05 June 2026
Photoshoots for OT’s June/July The practice resilience edition took place on the High Streets and in the communities that our featured practice owners provide eye care for.
Walking the pavements on the High Street on which Specsavers Hayes is located, ophthalmic director and independent prescribing optometrist owner, Irinder Khakha, admitted: “Being in the spotlight isn’t usually my favourite place, but it amused my colleagues and has given them plenty of material for jokes and winding me up. That can only be a good thing for our team culture, right?”
Khakha told OT that our photographer, Louise Haywood-Schiefer, was able to put him at ease and always checked if he was happy with the various locations and set ups.
“She managed to keep me smiling right up to the end, although that bit did get harder after an hour,” he said.
Capturing our subjects on busy and unpredictable High Streets meant our optometrists and photographers had to adapt to the environment.
“The sun was really bright – and apparently in the wrong place – and the breeze kept wobbling the lighting pole when we were outside. We needed an extra pair of hands to hold things still at times,” Khakha told OT.
The ophthalmic director said that a highlight from the photoshoot was being able to “put Hayes on the map as a vibrant and diverse community with good transport connections.”
“It’s a real privilege to provide primary care eye and hearing services here. You get to know people, so a few of our patients were bemused to see me posing for the camera as they were out shopping on the High Street,” he added.
Behind the cover story
Optometrist and owner of Richard Petrie Optometrists, Davina Dosanjh, posed on the High Street in which the iconic Derby Ram can be found.
Sharing with OT after the photoshoot, Dosanjh said: “We had an absolute blast.”
“Adrian and Charles are amazing. They made me feel comfortable and were friendly, engaging and enthusiastic, and importantly very kind and fun,” she added.
Practical challenges of capturing photographs on the High Street were navigated in the moment. “[The photographers] thrived in it, creating images with feeling by using what was available and their skills, and any challenges were approached with thought and a solution,” Dosanjh said.
“It was probably the highlight of my week,” she added.
Business class
How optometrists are navigating the pressures of practice ownership to thrive on the High Street in 2026
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