Jean Guichard"s Stormy Lighthouses
Jean Guichard is a French photographer best known for his lighthouse photos.
His most famous photo is "Phares dans la Tempete, la Jument," a dramatic view of a lighthouse being engulfed in a huge wave, with the keeper looking out from the doorway about to be swamped.
Guichard was born April 28, 1952 in Paris, France.
During his childhood, he spent much of his free time with his grandparents in the Morbihan department, located near the Brittany coast, where he would later take his photos of lighthouses, including the one at la Jument.
In 1971, Guichard joined the Navy, sailing the Arctic and Atlantic oceans aboard a ship called "Commandant Bourdais.
" While in Greenland with the Navy, he bought his first Nikon camera, paid for by selling his photos to the crew.
After the Navy, he worked for the Department of Commerce, documenting the travels of the minister of the department.
From 1977 to 1984, Guichard worked for the Sygma agency as a photojournalist.
During this time, he photographed political personalities, including André Giraud, Jacques Chirac, and François Mitterrand, sporting events like the Paris-Dakar Rally and the Los Angeles Olympics, and political conflicts in Germany, Ireland, Poland and the Middle East.
His work was seen in major magazines of the day, including Figaro-Magazine, Paris-Match, Newsweek, Time, Stern, and Bunte.
In 1984, Guichard continued his photojournalism career working for the Gamma agency.
In 1989, he was part of a group of photographers that founded the GLMR agency.
The agency survived until 1995.
It was also about at this time that he became interested in photographing lighthouses.
Many of his best lighthouse pictures were taken in the winter of 1989 and 1990, which was one of the most severe storm seasons in history in that part of France.
In 1990, he was awarded second prize by World-Press for his famous photo "Phares dans la Tempete, la Jument," which translates as "Lighthouse in a Storm, at la Jument.
" In 1992, he published his first book of lighthouse photos, which won him a first prize, illustrated book category, at the Book Fair of Concarneau.
In 1995, after the GLMR agency went out of business, Guichard became the director of l'Agence Générale d'Image.
The story behind "Phares dans la Tempete" During the night of December 20, 1989 a storm had broken windows and flooded the lower floor of the lighthouse at place called la Jument, off the coast of Brittany, washing away the appliances and furniture.
The lighthouse keepers had taken refuge high up in the lantern room.
The next day, they were awaiting rescue when they heard the sound of Jean Guichard's helicopter.
Keeper Théodore Malgorne opened the door to see.
He soon realized that it was not a rescue helicopter and turned back inside, just as a huge giant wave broke against the opposite side of the lighthouse and engulfed it.
While all this was happening, Guichard was taking photos as quickly as he could.
He ultimately ended up with a sequence of seven shots.
Théodore Malgorne survived.
His most famous photo is "Phares dans la Tempete, la Jument," a dramatic view of a lighthouse being engulfed in a huge wave, with the keeper looking out from the doorway about to be swamped.
Guichard was born April 28, 1952 in Paris, France.
During his childhood, he spent much of his free time with his grandparents in the Morbihan department, located near the Brittany coast, where he would later take his photos of lighthouses, including the one at la Jument.
In 1971, Guichard joined the Navy, sailing the Arctic and Atlantic oceans aboard a ship called "Commandant Bourdais.
" While in Greenland with the Navy, he bought his first Nikon camera, paid for by selling his photos to the crew.
After the Navy, he worked for the Department of Commerce, documenting the travels of the minister of the department.
From 1977 to 1984, Guichard worked for the Sygma agency as a photojournalist.
During this time, he photographed political personalities, including André Giraud, Jacques Chirac, and François Mitterrand, sporting events like the Paris-Dakar Rally and the Los Angeles Olympics, and political conflicts in Germany, Ireland, Poland and the Middle East.
His work was seen in major magazines of the day, including Figaro-Magazine, Paris-Match, Newsweek, Time, Stern, and Bunte.
In 1984, Guichard continued his photojournalism career working for the Gamma agency.
In 1989, he was part of a group of photographers that founded the GLMR agency.
The agency survived until 1995.
It was also about at this time that he became interested in photographing lighthouses.
Many of his best lighthouse pictures were taken in the winter of 1989 and 1990, which was one of the most severe storm seasons in history in that part of France.
In 1990, he was awarded second prize by World-Press for his famous photo "Phares dans la Tempete, la Jument," which translates as "Lighthouse in a Storm, at la Jument.
" In 1992, he published his first book of lighthouse photos, which won him a first prize, illustrated book category, at the Book Fair of Concarneau.
In 1995, after the GLMR agency went out of business, Guichard became the director of l'Agence Générale d'Image.
The story behind "Phares dans la Tempete" During the night of December 20, 1989 a storm had broken windows and flooded the lower floor of the lighthouse at place called la Jument, off the coast of Brittany, washing away the appliances and furniture.
The lighthouse keepers had taken refuge high up in the lantern room.
The next day, they were awaiting rescue when they heard the sound of Jean Guichard's helicopter.
Keeper Théodore Malgorne opened the door to see.
He soon realized that it was not a rescue helicopter and turned back inside, just as a huge giant wave broke against the opposite side of the lighthouse and engulfed it.
While all this was happening, Guichard was taking photos as quickly as he could.
He ultimately ended up with a sequence of seven shots.
Théodore Malgorne survived.
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