She sketches.

She unveils in her subjects the infinite grace they carry, often without even knowing it.

She unveils in her subjects the infinite grace they carry, often without even knowing it.

From rock musicians to animal photography, and through the exploration of places, moods, and scenes of life, she approaches, observes both the visible and the invisible, and allows herself to be traversed… It is that decisive moment she caresses before capturing it—a comma in time when one is neither entirely oneself nor entirely another, just wholly present within the frame, so present that nothing else in the world exists. Then the off-screen fades away, the entire universe converges, collapses into an unyielding focal point, and in a photographic big bang, one becomes unique. Whether as the subject or the observer of the image, it is like an epiphany. A moment we also call “Love.”

When you visit Carole Epinette’s website, you get the uncanny impression that her images are alive. As if, by leaning in, you might almost hear the gentle voices of those legendary rock figures captured by the lens of this photographer, who, since 1994, has been narrating the backstage of music.

A sensitive, unconventional gaze—an eye and a signature that caught the attention of Libération, Best, Rock & Folk, Rolling Stone, Rock Sound, Guitar Part, Le Monde, and others.

An English agent for renowned photographers discovered her and opened the doors of the Anglo-Saxon press (Metal Hammer, Kerrang, Classic Rock…).

They come to her: AC/DC, Amy Winehouse, Sex Pistols, Alain Bashung, Metallica, David Bowie, James Brown, Marilyn Manson, Rammstein, Foo Fighters, Slash, and so many more.

Her signature ? A stripping down of the soul, a focus on the human, a « mise en abyme » of its essence, infinitely; no filter but that of humanism. “I love black and white, playing with contrasts, chiaroscuro. With black and white, we go straight to the heart of emotion. In general, I trust my intuition, I observe, I feel, and I bear witness to what the Other has to offer. In a session, it is essential to create the climate of trust needed for letting go so that everyone can settle and reveal themselves in complete safety.”

More than a photographer, the portraitist is a storyteller, a conduit of emotions.

In 2017, Carole Epinette launched her exhibition, Rock is Dead (which she will later publish as a book), a gallery of rock star portraits who strangely shatter their armor, as if weary of hiding behind the mask of legend.

This exhibition continues to travel: Paris, Lyon, Lausanne, Luxembourg, London, Geneva…

In 2019, for the book Rock Fictions (Le Cherche-Midi Editions), she reversed roles by inviting writers and journalists to let their pens wander over her photos—in short, to paint the portrait of a portrait.

Throughout 144 pages, words mingle with images to recount, or even fantasize about, encounters of a different kind.

In 2021, When the Earth Speaks to Us, Messages from the Sacred Places of the Vézère Valleywas released. Co-created with Marie-Christine Girard, this book embarks on a journey through that Dordogne valley laden with countless stories. The valley of Man, set among caves, rock shelters, and waterways, bears witness to the history of Time. Carole captures its subtleties and the hidden messages within rock, water, sky, and trees, while Marie-Christine’s words flutter, pierce, and evoke profound questions.

2025… a new book is in the works… just a little more patience ;-)