Through the Lens Q&A: Claire Guillon

Claire Guillon, @claireguillon, is a Paris-based street style photographer, who will be shooting at the forthcoming AW22 edition of Copenhagen Fashion Week.

Claire has been shooting fashion weeks for almost a decade, and has more recently been drawn to the curiosity, colourfulness and creativity of Copenhagen. Claire discussed her path to becoming a street style photographer, the inspirational power of movies on her work, and thoughts on Copenhagen style.

How long have you been taking photographs?

I did my first show in 2012 (almost 10 years already!) but I went full time around 5 years ago.

Did you always want to be a photographer?

Actually, I spent a while not knowing what I wanted to do. I spent a year thinking about it after my graduation, and I did 3 years of Digital Communication studies while doing fashion week on the side before actually doing it full time!

Where do you look for inspiration?

I'm a huge movie addict so I would say probably in movies and series I watch. Also during fashion week I get mostly inspired by the cities and most importantly the people, some creators are getting so creative with their content and looks, its always so inspiring to see what they do, meet them and work around their vision and mine together.

What inspires you about Copenhagen fashion week?

I started shooting Copenhagen Fashion Week because it feels like a breath of fresh air! Firstly, I love the city and discovering new locations. Also it's a fashion week where I can see a lot of creators I don’t see anywhere else. I'm so used to shooting in Paris and Milan fashion weeks so Copenhagen feels like I'm starting again. I have to improvise and discover everything, which really helps me to not get stuck in the routine. The looks in Copenhagen are always so creative and vibrant. It's definitely my favourite fashion week!

What do you look for when taking street style pictures?

I love shooting details like a nice bag, shoes and earrings, so I'm always looking for those kind of things. Also I’m always looking for new/upcoming trends!

What do you love about street style?

When I first started, I loved the fact that I didn’t know to speak to anyone haha! I was really shy and I could just shoot people without having to organize a shoot and talk to anyone, I could just go there and shoot. Funny enough, now the thing I love the most about this job is meeting people from all over the world that I would have never meet without fashion week!I love capturing people's personality through their outfits. Also I love the fact that we are hundreds doing this job, supposedly getting the same picture but actually we all have a different vision and style so it’s really rare to have the same!

What are your career aspirations for the future?

I always wanted to work in the cinema industry, I'm really inspired by Greg Williams’ work and would love to have a similar career in the future