Through the Lens of William O’Such

The first street scene photograph of Paris with Parisians was made in 1838 by Louis Daguerre. It was a long shot of the Boulevard du Temple taken from an upper-story window of a man getting his shoes shined on the street. The photo technology process was silver-covered copper plate that required about seven minutes of exposure time. The horse-drawn carriages on the scene moved too quickly to be recorded but the shoeshine person and the man getting his shoes cleaned stayed in place long enough to be a part of photographic history. Today, Paris street photographers typically use digital technology, although film is regaining popularity. Phone and digital cameras take photos ranging from selfies to food to fashion and beyond. Everyone is trying to record their experience of Paris, but it takes a real eye for geometry, perspective, lighting and subject framing to capture an event or feeling in a photograph that tells a story everyone wants to see. One of those street photographers who captures moments of Paris is Bill O’Such. His Paris Vignettes are featured in France Media Group’s Bonjour Paris website. His work can also be found in an online permanent exhibit at Alliance Française San Francisco (AFSF.) He started taking French lessons at AFSF in 1999 and the then director was impressed with his photography. The online exhibit has been on the AFSF website for over six years and some of his framed photographs are still on the AFSF’s walls after his live exhibition in September 2017.