2. Do you have a photograph that you look back on and say, “wow”? (please provide link as well) I have so many pictures that I love… I’ve chosen a picture made by Rosie Hardy, because she is really the one who gave me the desire to begin photography, and because I still love the pictures of her gallery that amazed me three years ago : link
3. From your deviantArt gallery, my personal favorite piece is The Dancer’s Despairlink Did you have any special inspiration or story behind this piece, or was it one of those random days?* It really was one of those random days… at the time I was under the impression that I had lost my inspiration ; I was trying and trying again to take a good picture, and I couldn’t. All I was doing was bad to me. And I saw the ribbons. I had no idea of what I wanted to do, but I placed my camera on my tripod, jumped on the bed and took the picture. I found its meaning later on… and now it is one of my favorite pictures, so I’m really glad you like it !
4. What genre of photography would you best classify your own works? I think my works can be classified under the “conceptual” and “surrealist” genres. I definitely aim at doing what is called “fine art photography” or “artistic photography” ; on the contrary I’m not very interested in fashion photography…
5. If you could photograph any one person in the world, or from history, who would you choose, and why? Good question ! Right now I want to shoot Louise Ebel, she’s so inspiring. And guess what! She has accepted to be my model soon! link
6. On your personal website, you refer to yourself as an amateur photographer. Have you not yet taken payment for your work, or do you refer to yourself as amateur because you feel you have not crossed that line into a description of just photographer or professional photographer? I refer to myself as amateur only because in France, to be a professional you need to declare it to the State, so that the payments you receive are legal… I am considering declaring myself as a professional, though I’m not sure I am good enough for it !
7. You clearly put a lot of thought into your work, the concepts and even basic prop placement. How long do you spend on an average project? It really depends ; I elaborate my concepts quite quickly -it is as if they came by themselves to my mind ; then I have to set the shooting place, and finally to edit the pictures, and these two steps can take a long time. So Overall, I think an average project takes me five hours.
8. How do you feel about the over- use of Photoshop? Do you feel many photographers are starting to rely on it as a crutch, or is it just a tool of the trade? I think it depends on the conception of photography that the photographers defend. For example, in my pictures I really aim at creating a new world, I don’t want to duplicate the real world. Consequently my Photoshop editions are part and parcel of my work, I don’t mind if one of my pictures looks over-edited (though I try to be quite reasonable) But some photographers want to create realistic shots, and in this case, I think these photographers should not rely on the edition to make “good” pictures. But that’s just my opinion!
9. Congratulations on winning the Upside Down Contest in The Photographer’s Place on deviantArt. *"link":http://duchesse-2-guermante.deviantart.com/art/Reality-won-t-let-me-dream-175164977 I noticed that you actually had another piece that could have been entered and would have fit the contest rules perfectly. link How did decide upon which piece to enter?* Thank you again ! I indeed hesitated between these two shots… but I choose the one I submitted to the contest because I think that its signification is more interesting…
10. Lastly, what is the first word that comes to mind when I say “rain drops”? “Window” !
Check out Julie’s works
deviantArt
Facebook
Flickr
Personal Website
I enjoyed getting the chance to interview Miss Julie, and her answers were beautifully written despite English not being her native language. She has a strong passion for her work, and though it may not be the normal perfect airbrushed portrait some are looking for, her work has beauty, emotion, and a story that could be written for each one.
