Sylvain believes that every photographer’s definition towards photography is different and shows us his unique style of street photography in this interview. He breaks down photography in a very aesthetic way with an interesting visual observation. For him its really impossible to get bored with photography because it is so much related to his daily life. Speaking about his photographs, there is a crafty technique of playing with colors, composition with a perfect blend of shooting that interesting moment well readable in each picture here, making it a clear example of finest contemporary street photography.
Could you please introduce yourself to our readers?
I’m a videographer and editor, sometimes photographer, 33 years old and living in Paris.
What makes Street Photography so interesting for Sylvain?
As everything is moving around us at all time, there’s always something going on with immediate photography. It is all about visual observation. It is hard to get bored because this kind of photography is linked to daily life and it is a part of what we are as a person and a photographer.
I noticed that you like to play with a mix of moments, colors and composition in your stunning portfolio. Few words on it please?
Lights, colors, elements, human presence are all potential shapes for a frame. I like graphical and geometric compositions as a canvas but the center of attention should be a moment derived from it, making the photo a little bit warmer.
According to Sylvain what is so complex in street genre?
It is complex because every photographer has his own definition from traditional documentary to all new styles. I think it’s a kind of aesthetic way to face our surroundings and for me classic photographers like Stephen Shore, Joel Meyerowitz or William Eggleston are street photographers at all times regardless their different works. The common point is to shape the unexpected as an observer, using what we are facing to create something else, a flat two dimensional rectangle. The complexity is to find yourself as a photographer in that wide and at the same time limited approach.
Your Inspiration?
I like books from photographers like Lars Tunbjork, Larry Sultan, Martin Parr, Asako Narahashi, Pieter Hugo, Alec Soth or Johan Willner. Photographers online like Charalampos Kydonakis, Todd Gross or Peter De Krom. I’m also inspired by street photographers collectives like In-Public, Burn my Eye, Vivo or my friends from our French photo collective Fragment. I also like to make links between photography and other domains I’m interested in such as philosophy or physical science.
Your Gear?
I’m using a fuji X100s and now a Ricoh GR. I used to shoot also with film cameras like the Olympus MjuMju 1 & 2 and the Mamiya 6 but film photography is expensive and I’m broke so I had to slow down a bit.
One thing you always make sure to remember on the streets?
Keeping my mind empty in order to be concentrated because I don’t like when a missed photo stays in my head. There are already too many.
That place you always want to visit as a street photographer?
A small town in a suburb can be as resourceful as a big city. Because I’m more into photography now, I’d love to go back to places like Tokyo, Seoul or New York and spend more time shooting there. I’d also love to visit San Fransisco or Beijing.
Thanks again for this wonderful opportunity with 121clicks.com. Any final thoughts and words of advice for your fans and our readers?
No advice, photography is a free playground. Thank to the 121clicks team and the readers.
You can find Sylvain Biard on the Web :
Copyrights:
All the pictures in this post are copyrighted Sylvain Biard. Their reproduction, even in part, is forbidden without the explicit approval of the rightful owners.
