Lindsay Elizabeth Warner is more than a photographer, she’s a diarist of emotion, light, and memory. Her imagery, often captured on analog film, radiates with timeless intimacy. Wife of Marilyn Manson and a creative force in her own right, Lindsay’s portraits move between nostalgia and immediacy, always anchored in emotional honesty. Her aesthetic is deeply personal, quiet yet evocative, inspired by cinema, art, and the natural world. In this conversation, we explore her visual philosophy, collaborative spirit, and the symbiotic blend between life, love, and lens.

What first drew you to the camera as a storytelling tool?

I used to pin Polaroids around my room as a child and just continued to find more mediums as my photographic interest grew. I’ve always felt that what I sometimes lack in words I can express in image, in a captured moment.

You often shoot on film, what do you love most about working with analog formats?

Film gives you a tangible product, one you can hold in your hands. It has a traditional permanence and for me it’s very nostalgic, very romantic feeling. I love looking through my archival albums from over the decades.

There's a strong sense of intimacy in your portraits. How do you create that emotional closeness with your subjects?

The work I publish is my own visual diary, so there is always going to be a closeness with everyone I shoot. It is a linear timeline of my life and those within it. There is always deep personal meaning behind the imagery but ultimately it’s for each viewer to take away their own interpretation.

Do cinema or specific directors influence your visual language?

There are often stills from scenes in movies which pop into my mind when working on conveying a feeling,usually Ingmar Bergman, Lynch, Fellini, Sofia Coppola, Dario Argento. Hour of the Wolf by Bergman remains a constant favorite. The lighting and composition of his characters, the long scenes of silence are such a powerful part of his storytelling.

Can you tell us about a moment behind the scenes that changed the way you see photography?

Being photographed by Ellen von Unwerth and watching Steven Klein work changed the way I viewed the process, absolutely. It helped me see the importance of defining your own voice in your work.

How do fashion, music, and mood intersect in your creative process?

I believe all forms of the arts lend themselves to how you feel while you are shooting, how your subject feels, what the conclusion can look like. In terms of fashion, silhouettes work with light and shadow, with movement. Music can help put your mind in the place that it should be. For me, it’s all a symbiotic relationship.

““What I sometimes lack in words I can express in image, in a captured moment.” ”

— Lindsay Elizabeth Warner

What inspires you outside of photography?

I really enjoy visiting non-contemporary art museums in the cities around the world I end up in on tour. Seeing paintings from the 17th century in person is incredibly humbling and inspiring. Surrealist poetry, old Hollywood autobiographies, antique shops, or just walking around and looking at architecture is very compelling to me. I like to get lost a little.

When you're not creating, what do you love doing completely unrelated to photography?

I absolutely love to garden and cook. Working with the seasons and planning out bloom cycles, growing my own vegetables, fruit, herbs. Hard work, getting dirty and using your hands in the earth always pays off. Preparing meals from what I grow is therapeutic and equally as rewarding as growing the food.

You are the wife of the iconic Marilyn Manson, how has your creative relationship with Marilyn Manson influenced the way you approach atmosphere, narrative, or intimacy in your photography?

My husband is my greatest muse and we approach how we work together collaboratively. I love him so when I shoot him, it’s with that love, admiration and respect behind the lens. He’s so supportive of all my creative visions and very good about laying on the floor while I cover him in flowers or hiking up a mountain with my twin sister to get the shot.

Have you and your twin sister ever collaborated creatively? How does your bond influence your artistic process? What's it like being creative with your twin? Do you inspire each other?

My twin sister and I have an indelible bond that allows us to work very easily together. We have worked on clothing design before for a boutique capsule collection, film, video, we cook together, garden together, travel together. While we are identical twins and quite similar, we are not the same. Our contrasts compliment each other and allow us to create many layers and depth in shared work.