Little Red already looked nice on the street. I like when pictures tell stories or ask questions. What kind of urban wolf may threaten this modern Little Red?

Canvas Pop, FX PhotoStudios, and We Are Juxt held a joint contest entitled “Where I’m From”.  The submissions were all beautiful and this is an opportunity to share with you all the works from the winner of the contest, Damien Giard.  Trust us when we tell you, the work from Damien is beautiful, amazing, and inspirational.

BP:  BP =) D:  Damien Giard

BP:  Please tell us about yourself.  Where are you from?  What do you do?  Describe to us who the person behind the images is.

D:  I’m a french guy who travel a lot 😉 I’m a little workaholic because I always get passionate with everything I do, including my job. I’m a producer at a publishing company. We focus on educational and interactive programs for kids such as www.bayam.fr

BP:  Please describe to us more in detail about where you live.  What is the culture? What are the demographics? What are the geographics?

D:  Part time in Paris, part time in Toulouse, more and more in Montreal, where I’ll be permanently settled in June.

Toulouse. The “pink city” of the south west of France. The ancient brick walls are actually pink and red, orange, terracotta… It is an awesome area with its Garonne river, the Pyrenees mountains and beautiful landscapes.

Paris. Wherever you look there is history, culture, past time glory… Beyond the perfect settings I like grabbing pictures of everyday people in the city of arts and love.

Montreal. A friendly and multicultural city. I like the mix of american and european influence, the architecture, the graffiti artists… Definitely a great place for street photography.

I’m a commuter. Plane, taxi, train and plane again… I spend a lot of time in airports, waiting peacefully, watching the planes take off. The unreal atmosphere of these transit zones. A piano playing smoothly in the background. As we switch from waiting lounge to boarding zone and into the airplane, the music keeps playing the same elevator tunes, endlessly.

BP:  Tell us more about your mobile photography and mobile artistry.  How did you get started in the world of mobile photography? What are the main subjects of your work?  What catches your eye?

D:  My experience of iphoneography started with the iPhone 4. My photos are a visual flow of everyday urban life. People and spaces and transportations. I enjoy my trips to capture unusual moments, snapshots of life, play with pictures, tell stories …

Music is also very important. Like images, music create powerful emotional memories for the moments in life. I wish I was able to create visual music! Meanwhile, music inspires many of my photos (#lifetomusic) like this one http://statigr.am/p/138832741095682150_1273307 (“The blue bus is callin’ us” from The End – The Doors) 

BP:  What apps do you use and why?

D:  Most of the times I use 3 apps: snapseed, noir and camera+

I generally use filters to deliver my mood and express my feeling of the moment. Digital filters are like developing baths and camera lenses in traditional photography, it helps to enhance the rough natural image to recreate a full atmosphere.

The lost gravel beach at the end of the world (actually Dungeness, UK). A lunar place with haunted fishermen houses. There was this girl playing hopscotch on an abandoned railway…

BP:  Have you printed out your work?  Were you happy with the outcome?

D:  I have printed a small book and I was quite happy with the result.

I would like to print large images, but I will have to wait for the evolution of the IG in HD 😉

First print exhibition in Paris (April) and another in Toulouse (May)

http://www.tribegram.com/component/content/article/29-the-cms/18-joomla-features

Soho Gallery for digital art  in NY : iPhoneography FX Photo Studio exhibit (dec.2011)

http://sohodigart.com/Previous-Events.html

Some of my images have been used for an advocate cabinet (http://gate-avocats.com/)

BP:  Who are your influences in your work and who are your favorite mobile photographers/ artists and why?

My influences come from many sides: pop culture, music and movies covers, tv series, artists…  I like candid and streetphotography, but I don’t follow guidelines, only my feeling of the moment.

There are many talented iPhotographers. After a heartbreaking selection, here is my short list:

@osqui @clok_moitie @eros_sana @brooklyntheory @magneticart @seb_gordon @vutheara @knitterbird @ekalex @janske

special mention goes to @cachafaz work with the homeless

There were flocks of starling birds flowing from tree to tree. I was completely against the light, hence the rendering, like a shadow theatre. This one has been selected by the FXStudio for the iphoneography exhibit at the Soho Gallery for digital art  in NY 🙂

BP:  Describe for us your experiences thus far in the world of mobile photography.  How long have you been on IG?  What have you learned and what would you like to pass down to new folks just joining in?

D:  I’ve been on IG for one year now. I wasn’t really a photographer before.

I used to practice photography when i was a kid, with an old Pentax of the 70s. The iPhone gave me the occasion to get back to my former hobby.

At the beginning it was only a basic lifestream: food, pets, home… All boring stuff! We need to get to the next level. Now I want my photos to convey an atmosphere, express emotional states, and most of all tell stories.

I had the chance to be a speaker at the iPhoneography conference during the Social Media Week in february (http://m.socialmediaweek.org/imps/smw/event.html?event_id=1917&rnd=7033089) with @vutheara and @iphotographe and we talked about the revolution of iPhotography. I will share my slides in the next days 😉

BP:  What is your favorite quote and how does it sum you up as a person/artist in a nutshell?

“Almost every new technology is an amplification of our body, Computers, the internet, social networks expand everything. The most important thing they expand is our imaginations and our brains.” Will Wright (creator of the Sims)

D:  This quote fits perfectly the mobile photography movement. The swiss-knife-phone is a handy

camera that comes as an extension of your eye and helps to capture sights, moods, moments…

“The photographer must have and keep in him something of the receptiveness of the child who sees the world for the first time or the traveler who enters a strange country” Bill Brandt

This quote totally reflects my vision of photography: think as a child so that life still surprises us every day.

Fall tree eye crying the last leaves.
I look for poetry in pictures. Sometimes poetry comes out from the most unexpected places. Coincidentally the French poet Stephane Bataillon created 24 “Instapoems”, like haikus based on my photos http://www.stephanebataillon.com/instapoems/

BP:  Any last thoughts you would like to share?

D:  I just would like to thanks you again for choosing me and giving me the opportunity to explain more my works, loves and feelings 🙂

And thank you for the brilliant work with WeAreJuxt 😉

Juxt thanks you for your art and your words.

Contact Damien Giard

IG:  MrFreakZ
http://mrfreakz.tumblr.com