Reflecting the city of light

Paul Saitowitz

Barbara Higgins saw the light leaking through the crack in the door,

and once she caught the slightest glimpse, there was no turning back.

After 14 years of business suits, airports, conference calls and

the like, it was time to trade in the high dollars and stress of the

corporate world for a shot at doing something she loved --

photography.

As soon as she stepped out from behind the corporate door, she

headed for the tarmac and stepped onto a plane headed for Charles de

Gaulle Airport in Paris. She was living the dream.

“I probably planned it out for a good six months to a year before

I left,” Higgins said. “This is what I’d always wanted to do.”

She studied visual arts in college and was taken by the work of

French photographer Eugene Atget. Atget had captured the intricacies

of urban life in Paris more than 80 years earlier in a series called

Paris pittoresque.

During her three-month stay in the city, she tried to follow in

his footsteps to create her own series with an updated feel -- Paris

Picturesque.

In between art classes, Higgins would traverse the city armed with

nothing but her camera. She’d eventually amass more than 3,000

images.

“It took a lot of research to find out exactly where he went, and

I didn’t quite find every place ... but I came pretty close,” she

said.

The works include detailed views of typically Parisian storefronts

with the reflections of day-to-day street activities glaring off the

windows.

“I really like reflections because they show what unfolds after

the fact,” she said. “Every time you look at the pieces that have

reflections in them, you can find something new.”

There are also broader cityscapes, including different angles of

the Eiffel Tower and shots around the River Seine.

Higgins chose to shoot the majority of the shots in black and

white, though there are some color pieces.

“I just think that black and white is more timeless,” she said.

“It seems to give the photos the ability to stay relevant longer.”

After the arduous task of editing the photos down to about 30, she

approached the French Buckets flower shop in Fashion Island about

possibly exhibiting in the store. Storeowner Sussanna Davidson agreed

to display the works, and since they’ve been on the wall, they’ve

been selling.

“I think we sold 12 the first night we opened, and since then,

interest has been pretty steady,” Higgins said.

Next up for Higgins, who is happy to have her corporate lifestyle

in the past, is a trip to Italy in September to capture the images of

Tuscany.

“I think the thing that has really always drawn me to photography

is the ability to document people’s lives, or a bit of history or a

moment in time,” she said. “I enjoy exploring different places and

subjects ... it’s just a lot of fun.”