Tag Archive for: project

It has been quite an adventure for me. It took a dozen trips, a few battles with stray dogs, a definite increase of my ninja skills, 1 dead memory card with a full day of shooting, 5 models (including yours truly), almost a thousand photos, a complete overhaul at mid project and a bunch of “I’ll never finish that damn project”.
But in the end, I did it, here the final form of the Ghost project!
Ghost_17
Ghost_02
Ghost_19
Ghost_13

See the whole project

It’s not far, it’s being this link.

Fine art prints

As you know, my main style is the black and white urban photography, with often a very strong graphic content. Graphic as in geometry, lines, and pretty good contrast, not… something else 😉 I just love to find the place, spot the subject, wait for the right moment… It’s really my main craft and I love it.

Ghost_02. Part of the Ghost project. Cluj-Napoca, Romania, 2017.

Ghost_02. Part of the Ghost project. Get a print!

Have your own identity

I have always considered very important for a photographer to get its own identity. That way to frame, to shoot, to process, that will first of all make your work stand out, but that will also make it recognisable. One of my best achievements in the last few months is to have people tell me “I knew it was your photo, I recognised your style”. I can’t say how happy I am every time I hear that. First of all, it means that some people are interested in my work (and not being a big shot, it’s always good to know 🙂 ), and maybe more important, it means that my work can be differentiated and identified amongst the other photographies. It may not be everyone’s taste, but at least it exists by its own. And that is good. I now have my own identity, my brand.

And try something new

On the other hand I don’t want to limit myself to this style. I still want to do other styles. This is for example why I’ve started my Ghost project. Besides the street/urban work I’m used to I really like to do urbex: urban exploration. Finding old buildings, abandoned factories, in the state they were left alone years and years ago. The decay, the dust, the rust everywhere. Some find it creepy ; I think it’s just fabulous. The place itself tells a story. But I didn’t want to do the classic urbex (e.g. shoot wide in the room), I wanted to introduce a human element as for my street work. And the idea appeared. Why not introducing an inhuman element in the scene? The ethereal, weird, eerie feeling of a ghost in these abandoned places. I found a great place. I was sold.

 

Ghost 03. Cluj-Napoca, Romania, 2017.

Ghost 03. Part of the Ghost project. Get a print!

The benefits

I had to learn everything again. I had to change my way of shooting. Shooting indoor vs shooting outdoor. Direct models, which was something totally new to me. Or put myself into the scene, which believe me is far from being that easy (and I just can’t thank enough the shoot by wifi feature of the newer cameras). Looking for photo spots reached a whole new level, with all the security and legal matters that go with visiting this kind of places. I challenged myself, and it was so great!

My processing skills jumped dramatically, mainly on Photoshop. I went from just polishing a few street shots into creating complex, multilayered composites. Some may not like it, and I totally understand it. It’s at least to try once, for educational purpose. I loved it. But, while talking about processing, one thing remained constant: my black and white style remained. I didn’t want to let that go. I still want to produce a constant and identifiable body of work, and my graphic style is a very important part of it.

 

Ghost_05. Part of the Ghost project. Cluj-Napoca, Romania, 2017.

Ghost_05. Part of the Ghost project. Get a print!

And now what?

Well, the Ghost project is still ongoing. I want to raise the bar even higher with a few ideas that I hope will materialise, and look good. Working on this project is a good way for me to progress, and also to raise the bar for my urban work. It also helps me a small lack of motivation on the street side of things, and keeps me going.

This is definitely something I will pursue: always trying something new. Expanding your range of abilities can only be beneficiary for you. And, worst case scenario, it can confirm your aversion for some genre (like portraiture for me 😀 ).

Keep in touch for more news about the Ghost project!

Ghost_02. Part of the Ghost project. Cluj-Napoca, Romania, 2017.

Ghost_02. Cluj-Napoca, Romania, 2017. Get a print!

Let’s continue with the weird and the bizarre with another element of the “Ghost” project. We’re still in the old factory, with another apparition, whose soul is leaving her body toward the window. I just love the light coming out from the window. It really gives an awesome mood to this photo.

