It's Christmas Eve and what are these people going to do tonight ? Maybe they will be alone in front of their TV set. Or they will get drunk in a big family dinner. In the meantime, it rains. It would have looked better if it had been snow and the trees would have been pine trees. But then it would not have looked like Paris, so…
For once, a citizen of Paris is doing his duty… But the culprit is out of frame. Something is missing. Where is the dog ? This is a rare shot. First time I saw somebody doing what most people do in other big cities, like New York, London. Sometimes, there are exceptions. Paris is one of the dirtiest big towns I have seen, so I sort of had to pay respect to this person. Kind of a "decisive moment" ? The one that a photographer tries to track, waiting for it to happen ? Nothing of the sort. It just happened unexpectedly. In fact I thought I was going to have to be careful walking to avoid "the damage". Good surprise. And not a Paris classic at all !
Black and white or color ? This time I decided to leave the colors, although to me, it looks like a black and white picture. The warm hue of the street lights seems desaturated and the sky is blue instead of dark grey. In fact would it be the atmosphere that gives the impression of an old black and white shot ? It would mean that the effect does not come from the disappearance of colors, but from the location, and from the night. Photographing at the darker hours in areas were there are few reminiscences of the day to day life, like cars, makes everything easier.
Black and white, color ? It does not matter anymore. Nobody sees in black and white. There was a time when shooting in color was definitely not an option. Particularly at night. Today, black and white photography is an affectation, not a necessity. But in fact, it makes things simpler. Maybe that's why I like it. No more problems with harmony of colors. Forget the white balance ! All I have to do is make sure to control the contrast. Sometimes it does not work. In that case, I must save myself from shooting.
Sometimes, Paris looks like it has not changed since the 30's. I didn't look for such a location. I was walking around in the area, and I suddenly found myself surrounded by old black and white pictures I thought I had already seen. It was like finding a seam of coal. I had to extract as much as I could of this energy source. And in fact, this kind of photography is often made this way. You find yourself in the right place at the right time of the day and you just record. More often, you wander around for hours and you find nothing that catches your mind. It can be frustrating…
I was having a drink at a friend's place on a roof terrasse in mid town, when I spotted a tent on another roof across the street. A huge party was going to happen there. Maybe we should try to crash in, said my friend. But I wasn't in the mood, and by looking on the right I saw a much more interesting kind of a greek temple on top of another building. No lights inside. They were probably going to the party…Was it going to be casual or black tie ? We never knew. We went down to grab some food in a nearby restaurant. The place was crowded and noisy. I left early, wondering what this party might have been.
What is there to say about this place ? It is just easy to live, like old shoes. Yes you have to walk a lot in Venice, but one is always tempted to take the public transport. The vaporetto is definitely the best way to go around the old place. I wish the streets of Paris were drowned and boats would replace cars, busses and trucks.
We arrived early in the morning. Driving to the city is amazing. These tall but frail towers where people live look like match-sticks and you wonder how big the apartments are inside. Huge difference with our City of Light, Paris : it is clean ! And they have thought of the pedestrians. There are many covered galleries crossing over the busy streets. They protect the walkers going to work from the sun, and also from the tropical storms.
Weird place but I have known this town for a long time. We used to come for Easter with my parents - I don't really know why - when I was a kid. There was not much to do but walk around, follow the Promenade des Anglais all along. At this time of the year, it was often raining and the sea could be rough. Much more spectacular than the summer days, when the sun was crushing us and it became unpleasant to be out.
Corner of 5th and 53rd, coming out of the MOMA. The usual visit when I am in New York. Another place where you walk for miles. Since I usually come in late October, I often have a snow storm. The city is white in less than an hour. The wind blinds you with the snowflakes…And the next day, everything is changed, the sun is back and it starts to melt.