Norman Jean Roy photographed Georgia May Jagger for the Oct issue of Vanity Fair.

Don’t call Norman Jean Roy a celebrity shooter. Rather, he describes himself as a “documentary portrait” photographer. His whole career mission is to record his own life journey. “It’s not the photography that matters, it’s the journey,” Roy said. “I’m just using photography to document it.”

Roy was named one of the 30 most promising photographers under 30 by PDN magazine in 1999. He has shot for numerous magazines including Vanity Fair, Spin and Harper’s Bazaar. His list of celebrity clients includes George Clooney, Morrissey, The When running a photo shoot, Roy likes a casual environment where he can improvise depending on a subject’s energy and mood. Even though he always had an interest in photography, he decided to study architecture and graphic design. But an essay on celebrated photographer Richard Avedon urged Roy to try his hand at the career. “Seeing that essay changed my life overnight,” Roy said. “It was the single most important event of my photographic life.”