ゆめ - Un rêve de Paris - Part II

Jouji's dream: «J’ai rêvé de cette ville où l’on peut traverser en dehors des clous».

ゆめ - Un rêve de Paris

A summer ago, I started this portraits project with journalist Ludmilla Intravaia, mesmerized by Japan. We are both from Belgium and moved together  to live in Paris. That’s not a huge cultural gap but it’s yet big enough to make us sensitive to the adventure our subjects are experiencing when leaving their thousand of miles far away island to meet the stunning  cultural shock of parisian streets. Chasing a dream of Paris, what do they catch?

Yuki's dream: "I was looking for something beyond my reach."

Instant Magic

Do you remember those days when we were using instant films? You certainly do. They came with a negativ sheet fading away swiftly (ending usually in the closest trash bin). Any souvenir of the chemical stripes drifting from one edge to the other? Like an analogic glitch. Bleaching haïkus...

Off the Fiac

During the 41st edition of Fiac, there is a fashion photography exhibition at Cité Internationale des Arts, 18 rue de l'Hotel de Ville in Paris, where one of my picture will be hanging. Go and bring it home! Ending night is on October 30th, be my guest (drop me a line).

Felicia Day in Paris

Felicia Day is an american actress (Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Eureka, Supernatural) and creator of The Guild and Geek & Sundry. If you're web savvy, you probably already know her. The photoshoot happened at The Last Bar At The End of The World. Of course. 

Young at Heart in Cannes Fashion Photography Festival

Cannes, June 2014: I was late for the opening ceremony of the Fashion and Beauty Photograpy International Festival. I'm a bit ashamed of that part but I'm much more proud to have been granted the Young Talent award. Humble and extremely grateful to be recognized  young forever, 'cause "Fairy tales can come true, it can happen to you/ If you're young at heart/ For it's hard, you will find, to be narrow of mind/ If you're young at heart"

Louise Bourgoin

Ladies and gentlemen, may I present you the french actress Louise Bourgoin, new ambassador for Kenzo's fragrances. She is also known for her good sense of humour, so I pictured her on parisian Place des Victoires for Victoire Magazine. Who's funny now?

Special Operations Instagram

I've been challenged to get a grasp on hashtag #HomeMadeMagic on social networks, as it is the name of my freshly new portfolio online (visit me here).  It's quite a funny ride as I'm struggling against pictures of home cooked tortillas. Magic is definively all kinds of illusions... Follow me there. This summer, I'll post at regular pace exclusive contents. Carrousel begins...

Black White and Colors

I've discovered pleasant words about my humble work somewhere on the web. Have a look!

Prints in Magazine

Fresh from the box, here are 3 recent collaborations for belgian magazine Victoire I received by mail today.

Juliette Greco, french singer and actress.

Four words for Juliette Greco: french variety music legend. She probably made my grand parents danced. The shooting took place in the "argentique suite" of the Lutetia hotel,  just few days before it closed for 3 or 4 years of remodeling. Maybe it will reopen as a "digital room".

André, street artist

This guy is a street artist who rides his scooter by night to paint his Mr A drawings all over the city walls. He is also the owner of several night clubs and a hotel in Paris. I took the liberty to place a graffiti of my own on his face. No skin armed in the process, though.

rwann & Ronan Bouroullec, designers

One of them is Erwan. And there is also a Ronan in the picture. And they design stuffs together as brothers should do. 

Almost Spring in Jardin du Luxembourg

But, you know, from the perspective of a digital pinhole camera, you could be mistaken...

About substantial photographic skills

Toshiaki Komura, film director, Paris 2014

I've probably shot hundred of portraits on assignment for magazines and various clients. This particular area of my work feels fabulous as it's always a wonder to face up actual situation with improvised creativity. Although, once in a while, a portrait photographer will be challenged to reveal the core of his essential skills. Let me clarify this one for you. It's not about pure techniques but more about a photographer's ability to express himself with only the very heart of his potential. He's got to act quickly with the substantial part of his art and trade. What's in the way? Surprise. It's not  necessarily a challenge coming from the person the photographer is assigned to shoot. It may also derive from the timing or the nature of the location. Usually, I'm given three basic informations on an assignment: who, where and when. "Where" and "when" may be subject to negociation but rarely. Sometimes tension comes out of nowhere. For exemple, I remember that time when I was sent to an exotic location for five days, flying business and accomodated in a luxurious hotel, only to be given, last minute,  90 seconds to shoot the portrait I was there for. You need to be zen and focus on the present event if you want to go back home with a picture. 

Recently, I went to shoot some portraits in a hyper timed context. I definitively couldn't bargain over where and when. It was taking place in a palace in Paris. But as I was showed the location for the photoshoot, I walked from luxurious lobby to pompous halls to modest staircases and finally to a dissapointing tiny conference room. And my first appointment was to arrive in 5 minutes. That's the kind of situation that monitors where stands your substantial photographic skills. Five minutes to think about something else than the unphotogenic room you are in and to set the lights and camera. Well, I'm glad this test happened early this year and here are the results.

Kôzô Morishita,  film director, producer and Vice president of TOEI ANIMATION

The Year 2014

Everyone, I wish you the most pleasant things for 2014. I'm proud to announce, also that, for now on, it will be forbidden to smoke on my set.

Lines

I usually make a drawing of my intentions before shooting a picture. Sometime, i doodle  after the photograph.  Perhaps, there is an adjacent world, where both actions collide.

Stand

Two last ones from the Standard Beauty shoot. 

E. Shot

Noisy Kiss

Grainy lips or mouth full of noise. Who knows?

Standard Beauty

Bonus video from Beauty photo shoot for Standard Magazine by Photographer Lionel Samain.

The actual photographs should be seen steadily in next Standard Magazine, on proper glossy pages.

SF Novels

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