Vanina Gallo is a coach and used to be a graphic designer. I photographed her at her office. She said her life was changing and she wanted me to capture that moment (Paris)

The French actress Anne-Elodie Sorlin relaxing in her new home this afternoon (Paris)

Today I visited the French artist Miguel Marajo at his Sartrouville studio. He's a hard worker (Paris)

ERASED

ERASED ON 11/02/2013

 “A portrait is not a likeness. The moment an emotion or fact is transformed into a photograph it is no longer a fact but an opinion. There is no such thing as inaccuracy in a photograph. All photographs are accurate. None of them is the truth. ”

Richard Avedon

 A portrait was posted here a few months ago. The lady who has performed as the model asked me to erase it.

Whatever is her reason, I respect it and erased my picture immediately.

I have been disappointed at first, but then I decided to look backwards at this experience positively. As a matter of fact, it is an actual expression of what is and what is not portrait.

Therefore I grab the occasion to clarify some points.

A lot of people do mix portraiture with flattery. To be looking for an attractive mirror on a self portrait is understandable. But, a portrait does not necessarily take as a priority to render beautiful the idea that a model makes of themselves. Instead, the portraitist has to translate into his own language the inner conception that he has of a special person in a specific moment.

This is the spirit of the most admirable photographers, and, of course, mine in this blog too. I see no reason why those who do not share it should be represented in here.
Translated from French by Adélaïde Gomes

I had the pleasure, in 2010, to collaborate with Florentina Dib on a fashion shoot in Buenos Aires. She was part of the Argentinian production team, and gave me a beautiful drawing book for kids she published (Paris)

When I shot Alice Renavand, in 2005, for a portrait project, she was a professional dancer at L'Opéra de Paris. I was impressed by what she told me about her daily training (Paris)

Unpublished. Elliott Roy Junior, my nephew, playing cards in a beach bar - Ibiza, 2009 (Paris)

Unpublished. Rocky in Brazzaville in 2004 (Paris)

Unpublished. Young woman dancing in the deep night of Kinshasa - Congo, 2003 (Paris)

Jonas, home, after football, playing on his mother's I Phone (Paris)

Karen Biswell is a talented Paris based French-Columbian photographer. I like her energy. We met at her place this afternoon, talking about projects and a future collaboration on this blog (Paris)

Unpublished. Nadja L., home in the morning - Paris, 2008 (Paris)

Unpublished. Young woman in New-York in 2000 (Paris)

Julie, smoking in a restaurant - south of France, 2002 (Paris)

Fanny, home (with Edgar) - Paris, 2008 (Paris)

Unpublished. Dakar university student in 2010 (Paris)

Regina Demina as an ingenue in the café where we had lunch today (Paris)

A previous portrait and a video representing Regina have been posted on Portrait Lab the 19/12/2011 and 09/01/2012

Fanny Deblock is an intense woman. I think she was born to be an actress (Paris)

Four previous portraits representing Fanny have been posted on Portrait Lab the 09/07/2011, 16/02/2012, 11/03/2012 and 23/04/2012

Me and Henri Coste, my photography teacher and mentor, (in 1998, during my first Paris exhibition) posing in front of a portrait representing the French artist William Wilson (Paris)

Photo: Poly

My father with women. Paris, 2002 (Paris)

My friend Emma Goldsztajn on her Paris houseboat in 2003 and 2010 (Paris)

A previous portrait representing Emma has been posted on Portrait Lab the 09/08/2011

Eve Bitoun is an actress, and works as a model for some of the best photographers and independant magazines. We collaborated for the first time today, and planned some future shoots (Paris)

Egle C. was born in Lithuania. She's one of those young women working at Maison Martin Margiela where I spent the whole day shooting (Paris)

Unpublished. Asian woman in New-York in 2000 (Paris)

Fashion is faddish (Paris)

There is a new President in France. Jonas playing on my computer (Paris)

 

Unpublished. Man in a street of New-York in 2000 (Paris)

Unpublished. Young woman in a street of New-York in 2000 (Paris)

The stylist Darryl Rodriguez and Filippo Tarentini, my assistant, on a men fashion shoot (Paris)

Jonas just out of bed late in the morning. Last day before going back to school after Easter holidays (Paris)

Fête du travail in France. Man working at Gare Saint-Lazare (Paris)