La Voix du Nord looks back at the making of my solar-eclipse photograph taken near the Colonne de la Grande Armée in Wimille. Although I was on holiday, the rarity of the event prompted me to prepare the shoot several weeks in advance, including buying an ND 100000 solar filter.

An initial scouting trip showed me that the planned viewpoint would not work, before I found a solution by moving farther away from the monument. On the day itself, I walked more than eight kilometres around the column to find the right position.

Canon R3, RF 100-500 mm and 1.4x extender: at an effective focal length of 1140 mm, the slightest movement is amplified and there are only a few seconds to make the shot. A badly parked car or an obstacle could have ruined all the preparation: this is therefore a photograph that owes a great deal to anticipation, technique and, inevitably, a little bit of luck.

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La Voix du Nord looks back at a photograph taken in Dannes during an attempted crossing of the English Channel. Several clues guided me to the scene: favourable weather, calm seas, no wind, high tide followed by the ebb tide, and the position of rescue vessels, tracked in particular using MarineTraffic.

After walking two kilometres along the beach, I photographed a first departure, followed by a second boat fifteen minutes later — the one in the photograph. The article also describes the situation at the water's edge, with children staying with their parents while waiting for the “taxi boat” to return, as firefighters handed them life jackets.

Faced with this scene, the presence of children inevitably made the situation more personal. The interview also discusses the decision not to blur the faces and the importance of preserving that look that says fear.

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In July 2025, MAXPPP published an article about the making of a photograph taken in Audresselles on June 18, 2025, during the departure of around forty migrants aboard a “taxi boat”. A friend alerted me even though I was not working that day, and I went to the scene, just a few minutes from my home.

The article recounts this roughly fifteen-minute sequence, during which the migrants gradually boarded from the beach before heading out to sea. The scene was particularly chaotic, and the article looks back at the conditions in which I made the photographs.

Deputy editor-in-chief Olivier Merlin notably compares the scene with the painting “The Raft of the Medusa”. The article also looks back at my photographic work on migration and at the two Prix Varenne awards I won in 2018 and 2023.

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La Voix du Nord looks back at the Prix Varenne for photography awarded for an image taken on July 18, 2023, on Boulogne-sur-Mer beach. That morning, a migrant family entered the water in the hope of being picked up by a “taxi boat”, while a holidaymaker in a kayak crossed their path.

Two worlds came together in the same frame for a few moments. The article looks back at the circumstances of the shoot and what the scene meant to me.

The presence of a father with his baby particularly affected me and made me think of my own situation as a father. The photograph ultimately won the Prix Varenne for photography in the regional daily press category.

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In December 2018, La Voix du Nord looked back at my first Prix Varenne, awarded for a photograph taken during clashes between groups of migrants in Calais. In this interview, I describe the conditions of the assignment, carried out alongside journalist Adrien Boussemart, and the need to find my position without putting myself in danger.

The photograph was taken from 40 or 50 metres away with a telephoto lens: without that “tele”, I would not have this image, and without my colleague protecting me, I would not have it either.

The interview also looks back at learning the ropes in Calais alongside experienced journalists and at the risks associated with certain assignments. Finally, I said that I felt more discomfort than pride about the award, because the winning photograph documented a dramatic situation and a population in distress.

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