Strange. This is it, maybe I should stop writing this article right here, how much strange was this encounter with Nicolas. I have already written about how hard it is to find valuable masculine collaborations: a lot of the men contacting me are either « wesh-wesh » with no intend to create imaginative imagery or bodybuilders who only wants to show their muscle. Nicolas is neither of that, but man, what a strange person.
He’s a poet, as he likes to self-defined himself, and at first sight, it seemed pretty easy to connect with him. Listening to my crappy explanation is a good part of the connection process and I often explain that Photography is like being on stage for a play when it deals with expressing emotions. But with Nicolas, it took another dimension: the guy was really on stage and moving and acting :)
It leads to a lot of spontaneity and I thank Nicolas a lot for that. But it also took the process a bit too far. The way I do Photography is by connecting with people, which mean sharing a lot and finding a common understanding we can rely on to create imagery. But with Nicolas, it sounded a bit too much like a psychotherapy. I’m very familiar with the concept of phototherapy, and even if I really think Photography can help about some particular topics like self-representation and finding means of expression, I am no therapist.
My job on a set is to create images with my models, not making them cry for real. It’s an overstatement obviously, but you see the point: I’m relying on personal emotions to express them, but I can’t cure anything. I love thinking that my photography can help people, I love to see that some of my models receive both the experience and the final result as a very positive experiment but I can’t cure anybody. You might do it, but what I do is Photography.
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