Inventories of war: the story behind the collection I was originally inspired by a book of short stories called The Things They Carried, by Tim O'Brien, who served in the US army in the Vietnam war. He wrote this incredible series of semi-autobiographical stories which describe the equipment carried by a soldier in that war, explaining what they come to mean, the attachments that build up and what they represent. They have to carry around so much kit everywhere - any soldier does - that it's quite powerful to see those things individually. It came from reading that and imagining the pictures. Did you always intend to cover many different time periods? I've always been really interested in British history and the mythology of being British. People misuse the word 'mythology', but I don't mean it in the sense of a falsehood. I mean the shared story of a group of people that becomes communal, and helps us understand our identity. I think in Britain more than most places, a lot of what it is to be British is wound up in wars, and military history. You can see that with the reaction to the centenary [of the First World War], and remembrance day celebrations every year. 1709 private sentinel, Battle of Malplaquet How did you go about finding everything? It was mostly hunting around for lots of re-enactment groups, which were traceable through online forums. Once you get on a trail and find someone, then one person knows another, and you end up talking to all sorts. Re-enactors are historians too, of course, and have an amazingly specific knowledge. They are rightly obsessed by detail, so I left each photograph to the specialists from those time periods to gather the kit, and they found the most amazing things. One man kept delaying the shoot because we needed to find the right button to go on a uniform - it's that level of detail which is great. Even something like stitching really matters to them. The photo of Second World War kit, from a parachutist, was 100% real items used by that soldier on the battlefield, but when we go as far back as Anglo-Saxon Times, for instance, nothing exists outside of museums. So a lot of those things were replicas. Thankfully there are amazing historians who know exactly what was correct for the period. It took nine months, but it was completely worth it. 1066 huscarl, Battle of Hastings Which was the hardest period to track down? Well the most famous battles were quite easy because there are lots of re-enactment groups. The Somme or the Battle of Hastings, for example, have so many historians attached to them that you can easily find people to talk to. The hardest part was the middle bit of British history, where perhaps the battles aren't as mythologised or depicted on film. The Crimean war was difficult, for instance, as was the Elizabethan era, which is incredibly famous but perhaps less known for its soldiers. How much personal input did you have? That's the thing: because I was the photographer, I was just there to arrange and shoot the kit. I was very aware that I didn't know best when it came to the historical detail, so I was patient with the historians. I knew I really wanted the Battle of the Somme, for example, and told them that when I think of it I think of the 'Tommy' in the trenches: the legend. When I mentioned that to the re-enactors, though, they kept telling me I needed to be more specific, with things like regiments, rank and so on. So I had to balance the myth with the reality, to an extent, and hope for consistencies between the photographs. My job was aesthetics. We always tried to use a background that was in keeping with the period, so the First World War photograph is on a tarpaulin that covered a lorry of the time; and the World War Two photograph is arranged on a parachute. Even the Anglo-Saxon pictures were taken in a real, replica Anglo-Saxon hall in Kent. 2014 close-support sapper, Royal Engineers, Helmand Province What's your favourite thing that came out of the project? Definitely the small consistencies between the time periods. So much is different as technology has advanced. The biggest leap is probably to the most modern photographs, with the advent of computer technology, but something as stark as the colours is also a very distinct thing. Prior to long-range weapons and aeroplanes, armies literally had to distinguish themselves by colours to make sure they didn't kill each other, like children playing football, which seems incredibly anachronistic now. So much has developed, but so much hasn't, too. That's my favourite thing. In every photograph, for instance, there is a spoon. It's such a basic, everyday thing that we might take for granted, but it is essential to a soldier and has been for a thousand years. In the First World War photograph there is something called a 'trench club', and that's almost identical to a medieval weapon. Things like that were quite sobering. 1415 fighting archer, Battle of Agincourt Have you been surprised by the reaction? Massively. It's been so nice for me because I embark on a lot of huge projects - some years in the making and some never finished - but to have one that is contained, immediately resonating with people and getting noticed makes it all worthwhile. It was a lot of work, logistically, but the project's popularity has been astonishing. After The Telegraph published it, lots of other places around the world became interested and hosted the photos. There was a big reaction in Europe, perhaps because they share a lot of the wars, but also America, where there isn't this depth of history to explore. Even a Brazilian magazine published them. Might you revisit it? I've thought about that. I like the idea of leaving it as it is, but there are obviously lots of gaps I could fill in. It might never end if I do that, and I would potentially ruin it by having the steps between them too small. I would like perhaps to do something else like it, and have thought about creating an opposing set about the 'enemies'. They would be just as interesting, and a lot more varied. We will see, but I have no solid plans at the moment. What are you working on next? My main project is a photography collection centered around the blitz, called Missing Buildings. I've been working on it for a few years with my sister, Beth, who is also a photographer. We wanted to explore how modern cities were created through the devastation of war. There's a strange irony of 'creation in destruction' which we find really fascinating. In some places there is quite clearly a bombsite, but others are less obvious. With building developments sprouting up everywhere, we wanted to capture these buildings while they're still visible. A lot has been lost in the mists of time, but the research has revealed some really surprising things. We're very excited about it, and plan to publish the collection as a book in the new year. thomatkinson.com