The Heart, Soul and Melody of Photography by Philippe Mougin

Philippe Mougin is a professional photographer born in Paris in 1969, who lives and works in Lausanne, Switzerland. Independent photographer for several years, Philippe decides in 2006 to launch himself into long exposure photography. His artistic interpretation of photography delivers a serene and mysterious world that stimulates the viewer's imagination through black & white landscapes and unsharpned images.

Tell us about something about Philippe Mougin Photography?

I was born in Paris but grew up in Switzerland. At the age of 20, I began a career as an independent computer consultant. Around the same time, I started experimenting with photography during many of my travels across Africa. IN 2004 I decided to improve my technical skills and learn more about the medium of photography. So, I started a one-year study program at a photography school in Geneva. After completing a number of workshops in a variety of subjects including portrait, fashion and advertising, I decided in 2006, to start my own photography project called «  L’âme de fond». This project involved using long exposures, a medium format camera and black & white film.

Can you make a brief description on the pictures in this set?

My principal objective is to capture a serene and mysterious world, where places are minimalistic, and where each image shows the imprint of man on that particular place. I’m deeply interested in the way each human being’s experiences influences their own perception of the environment, and in tempting viewers to stimulate their own imagination. For example, the series « Only a dream in Rio ».

Or «  Melody » most part of images are made with a plastic Chinese camera. In the future i think my work will be oriented on unsharpness images correspondent to my state of mind.

What’s your creative process like

I often travel across Western Europe, France Spain and Portugal and since 4 years i spend 2 weeks in Rio de Janeiro where i try to capture the incredible feeling that i feel in this city. I try to discover places which provide a new perspective of photography, Most part of my work are doing at the end of the day, when sun comes down, walking on a beach, looking around me and shooting the dream that appears to me.

I process the films at home and then scan them. I work on an image for a few weeks or a few months thinking about how i wish the final image to appear. Once the final adjustments to density and contrast are made i make my first inkjet print to visualize the work on paper.

At the end, I’m ready to print on high quality Museum mat paper they are then ready to sell or to use for exhibitions.

Where do you find inspiration and why you like photography?

For me the inspiration comes from a lot of stuff, for example music, book, And of course when i travel, i really like to discover new places that i did not planned on my road.

What are some tips you could give to people that really like your work?

To find their own style, what is the most important, and for that, as i did, don’t hesitate to see exhibitions of different style of photography.

Can you name some great photographer that inspires you and why?

One of my favorite photographer is Raymond Meeks, i hope one day to get those things that is very important for me in a photography and that he capture with a lot of poesy.

What can you tell us about your prints?

My wish is to try new kind of print with platinum and palladium print from digital negative, but i have a lot of work before to be ready and confident on this new way.

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Dear Mr. Philippe Mougin a big thanks for your contribution with this interview on our photography magazine. Your unique style is subtile but emotional, unsharp not blurry, congratulations for capturing the beauty of the world in this way, and sharing this view with our audience. We are looking forward to see your next projects.