{"id":6339,"date":"2026-03-28T08:00:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-28T07:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.arteventia.fr\/?p=6339"},"modified":"2026-04-02T13:49:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T12:49:15","slug":"portrait-nicolas-guilitte","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.arteventia.fr\/en\/portrait-nicolas-guilitte\/","title":{"rendered":"Nicolas Guilitte, photographing fireworks as a living memory"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nicolas Guilitte, photographing fireworks as a living memory<\/h1>\n

Some discover fireworks.
Others never stop following them.<\/p>\n

For more than twenty years, Nicolas Guilitte has travelled across Europe\u2019s pyrotechnic shows with undiminished passion. Based in Belgium, he has developed over the years a discerning eye, shaped by experience, music, and a deep attachment to preserving the memory of shows. <\/p>\n

Because for him, photographing a fireworks display is not only about capturing an explosion in the sky.
It is about telling the story of a moment, a place, an emotion.<\/p>\n

\"Nicolas
Nicolas Guilitte<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A passion born from the show<\/h2>\n

His first encounter with pyrotechnics dates back to his teenage years.<\/p>\n

Before photography, there was music\u2014more specifically, the concerts of Jean-Michel Jarre<\/a>, whose recordings he watched over and over again. <\/p>\n

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\u201cI think it all started there.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Very early on, Nicolas felt the need to keep a record of the moments he experienced.
First with compact cameras, then with a video camera from 2008 onwards, with which he filmed the shows he attended.<\/p>\n

His first fireworks photos date from that same period, at the Nuits de Feu in Chantilly.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI was taking photos handheld\u2026 you could say they looked like nothing!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

But the essentials were already there: the desire to observe, to understand, to preserve.<\/p>\n

\"ARTEVENTIA
Jean Michel Jarre in Brussels – Photo: Nicolas Guillitte<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The photography breakthrough<\/h2>\n

For several years, Nicolas prioritised video.
Long-exposure photography did not seem faithful to the reality of the show to him.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI thought it was cheating, that it was not what you see as a spectator.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Then came a turning point in the early 2010s.
By discovering the work of other photographers, he understood that pyrotechnic photography is a form of writing in its own right.<\/p>\n

In 2013, he bought his first DSLR.<\/p>\n

His passion then took on a new dimension, strengthened over time by experience, advances in equipment, and the discovery of retouching tools.<\/p>\n

From fire to place<\/h2>\n

Over the years, his perspective has evolved.<\/p>\n

Where he initially sought to capture the fire in all its graphic richness, he is now more interested in the relationship between pyrotechnics and their surroundings.<\/p>\n

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\u201cToday, what interests me is showcasing a place through fire.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Architecture, terrain, reflections\u2026
the setting becomes essential.<\/p>\n

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\u201cA display fired over a football pitch interests me far less. What matters is what the fire brings to the place.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"ARTEVENTIA
Belgium Party in Brussels – Photo: Nicolas Guilitte<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A demand for composition<\/h2>\n

For Nicolas, a successful photo relies on a precise balance:<\/p>\n