Posted in General My Time In Paris by Lachlan Andrerw

Date: 16 June 2020

Onehunga High School student Lachlan Andrew left New Zealand in late 2019 after studying Photography in Years 11 and 12. His family relocated to Paris, France where Lachlan took the opportunity  to enrol at the prestigious Speos, Photo Video and CGI School. He has been in lock down in Paris for Covid 19

Lachlan writes about his experiences.

Since moving to Paris in November of 2019, I feel that my skill and confidence in photography has been elevated by the beauty of the city and the interesting people within it. In the past, I thought as a photographer I had to focus on one aspect of photography, but since I have started my semester at Speos, Photo, Video and CGI I have taken an interest in other fields of photography that I never thought I would enjoy. Studio and Still Life photography was something I never thought that I would enjoy as I thought that there was no creativity involved in it, I was proven wrong as soon as I started working in the studio. Editing photos always felt like a chore and something you just had to do in photography but since attending computer imaging classes I have learnt the benefit of using Lightroom and Photoshop and how it can elevate a good photo to a beautiful photo. 

Aside from my new found love of the technical side of photography I have found myself having a larger appreciation for capturing the beautiful architecture of the city. I have found that Paris is a blend of modern and historic architecture. As a photographer, I have found myself capturing the past coming to life in the present through the old buildings that are scattered in the city. When I eventually leave Paris I will definitely miss the beautiful buildings throughout the city.

There are 2.1 million people living in Paris of all colour and creed, so there is no shortage of interesting characters and beautiful moments to take photos of. One of the most interesting shoots I have ever done was the Paris women’s march 2020. There were thousands of people out in the street marching to République. The atmosphere was amazing and I was able to capture the pride, joy and freedom of the many people who attended. Even just taking the metro to school there is always an interesting looking person that’s worthy of taking a photo of.

Paris is a gorgeous city and even though it is sometimes hard to live in, it makes up for it with its beautiful architecture and amazing people. Paris truly is a photographer's dream.