Portrait
Art & Âme
Before photographing you, I take the time to meet you.
Many of those who write to me begin with the same sentence: “I’m not photogenic.” Some have put this session off for years. Over time I have learned to hear what that sentence really says: the fear is almost never the camera. It is being looked at, truly looked at, and what might rise to the surface in that moment. That fear is legitimate.
People often come here at a turning point: a milestone, a page being turned, the wish to see themselves differently. You do not have to arrive ready.
The session begins far from the camera: we talk, or we stay silent. Nothing has to be achieved. I never ask for a smile, I never say “relax”. Those words have never relaxed anyone.
I force nothing. I hold a space, and what needs to appear ends up appearing. Sometimes quickly. Sometimes after hours. You decide the moment, often without knowing it. My work is to be ready, and to accompany you: through the image, through my words, through my presence, through my silences.
There are moments when I put the camera down. They are often the ones that come just before the real pictures.
Reportage follows me into the studio. Years spent watching for the moment in other people’s days taught me to see what surfaces: a gesture, a loosening, a silence, and to photograph discreetly when the time comes. Some of the truest images of a session arrive that way, without anything being asked.
How it unfolds
It all starts before the session. We talk, at the studio, by video or on the phone. We look at images together and build a moodboard: the light, the materials, what you want to show, what you would rather keep.
On the day itself you have nothing to prepare. Make-up if you wish. We have lunch together, and that is often when things truly loosen. Then we photograph, without watching the clock.
Every retouched file is handed over. And you leave with prints: five fine-art 20×30, signed, and a framed A3+ enlargement on the same paper. With a slideshow of the session, set to music.
A file lives in a phone. A framed print finds a wall, and meets you every morning.
Do not count on me for compliments: coming from a photographer, you would not believe them, and you would be right. The final image is what will convince you. Some people discover that day a face their family has known for ever, and that they had never seen.
What you do not say stays yours. A portrait does not have to show everything: what it keeps is what gives it depth.
Some tell their story over the first coffee. Others will say almost nothing all day. Both make great portraits: you alone decide what is shared, what is shown and what is kept.
This work cannot be done alone. I hold the space; what settles into it comes from you. It takes two for it to become possible.
What people keep from this day often goes beyond the photographs. One client wrote after her session: “a dance with myself.” I would not have dared the phrase. I have nothing to add.
Their words
“Nathanaël knew how to bring out the most beautiful things in her photos by catching the light, the gesture, the gaze, the moment.”
Before you write
What does the Art & Âme portrait experience include?
A Portrait: Art & Âme session with Nathanaël Charpentier includes a preparation meeting, a moodboard built together, a full day of shooting, make-up if you wish, lunch, every retouched file, five signed 20×30 fine-art prints, a framed and signed A3+ enlargement, and a slideshow of the session set to music. From €1,200.
Are the digital files included?
Yes. Every retouched file from the session is handed over, at no extra cost and with no imposed selection. They are yours. The signed fine-art prints and the framed enlargement are included on top, within the same price.
How much does a portrait with Nathanaël Charpentier cost?
A Portrait: Art & Âme session starts at €1,200, and at €1,950 for the version accompanied by a hand-drawn artwork. The price covers the preparation, the day of shooting, make-up, lunch, all retouched files, the signed fine-art prints and the framed enlargement.
How long does a session last?
A session runs over a day. I do not count the hours: it lasts as long as it takes for something to happen.
What does the version with a drawn artwork involve?
There are two ways. The illustrator can draw the portrait from a photograph chosen after the session. She can also be there on the day itself: she draws in the morning, and the photography takes the rest of the day. You leave with both, the print and the drawing.
I am not photogenic: how can I feel natural in front of a camera?
Nobody is “photogenic” in front of a photographer in a hurry. Feeling like yourself takes two things: time, and someone who demands nothing. You will hear no “smile”, no “relax”, no rehearsed compliments. The final image is what convinces you.
Where does the session take place?
At the Gien studio in the Loiret, 45 minutes from Orléans and an hour and a half from Paris, or in a place chosen together: your home, outdoors, somewhere that matters to you.
Portrait: Art & Âme is a registered approach. It is passed on, not copied.