Note that this photo has been published recently on 1x.com!

The Ghost project

This photo is part of a brand new project named “Ghost”, that is being slowly featured on this website. Stay tuned and meanwhile… why not getting a fine art print of this photo?

Get a print!

Do you like this photo? Why not getting an original, signed fine art print in limited edition?

More about Ghost 02

For me, it’s important to share as much info as possible about the photos I take. Therefore, here are the EXIFs for this photo:

  • Camera: Canon 6D
  • Lens:Canon EF24-70mm f/2.8L II USM
  • Aperture: ƒ/13
  • Focale: 28mm
  • Shutter speed: 0.5s
  • ISO: 200
  • Copyright: Pierre Pichot 2017, all rights reserved

Strangers in the Dark IX. Cluj-Napoca, Romania, 2016.

Strangers in the Dark IX. Cluj-Napoca, Romania, 2016. Get a print!

Winter has come, the night are starting earlier… and the snow started falling. A perfect setup for moody photos! We’re back in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, in the old city center which used to be part of a citadelle, a long time ago. Old city center means small, narrow streets with old houses. Narrow streets mean great lighting when the night comes. And that is exactly what happened here!

I caught these two women in a passionate discussion in the cold. The snow started to fall pretty hard, they didn’t care about it, absorbed in their stories. They left me all the time in the world to frame this shot the way I wanted it. Thanks girls! I really like those high contrast scenes. It’s pretty much the way it was in real life. The whole street, not being very long, is illuminated by only one light at its middle. The end of the street then disappears in the dark. Who knows what may happen over there?

I was told this photo has a Brassaï “je ne sais quoi”… The comparison is quite amazing to me! Maybe because he was born in Romania, in the same Transylvania this photo was taken 😉 I hope he would have liked this photo.

Strangers in the Dark IX is part of my “Strangers in the Dark” project. It’s a set of quite graphic and contrasty photos of strangers in poorly illuminated streets, at night, giving a dark and sometimes gloomy mood. Come and give a look to the whole project by clicking this link.

Do you like this photo? Why not getting an original, signed fine art print in limited edition?

EXIFs:

  • Camera:Fujifilm X100T
  • Aperture: ƒ/2.8
  • Focale: 23mm
  • Shutter speed: 1/60s
  • ISO: 6400
  • Copyright: Pierre Pichot 2016, all rights reserved

Strangers in the dark III. Cluj-Napoca, Romania.

Strangers in the Dark III. Cluj-Napoca, Romania, 2015.

Third item from my “Strangers in the Dark” ongoing project, this photo is very intriguing but also very dear to me. I’ve passed by the little street I’ve shot it maybe a hundred time before that night of December, and I have never noticed anything. It’s an old street with cobblestones, in the older center of Cluj-Napoca, very narrow, which gives on the Union Square. I’ve almost been there only by day, it was obviously a mistake, you have to go there by night.

It was a cold, winter night. I’ve just finished a bad day at work, I remember it was “not a good day for science”, as they say… I needed to get my head clear, why not grabbing my now always-by-my-side Fujifilm X100T and get some fresh air… and maybe a few shots. When I was on the sidewalk on the Union Square I saw this steam cloud, and knew there was something to do with it. After a first few shots from far away, the light from a shop on the right got lit up and this huge, staring face made its appearance!

It was time for me to dive a little deeper in this dark street and take advantage of this new scene. Always observe what’s happening, how you scene is changing, that’s what I call owning the scene. Then I just need a little more patience to get the steam cloud visible enough and have people passing by, to get the right shot. A lot of patience actually, as the wind started to blow, it was pretty cold out there… But it’s worth it, the effect is pretty spectacular, isn’t it?

Do you like this photo? Click here and get an original, signed print in limited edition!

EXIFs:

  • Camera:Fujifilm X100T
  • Aperture: ƒ/2.8
  • Focale: 23mm
  • Shutter speed: 1/60s
  • ISO: 6400
  • Copyright: Pierre Pichot 2015, all rights reserved

Tag Archive for: project