gwenaëlle. A VIEW OF THE WORLD
FREN
Birds fly over a peaceful sea beneath the orange sky at dusk.
PHOTOGRAPHY & ESCAPESBY GWENAËLLE BARREAU

Moments pass. Images stay.

The world,
through my eyes.

Meet Gwen TRAVEL · NATURE · EVERYDAY MOMENTSExplore the collections

01 / BEHIND THE LENS

GWENAËLLE’S JOURNAL

Every image has
a story.

Mine begins with
my mum’s camera.

A small boat leaves a white wake across turquoise water.
GWENAËLLEPHOTOGRAPHY

Through
my eyes.

A little about me.
A world to discover.

THE JOURNAL
NO. 01
MEET
OBSERVE
REMEMBER
MEETGWENAËLLE

I’m
Gwenaëlle.

Life,
to the full.

I love setting off on adventures, living life to the full and taking on new challenges.

Gwenaëlle smiles with a camera in her hand, reflected in a rear-view mirror.
GO. LOOK. FEEL.
THROUGH MY EYES01
THE FIRST MOMENTSGWENAËLLE

It all starts
with her.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve always had a camera in my hands. I can still picture myself borrowing my mum’s or my brother’s to capture whatever caught my eye.

I think my passion for photography began, above all, with my mum.

I soon became the family’s “chief reporter” at get-togethers. I loved being behind the camera: watching, preserving a moment and telling the story I saw through my own eyes, rather than being in front of the lens myself.

Watching her photograph the world through her lens made me want to discover it through my own.
THROUGH MY EYES02
THE JOY OF CREATINGGWENAËLLE

Telling stories,
differently.

After completing a master’s degree in Communications, I now work as a communications officer for a French company. It’s a broad role: I work on a range of communications projects, social media and internal communications, and collaborate with different departments across the company.

What I particularly enjoy about my job is the creative side: developing new concepts, coming up with fresh ideas and constantly looking for different, innovative ways to communicate. In a way, there’s a connection with photography: in both, I love to observe, imagine and find a new way to tell a story.

THROUGH MY EYES03
LIFE IN MOTIONGWENAËLLE

Always
on the move.

Beyond photography, as you’ve probably gathered, I’m passionate about travel, but also dancing, skiing and, more broadly, all the adventures life has to offer. I love discovering, learning, being active and, above all, making new memories.

Golden light spills across the waves and sand.
THROUGH MY EYES04
AUSTRALIA / 2024GWENAËLLE

The call
of adventure.

In 2024, just after finishing my studies and before starting my career, I went to Australia with a friend on a working holiday visa.

It was an incredible experience, both for the people I met and the things I experienced. Of course, it wasn’t all plain sailing. A lot can happen when you’re backpacking for that long! But I think it’s those surprises, little mishaps and unexpected moments that make a journey richer and give you the best stories to tell when you get home.

THROUGH MY EYES05
TWO WEEKS ON THE ROADGWENAËLLE

From Melbourne
to Cairns.

One experience that really stayed with me was our two-week road trip from Melbourne to Cairns. We travelled along part of the Australian coast, stopping in places with unbelievable scenery. Kilometres of open road, unplanned stops, sunsets, breathtaking landscapes… and, of course, plenty of photos.

I came home from Australia with a full memory card, but more than anything, with so many memories and stories to tell. And that’s probably what I love most about photography: looking at an image again and being taken straight back to the moment I captured it.

THROUGH MY EYES06
ONE IMAGE, ONE STORYGWENAËLLE

Just one
favourite?

I’m not sure I could really say I have a favourite photograph.

I love each of my photos for a different reason, because they’re all tied to something I’ve experienced: a trip, a family moment, an encounter, a landscape I discovered for the first time…

Silhouettes stroll beside the water at sunset.
THROUGH MY EYES07
THE MEMORY OF MOMENTSGWENAËLLE

Everything you
can’t see.

When I look at a photograph, I don’t just see what’s in it. I also remember everything around it: who I was with, what we’d just experienced and how I felt at that moment. And that’s probably what makes these images so valuable to me.

