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Florian Guillaume
@florianglm
Photographer based in France
I used to sleep in a bedroom decorated with paintings made by my mom; paintings of the French Alps, the landscapes of Provence, and so on. Those are the regions in which I grew up and which are my usual playgrounds for photography nowadays. My mother’s artistic passion certainly influenced me and it is from here that my passion to create developed.
I have never painted myself, but photography is very similar. The artist paints what he sees or visualizes on his canvas with paint. The photographer develops in his picture what he sees with the light. It’s just their tool that differs, and sometimes we forget that we have access to a tool that allows us to create all the time: the camera of our phones. That is how I got started and how I became passionate about photography. The camera in our phones works great and positively influences the creative process: it frees us from the constraints of settings to concentrate and develop our photographic eye.
"We first see with our eyes, before looking with our camera."
I used to photograph the landscapes I came across on my adventures in nature. No matter the type of trip – backpacking, road trips, alone or with friends or family – I love traveling and seeking nature. It allows me to find a balance and connect to the essential, to the wilderness and the great outdoors. I just need it. As a child, I grew up in the French Alps, a region that introduced me to nature and defined where I feel most at home – The outdoors, wherever that is.
However, I am very chauvinistic about my region. France has the advantage of having very varied landscapes: I am therefore rather lucky! From where I live in the Côte d’Azur, I can go from the mountains to the sea in less than two hours, passing through the beautiful little villages of the South of France. It is a great region to progress in photography and find different subjects.
"In general, photography encourages me to search for fabulous places known and unknown to capture."
Recently I went to Brittany on a road trip, a region I did not know, and I must say I was blown away! The landscapes are varied, the tourism is discreet as it’s far from the crowded beaches of the French Riviera. I was able to shoot sunsets in some great places and easily found myself alone to soak up the atmosphere of the place. The Breton weather is perfect for lighting in photographs: It adds a soft and subdued touch, which makes it such a pleasure to work on in post-production.
Without a doubt, this region has given me wonderful memories as a landscape photographer. I particularly recommend the Crozon peninsula in Finistère which I really enjoyed exploring. There, I even wondered if I was still in France! I loved the disparate landscapes that I encountered during my stay: From the turquoise water of the Plage de L’île Vierge with its white sand to the steep and craggy cliffs of the Pointe de Pen-Hir plunging into the Atlantic Ocean.
I can only encourage others to practice any art form to express themselves; I think everyone has this need to create, and I chose photography. I create images, I show the world as I see it, as I perceive it, and as I feel it. And it also helps me to satisfy a vital need: being immersed in nature for a while.
Becoming more active and serious with photography happened in October 2019, on a road trip to Eastern Canada with two friends who share the same passion for nature and photography. I decided to invest in my first camera for this occasion. Eastern Canada is an incredible playground for photographers, especially in autumn with the reddening of the leaves and the mild weather that sets in at this time of year.
"This road trip made us discover sumptuous landscapes, surrounded by so much beauty and peace…"
I started to master my camera, know the settings, discover long exposure, and even astrophotography. Beyond the techniques that I learned, I also began questioning myself about the photos that I created at each shooting: was the light good? What emotion do I want to create in my picture? Is my subject well highlighted?
Since this trip, I have carried my camera with me all the time, ready to immortalize each landscape I encounter and each feeling I experience. The work of creative people I follow on social networks and adventurous people who make a living out of their passion as travel photographers have brought me motivation and inspiration in my life as a photographer. To mention a few of them, Pierre T. Lambert, Emmet Sparling, Johan Lolos are all talented travel photographers I love following because of their magnificent photos that touch me through the stories they tell visually. Their photos make me travel, inspire me for future adventures… It is these feelings that I would like to transmit through my own photos as well.
Beyond my social networks, I wanted to create my own photographic gallery, more personal, easier, and more intimate. Just a place where everyone can come, contemplate and travel with me. It was a step further to show my work to others and to fulfill my desire to share my images.
My next goal is to try underwater photography during my dives. I announced it here, so now I will surely do it to keep my promise 🙂 For the last 2 years, I have been following dive training and it has become a new passion – one that opens a new world to me! Scuba diving has allowed me to go beyond borders that I thought were impassable. The discovery of this new underwater world intrigues me by its diversity, its mysteries, and its silence. Far from the noises of the city, one perceives the silence of the sea. Just hearing myself breathe relaxes me. I also discovered a new extraordinary sensation: weightlessness while flying over wrecks or swimming through schools of fish.
"I'm already looking forward to discovering the curious fauna and flora that inhabit the underwater world with my camera."
I found very little advice and information on underwater photography on the internet, so I think I will have to improvise quite a bit… But maybe it is an opportunity to transmit the techniques I will learn and help and advise others?!
I started diving because of the COVID pandemic. Not being able to travel anymore, I needed to satisfy my need to discover… So I signed up for diving courses close to my home in the Mediterranean sea. Knowing how to dive will allow me in my future trips to explore even more. One dive that I dream of and that I would like to do is the Silfra fissure in Iceland. It is known to be one of the clearest waters in the world separating the North American and Eurasian continental plates.
There is a quote in French that I like very much: “Rester c’est exister, mais voyager c’est vivre.” This translates in English into “To stay is to exist: but to travel is to live”.
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