Articles divers, points de vue, etc.
Various articles, points of view, etc.

Since the early days of photography, images have been altered after their capture. The motivations behind these manipulations are varied and not always honest. The use for political propaganda purposes is among the most common motives. With the proliferation of digital cameras and the advent of editing software like Photoshop, and particularly with the recent rise of artificial intelligence, these practices have become commonplace and no longer come as a surprise. However, the manipulated images presented on this page are quite astonishing, as they were created from analog film captures.

Let's try to understand how a camera measures light. Automatic and semi-automatic exposure modes necessarily require light metering. This measurement is used to determine the shooting parameters (exposure time, aperture, and even sensitivity in auto iso mode). Modern cameras are equipped with a light meter, which in this case is more accurately called a cell. This page explains why this light measurement is necessarily inaccurate, and gives a few practical tests that you can do at home to see by yourself.

In recent years, particularly with the popularisation of the internet and social media, it seems that most people consider themselves to be photo models (it's also true that many people have improvised as photographers). However, it is essential to understand that being a photo model involves a number of skills, and also a number of constraints, particularly when it comes to publishing your image. Not being aware of this can lead to embarrassing misunderstandings.

"DeepDream" is a project initiated by Google as part of artificial intelligence and more specifically pattern recognition and machine learning (DeepLearning). The programme, already in beta phase, was able to identify shapes in an image that it had learnt to recognise, and reinforce this resemblance. If, for example, a cloud is reminiscent of a dog, the DeepDream programme will reinforce this resemblance by accentuating the eyes or adding a texture reminiscent of the animal's fur. The result is highly psychedelic images, which seem to have been drawn or painted under the influence of a hallucinogenic drug and are very reminiscent of dreams, or even nightmares.

The meeting between french president François Hollande and Arnold Schwarzenegger (2015) was of course the occasion for numerous photos published in the press. But the two men are far from having the same build, and the comparison is not to President Hollande's advantage. However, an AFP photographer (Thomas Samson) succeeded in masking the difference, making François Hollande look almost as imposing as Schwarzenegger, and without using computer retouching. How did he do it?

Some photographs have left their mark on the history of photography, either because they introduced something new in the photographic technique or approach, or for various reasons such as an exceptional selling price, unforeseen legal consequences, unforeseen legal consequences, etc.

The question of whether to prefer posed or spontaneous portraits has always given rise to debate among photography enthusiasts. Of course, in some photographic styles the question doesn't arise: street photography involves photos taken on the spot, while studio photography involves a posed subject. This short article offers some food for thought on the subject.

At a time when computer retouching is omnipresent in all published photos, and when Artificial Intelligence is even capable of constructing an image from scratch, most of us are well aware that a photograph does not necessarily reflect reality. But long before the computer 'fiddling' there was the taking of the shot and, from that moment onwards, the photographer has made choices that determine the meaning of the future image. Framing, for example: by including or excluding certain elements, the photographer chooses what will be shown in the image. These choices may be technical (depth of field, focal length, exposure time, etc.) or non-technical (time of day, season of the year, distance from the subject, etc.). The photographer can act on all these elements and thereby have a strong influence on the meaning of his or her photo.

The official portrait of the President of the French Republic is displayed in every town hall in the country. In principle, the current President is well remembered, but the previous ones are much less so. It is interesting to look at the evolution of these portraits since 1871, when Adolphe Thiers launched the tradition of the presidential portrait. This page provides a photographer's view of the official portraits of the last French presidents by relating the characteristics of each image (framing, choice of setting, pose, etc.) with the personality of each of these statesmen.

The rule of thirds is THE best-known rule of composition for beginner photographers. But it's certainly not universal. At most, it's a time-saving trick for quickly framing a moving subject. First of all, it should be noted that there are many other rules for composing an image: in fact, painters very rarely use the rule of thirds. Secondly, a composition based on the rule of thirds introduces dynamics into the composition, which is not always desirable. Let's take a closer look at the subject.