Copenhagen’s very own super street style photographer, Søren Jepsen of THE LOCALS, talks with ArtRebels about Danish style, his upcoming travel website, sneakers, and dream dinner parties. Plus, Søren shares The Locals top street style pictures with us and picks his favourite products from the ArtRebels shop.

You’ve been capturing Danish style for years now – what’s so fascinating?
There’s a vibe of relaxed confidence on the streets of Copenhagen. It’s really like no other city. Take sneakers, for example. Suddenly, you see all these stylish girls on the streets of Berlin, London and New York wearing them as fashion statements. Copenhageners have been doing this for years.

How did you get started as a street style photographer?
It was quite early on – around 2007. There weren’t a lot of street style blogs around, but I remember watching The Sartorialist and Facehunter starting out and loving it. On a trip to the US I saw a lot people with a very special, local vibe about them. It made me think about our local style in Denmark, and I decided it would be great if someone would represent that online and show it to world.

What makes Danish style different to elsewhere?
As a whole, Danish people are very fashionable. Fashion and design in general play a big part in everyday life. Still, I am convinced there is a distinct Danish style. It’s very laid-back, timeless, with a big vibe of street mixed in.

It was Fashion week in Copenhagen last week – which collections were you most excited about seeing and why?
I am always looking forward to the Stine Goya and Henrik Vibskov shows. Stine sticks to her style, with only slight variations each season. But she hits it out of the park every time. She simply does clothes that girls want to wear. As for Vibskov, he is a visionary, and I like that wild side of Danish fashion. My personal favorite has to be Veronica B. Vallenes, though. Her collections are always quite magical. This season, I am also hearing great things about Stine Ladefoged, so I am excited about that show, as well.

What do you look for when scouting out style on the streets?
Very simply put: Personal style. Definitely not brands or latest trends. I think that is over represented on streetstyle blogs by now. I shoot the big fashion weeks myself, but always try to mix these staged, ridiculously fashionable outfits with pictures of real people, wearing what suits them best.

Which style blogs do you follow?
I always enjoy the work of Bill Gentle over at Backyard Bill.

What’s your typical day like as a street stylist?
It might sound like a cliché, but there is no typical day. It depends on where I am. During fashion weeks, I am running around for more than 12 hours a day, trying to get from location to location as fast as I can. When it’s off season, it’s much quieter. I actually spend a lot of time on my computer, answering mails editing pictures and working on the blog. And I obviously walk around the city, trying to find the cool kids.

You’re holding a dinner party and can invite 5 people – who’s coming (dead or alive)?
Barack Obama (we could celebrate our birthday on the 4th of August together), Coco Chanel, Steve Jobs, Jay-Z and Batman.

Any interesting projects you’re working on?
Actually, yes. I am working on a travel website, that I am planning to launch sometime late this fall. I get asked for travel tips a lot, since I’m on the road a lot. So I thought I’d share my best tips with everybody on the web. It’s also fun to shoot some stuff that has nothing to do with fashion.

If you weren’t doing what you’re doing now, what would you be up to?
I’d either still be a photographer, probably focussing more on artistic work, or I would live in a remote cabin in the woods of Canada, growing my own vegetables. There would still be wi-fi, though­.

Søren’s picks from the ArtRebels store:

When I'm walking through the streets, looking for the next shot, I like to listen to music to get inspired. These headphones by AiAiAi are light, have great sound and are just really beautiful

Nothing better to beat the Danish weather than a good pair of boots. These ones from Hi On Life will accompany me through the next muddy winter.

I spend a lot of time at my desk, so I like to have some fun little trinkets around. I'd put business cards that I collect in these little houses. Much nicer than a boring stack somewhere on the side of the desk!