Anne-Fleur Sire
French photographer Anne-Fleur Sire specializes in portrait and experimental analogue photography. Her intimate, soft portraits display a profound knowledge of the analogue medium. Read on to find out how she incorporates Lomography gear in her work.
I have two master’s degrees in photography and have been passionate about this medium since I was a teenager. For me, film is a superb field of experimentation and I use expired film, film soups, double exposures and grain in my portrait practice.
A reinvention of the original 19th century Joseph Petzval portrait lens for modern-day analogue and digital SLR cameras with our first Bokeh Control Ring for even greater experimentation.
Unique chemical formulas set our LomoChrome color negative films apart. Psychedelic Purple crafts a heady blend of earthy reds, crisp plums and velvety violet hues.
I took my first steps into the Lomography universe with the Potsdam Kino film and I loved it! I wanted to show its cinematographic effect on the skin so I made a series of portraits and nudes. I really like the contrasts that this film creates, there’s a certain softness that can be exploited. It’s also perfect for double exposures and I prefer to use it with a soft light despite its low ISO sensitivity. It’s the kind of film you want to use again and again!
I’m attracted to color renderings that can seem “strange“ so I enjoy using the LomoChrome Purple and LomoChrome Metropolis films. They are ideal if you like to have surprises when you see your images for the first time. I particularly enjoyed the look of the LomoChrome Purple in my film swap with Alban Van Wassenhove. The contrasts were interesting and perfect in a double exposure. These films are really suitable for creating an atmosphere – I used LomoChrome Metropolis during autumn to reflect the feel of that time of year.
Top tip: use these films in different lighting conditions with their flexible ISO: you will be amazed!
I had the opportunity to test some Lomography Art Lenses. They look sublime and, despite their appearance, they are very simple to use. When shooting with the Petzval lenses such as the New Petzval 58 Bokeh Control Art Lens or the New Petzval 80.5 mm f/1.9 MKII Art Lens you need to be careful to center the subjects. I’m a big fan of blur in photographs and these lenses allows you to create very soft images, perfect for accentuating an intimate and moving atmosphere. The swirling bokeh creates a kind of halo, it helps to easily obtain original and artistic effects which are nice. The Petzval lenses also create fabulous, old-fashioned backgrounds which helps me make my subjects stand out. The Daguerreotype Achromat 2.9/64 Art Lens is also very nice to use as it allows you to easily change the shape of the bokeh, although I was mostly experimenting with the varying sharpness and blurs it offers – I was overwhelmed by the result.
I tend to think that simplicity is a great ally in creation in order to seize what the environment offers us. Knowing the basic rules of photography well – the rule of thirds, settings of the speed, ISO, aperture, etc. – allows you to experiment more serenely. It doesn’t matter if you miss some photos, film can be discouraging but it requires humility to be even more satisfied afterward!
When shooting double exposures, I always advise underexposing the first image a little as it’s the shadowed areas that will show the elements in the next photo. It’s also necessary to leave space for the second photo, or you risk overloading the image and no longer understanding it.
My last tip, have fun!
You can see more of Anne-Fleur’s work on her LomoHome or her Instagram.