of The Herder Boys of Lesotho

London-based photographer Tom Oldham first visited Lesotho in 2009, shooting for the NGO Riders for Health, on a whistle-stop shoot travelling through the mountain kingdom.

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Via direct submission. All images by Tom Oldham

Via direct submission. All images by Tom Oldham

On the winding, climbing roads he’d see herder boys tending to their animals and immediately imagined a series of images that he just couldn’t shake from his mind, their distinctive silhouettes against the sky, these icons of Lesotho wrapped in the woollen blankets that provide their only protection from an intense sun or a brutal winter.

The herder boys work astonishingly hard, for very low pay, in the toughest conditions imaginable. It is the only option available to some, who often have very little formal education and can enter into this employment from early childhood.

In November 2016, Tom was able to return to Lesotho to shoot these portraits and with some valuable assistance from the team at Riders for Health, he came home with some very special new work. You can see his resulting series, The Herder Boys of Lesotho, at the White Space Gallery in London from 26 June until 1 July 2017. It will be his first solo show in the West End. Discover more of his work at tomoldham.com.

Young herder boy wrapped in a grey woollen blanket stands in a barren Lesotho landscape with mountains and a stream behind him
Portrait of a herder boy from Lesotho wearing a striped yellow and grey knitted sweater and blue striped cap against a grey background
Portrait of a herder boy from Lesotho wearing a grey beanie and blue padded gilet, holding a wooden staff against a turquoise background
A herder boy in Lesotho wearing a turquoise wool blanket and grey beanie stands between rocky outcrops against a bright blue sky
Young herder boy wearing a burgundy beanie and dark denim shirt, holding a long staff against a textured grey background with red and green curved lines
A herder boy sits on a large rock wearing a beige wool blanket and traditional clothing, gesturing with his hand towards green mountainous terrain dotted with grazing animals in Lesotho
A herder boy stands on a hillside wearing a cream-coloured woven blanket draped over his shoulders, holding a walking stick, against a backdrop of rolling green mountains in Lesotho
Young herder boy wearing a grey woollen blanket wrapped around his head and shoulders, with a colourful beaded necklace, against a patterned fabric backdrop
Five young herder boys in traditional woollen blankets stand and crouch together on a rocky hillside in Lesotho, photographed by Tom Oldham
Portrait of a young herder boy from Lesotho wearing a grey knitted beanie and wrapped in a traditional woollen blanket against a rural landscape
Young herder boy from Lesotho wearing a green ribbed jumper and red striped wool blanket wrapped around his head, gazing downward against a grey textured background
Young herder boy wearing a black beanie and beige work jacket, holding a coiled black whip across his body against a textured grey background
Young herder boy wearing a yellow cardigan and headscarf, smiling at the camera against a textured golden and cream backdrop
Young herder boy wearing a magenta patterned sweater and green scarf against a yellow and turquoise leafy patterned backdrop with red lines
A herder boy stands wrapped in a bright blue woollen blanket in a mountainous Lesotho landscape, with a river valley visible behind him
Young herder boy wrapped in a red blanket stands beside his black and white cow in a mountainous Lesotho landscape
Misty rain falls across layered mountains and valleys in Lesotho's dramatic landscape, with lush green vegetation covering rolling hills in the foreground
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