A photograph can be beautiful, but what I love even more is everything it can bring back to the surface a few years later.
THROUGH MY EYES08
STORIES FROM THE ROADGWENAËLLE

The little
mishaps.

I have a few stories about things going wrong… especially with my drones!

Unfortunately, I’ve lost drones while trying to capture beautiful images. Let’s just say some photos cost me a little more than I’d expected…

An aerial view of a river running between wooded slopes.
THROUGH MY EYES09
LET THE MOMENT BEGWENAËLLE

Putting down
the camera.

Looking back, though, it taught me one thing above all: sometimes, you shouldn’t chase THE perfect photograph at any cost. You also need to know when to put the camera down, look around and simply enjoy the moment with your own eyes.

And in the end, some of the most beautiful images are the ones we never took.
THROUGH MY EYES10
A WAY OF SEEINGGWENAËLLE

A good
eye?

For this one, I think the people close to me might answer better than I could!

People have often told me I have “a good eye for photography”. For a long time, I wondered what that really meant, because I was simply photographing things I liked… like everyone else, surely?

A pink water flower with a yellow centre among the leaves.
THROUGH MY EYES11
THE EYE & THE LUGGAGEGWENAËLLE

My own
little touch.

Over time, I realised it might not just be what I photograph, but how I photograph it: an angle, a certain light, a perspective, a detail I notice that someone else might walk straight past.

I don’t know if I have a style you’d recognise straight away, but I like the idea that my way of seeing comes through in my photographs. Perhaps that’s my own little touch.

Mind you… the people close to me would probably also tell you that I pack far too much. Between the lenses, the zooms and now the drone, travelling light is clearly not my strong point!

THROUGH MY EYES12
THE NEXT ESCAPEGWENAËLLE

So much more
to discover.

There are still so many countries on my list that I wouldn’t know which to choose! I feel as though I’m only at the beginning of everything I’d love to discover.

But ultimately, my next dream escape isn’t necessarily just about the destination. It also depends a great deal on who I could share it with.

Of course, I love photographing an incredible landscape, a city I’m discovering or a sunset. But behind every image, there’s a memory too: the person beside me, a conversation, a fit of laughter, an adventure we shared…

THROUGH MY EYES13
SHARED MEMORIESGWENAËLLE

Who you’re with,
above all.

That’s another reason I love photography so much. When I look at a photograph years later, I don’t just see a landscape. I remember the place, the moment, but above all, the people I shared it with.

So for my next destination, I might choose a wonderful adventure first… and then let my camera tell the rest of the story.
A winding road follows a cliff above a deep blue sea.
THROUGH MY EYES14
THROUGH MY EYESNO. 01
Gwenaëlle smiles beside a harbour in the evening light.

The next chapter
is out there.

Thank you for sharing
a little of the journey with me.

GWENAËLLE BARREAUPHOTOGRAPHY

02 / THE COLLECTIONS

FIVE WAYS TO ESCAPE

Choose
your escape.

A shoreline, a certain light, a turn in the road.
Follow what draws you in.

03 / LIVING MOMENTS

THE MEMORY CONTINUES

The moment
after.

If you’d stayed
a few seconds longer…

An image.
And everything alive around it.

Some moments stay with us.
Others make us want to set off again.

20 MEMORIES IN MOTION

04 / CORRESPONDENCE

THE PEOPLE WE MEET ARE PART OF THE JOURNEY TOO.

Shall we talk?

About an image, an idea
or simply to say hello.

Silhouettes stroll beside the water in the golden light of the setting sun.
A SHARED MOMENT.G. BARREAU
FOR THE ATTENTION OF

Gwenaëlle Barreau

PHOTOGRAPHY
& ESCAPES

Hello Gwen,

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Prefer to use your email app?barreau.gpro@gmail.com
@gwenaelle_photos

The journey continues.

A few images between escapes.

AN IMAGE, ITS CREATOR

To admire.
To respect.

These photographs belong to Gwenaëlle Barreau. Except where permitted by law, any reuse or republication, including on social media, requires her prior permission.

Ask for permission All rights reserved.

GWENAËLLE COLLECTION

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THE MOMENT AFTER / GWENAËLLE

To the rhythm of the water