Street
A selection of photos to sum up years of walks in the streets of Paris.
Light and Shadows
Paris, November 2018
The outside of the Louvre Museum is a wonderful playground for photographers, the square courtyard (Cour Carrée), the pyramid, the gardens... It is one of my favourite walks. But even though I go back there often, I have never (yet) found this particular luminous atmosphere allowed by the position of the sun at specific periods of the year (late autumn and early spring).
Iron Lady and Leather Ladies
Paris, October 2018
I can’t wait to see this pre-covid atmosphere and mix of all kinds of creatures at the Trocadero.
The Intruder
Paris, August 2017
The practice of dance has grown on Place de la République during the years 2010-20. Sometimes perhaps a little too much, sometimes a little too closed, even to the point of privatising parts of the square with construction ribbons. The swing dancers seem to me to be among the most open and joyful. This photo evokes one of those rare moments of sharing between the dancers and the less privileged "inhabitants" of the square, who are the intruders?
World Music Day
Paris, June 2017
There is nothing like a wide aperture (here f1.4) to isolate a subject. I wanted to highlight one of the percussionists who were jamming on the Place de la République during the 2017 Fête de la Musique. The shallow depth of field tends to erase the relationships between the characters in the photo and lets you imagine them.
FKDL Style
Paris, April 2017
At the beginning of my street photography practice, my attention was still often focused on urban art. This had been the main subject of my photos in the previous years. At that time I regularly went to this dead end of the Swiss Cultural Centre where many artists show their work. That day there was a recent collage by FKDL, in the foreground a couple whose wife looked like the subject of the piece. So yes, the sharpness is in the background, but I really like this rather off-the-wall photo with the parallel between the drawn figures and the human one.
Life in République
Paris, March 2017
This is one of my first photos on the Place de la République, a rather classical scene since the square is subject to a strong and frequent police presence but is also a place of life for the poorest.
Canal Saint Martin
Paris, November 2018
At the end of autumn, I had chosen the time of my walk along the canal to have the sun in the axis. From one of the footbridges, I framed the Grange Aux Belles walkway. The light was there, all I had to do was wait for the characters to fall into place.
Urban Nap
Paris, March 2019
I was about to take a picture when someone passed through the frame I didn’t have time to grumble, the person sat down (I don’t know if it’s the first or the second one in the picture), anyway, what a gift!
Together
Paris, June 2018
For the record, it was during an "Instameet" on the Champs de Mars that I took this photo. The way in which mobile phones often contribute more to separating than to bringing people together appeals to me. They are together, but are they together?
I only saw afterwards that the position of the arms echoed at the Eiffel Tower.
Snowy République
Paris, February 2018
It is rare for snow to fall in Paris, even rarer for it to last a few hours, it is a pleasure to try to hold it in pictures. I wanted the Statue in the frame, of course, and if possible a foreground. The immobility of the person consulting her phone allowed me to take my time and use the umbrella to mask a luminous sign in the background.
The (Reuilly’s) Lawn
Paris, June 2019
I took the photo at the beginning of June, when with the first sunny heats in Paris the lawns take on a beach look.
The Bath
Paris, June 2019
How beautiful the courtyards of the Louvre are, the Cours Carrée is one of my favourite places. When the light comes in, all you have to do is wander around and wait to find a subject...
Kissing In The 21St Century
Paris, April 2019
No (Other) comment!
Abstraction
Paris, August 2019
Weird, isn’t it? I rarely take pictures without a human subject and I don’t do architectural or minimalist photography. That day, or rather at that moment, I noticed that the angle of the light was almost the same as the slope of the stairs, the steps were in the shade, the landings in the light. By tilting the camera, the railings become hedges and make reading the photo more complex.
These are the steps of the François Mitterrand Library, on the side facing the Seine, taken from the Simone de Beauvoir footbridge.
Young Woman With Dogs
Paris, June 2019
The foreground was reason enough to take the picture, the dynamic of the street with the two scooters in the background (and other details) a very good additional reason.
When Suddenly
Paris, June 2017
I remember exactly when I took this picture. I was leaving some friends at Place Henri Krasucki (Belleville), I was quietly getting ready to start a photographic walk, I had just got my camera out. As soon as I entered the rue des Envierges, I saw this character out of the corner of my eye. I took the photo without thinking, without aiming of course, hoping very much to have framed it correctly. I hadn’t seen the child, bonus.
About Life And Death
Paris, June 2019
This very special place is located in the cemetery of Montmartre, under the Caulaincourt street causeway. In this place dedicated to death, between earth and tar, a pregnant woman adds a unusual contrast.
The Assault
Paris, February 2019
Photo taken during a walk in the Père Lachaise cemetery. In February, with a superb afternoon light, one of those moments when the elements set themselves up, backlight, aircraft vapour trails and this statue, all you have to do is take the shot!
Running
Paris, August 2019
Instinctive photo. I was looking at that time towards the Seine and its docks. As I turned around I saw this jogger and I shot without thinking, hoping that the camera would follow my intention.
Pause
Paris, June 2019
Paris, early June 2019, on the Promenade Plantée, an almost empty open space, I didn’t have to wait long to take this picture.
Better Together
Paris, December 2018
It was the contrast between the slogan "Living together is better", a remnant of the Yellow Vests demonstration, and this woman sitting alone on the statue that made me took the shot.
Selflic
Paris, December 2018
Paris, December 2018. This is Act VI of the Gilets Jaunes (Yellow Jackets). What a scene this couple taking a selfie in front of policemen, some of which look like they are posing. A few steps away, rubbish bins are burning, tear gas is being thrown, the police charge...
The title is a mix between selfie and a French slang for for police: flic
Hope
Paris, april 2016
Place de la République, April 2016, it was cold at the end of the day. Long before the Yellow Jackets, the movement Nuit Debout (night standing) occupied the place. This participant had just returned the microphone, she seemed to be still inhabited by the cause.