Passionate about amateur photography since my teenage, I started by dipping my fingers in developer and fixer, that is to say with black and white photography. As I was lucky enough to grow up in a rural area, my favorite fields were nature photography and particularly macro, but also landscape and architecture photography.​

From the 2000s, with professional experience in IT, I, so to speak, rediscovered photography with digital technology, in a "dark room" too, but a software one, therefore in full (artificial) light and with my hands dry ! I especially appreciated the ability to manipulate colour easily and learn how to enhance images with a few well-balanced adjustments.​

I started scanning and restoring all of my black and white negatives, then old family photos, even making my first attempts at colourisation.​

I thus learned to master development and retouching software and to make little treasures reappear from old, yellowed photos, sometimes in poor condition. Curious about new technologies, I constantly try to improve my technique, in particular by using artificial intelligence-based tools wisely.​

At the same time, I of course continued to take photos, lots of photos! Landscapes and bugs off course, but also family portraits, pets, various objects... testing, for example, different light sources. However, it was still a hobby.​

And then there was a pivotal date for many, March 17, 2020. A Saint Patrick's Day without a celebration, where the whole of France found itself confined for several months. During this time, I began to imagine a future where I could live my passion, possibly make a living from it.​

In June 2021, I registered a brand: Proxiluz (Proximity and Light) and on May 5, 2023 a self-business was officially born. Its dual vocation: to offer restoration services to those whose attics are still full of neglected treasures or to offer “in-situ” photo services. Why this specificity? because for me, photography is a journey, moments associated with a place of life rather than created in a laboratory.​

Do not hesitate to contact me, submit your projects and follow me on social networks.

See you soon.

Laurent