London photographer claims £12k portrait prize (picture update)

^{Picture credit: Copyright Jordi Ruiz Cirera}

Cirera, a documentary photographer from Barcelona, Spain – who studied photography in the UK – beat more than 5,000 other entries to take this year’s title.

His winning portrait (pictured) was captured in Bolivia and depicts a 26-year-old woman ‘who was reluctant to sit for the camera’.

The 28-year-old shot the image as part of a long-term project to document the daily life of a religious community, ‘one that forbids images’ say organisers.

Cirera said: ‘It was a really difficult project. They were willing to host me in their homes, but they weren’t willing to be pictured.

‘I stayed there for a month, living with different families, then returned a year later. That’s when most of my pictures were taken.’

The photographer gained an MA in Photojournalism and Documentary Photography at the London College of Communication.

The contest is sponsored by law firm Taylor Wessing.