Eric Guillemain's photographer's notebook
- Words By Eric Guillemain
Eric Guillemain is a French fashion and portrait photographer, born in Morocco and raised in Paris. He was the lead singer of the French rock band Venice, and moved to New York in 2002 to make it as a musician, but ended up assisting world-renowned photographer Peter Lindbergh. Guillemain started his own photography career and has photographed celebrities such as Vanessa Paradis, Léa Seydoux, Anya Taylor Joy, Isabelle Huppert, Carla Bruni, Norman Reedus, Simon Baker, Jennifer Lawrence, Johnny Depp, Alicia Keys, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Lily Allen, Dakota Johnson, Rachel Weisz, Andie McDowell, Nick Cave, Lizzie Jagger and Lou Doillon – to name a few.
To quote Eric: “I never stopped singing, I just decided to make photos instead of songs… for now.” Eric’s style can be described as stripped down and sudden, without filters or device, connected directly through emotion, and capturing moments where less is more.
Lily Allen, London
“This was for a newspaper shoot, and we were getting ready. Someone handed her a drink and she began sipping on the straw. It looked so cool, so I took the shot. It reminds me of something from a French New Wave film…"
Helen Mirren, Santa Monica, California
“This seems simple, but there’s also some elegance to it, and humour at the same time with the ‘celeb’ wording in the shot. A lot of people like this one, which is reassuring, but it’s a reminder that it takes a lot of experience and hard work to capture those special moments that you can call ‘simple’."
Léa Seydoux, Paris
“This was for a shoot with a Japanese fashion magazine, but we were talking backstage beforehand. She had just got off a flight from eastern Europe, and was pretty tired. I always like using mirrors as an intermediary of seeing things or people in pictures.”
Jennifer Lawrence, Los Angeles
“I like seeing people through a camera with a camera, and wanted to show and feel what was around her. There’s some tension in the shot with all the equipment that’s the opposite to the expression on her face.”
Darius Khondji, South Africa
“This was on a shoot for a charity, but it’s right at the start of the book. I wanted to start with nature, and make nature the star and focus of this picture, as well as the book, too."
Los Angeles, CA
“This is on a shoot at the end of the day. I got all the shots I wanted, and leant up against the van and saw the reflection. I was taking the time to be somehow out of it, but still watching it, in this semi-dream-like state, which is what it resembles.”
Norman Reedus, New York City, NY
“I’d been taking portraits of Norman beforehand and I asked him whether we could shoot outside because it was super, super cold. We selected a street, and my assistant had his bike. Norman asked to sit on the bike, and that was the shot right there. The whole thing took about 10 or 15 minutes and we were done.”
