Spéos professional photography programs are taught by a dynamic team of high-level professional photographers who are active in their fields, and a few permanent teachers, all of them bilingual. Most of Spéos’ courses are accessible at the A-level.
Administration
Spéos – Paris Photographic Institute
- Antoine Pierru – Operations Manager
- Anne-Marie Norikané – Admissions Coordinator
- Eva Ellenberger – Student Life Coordinator
- Hugo Hardy – Recruitment Officer
Spéos Group – Subsidiaries & Affiliates
- Pierre-Yves Mahé – President
- Claire Saint-Jean – Vice President and Director of External Communications
Advertising photography / Studio / Fashion photography
- Fabrice Dunou – Architecture and Interior Photographer
A graduate of Spéos, Fabrice Dunou has practiced architecture, interior, and luxury photography (hospitality, heritage, jewelry, gastronomy) for more than fifteen years. His studio handles both contemporary buildings and high-end product photography. He passes on to students the technical rigor, spatial awareness, and attention to detail that define commercial photography. - Gabriella Lincoln – Portrait and Product Photographer
A French-American photographer based in Paris, Gabriella Lincoln is a graduate of Spéos.
She specializes in portraiture, product photography, and e-commerce content, combining still imagery with video. She supports students in developing a coherent visual approach, with an emphasis on storytelling and image direction, as well as the fundamentals of studio work, safety, and professionalism, all in line with current market realities. - Sasha Sparks – Multimedia Artist, Photographer, and Instructor of AI Applied to Image-Making
A Paris-based visual artist and founder of Kinetic Kunst, Sasha Sparks works at the intersection of contemporary photography and generative artificial intelligence. Exhibited at the Venice Biennale (Personal Structures, 2022) and recognized by TIFA, PX3, and MIFA, she teaches students a practice in which cutting-edge visual research and professional rigor are built together, and she is developing a teaching approach centered on AI applied to image-making.
Photojournalism / Photo Reportage
- Nathalie Bauer – Photojournalist
A freelance photographer, Nathalie Bauer trained at the Beaux-Arts and then at the London College of Communication.
She worked for 15 years in the press in London, first as an agency photographer and then on a freelance basis, before returning to France as official photographer at the Élysée. Her practice then evolved towards architecture and publishing, through *esotopies, a structure that brings together her entire documentary photography practice. At Spéos, she passes on the taste and the art of shooting on the spot. - Edwin Cohas – Photographer
Trained first in his father’s studio and then at a Paris design school, Edwin Cohas has worked for around ten years with prestige clients – Fondation Cartier, Rolex, Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie, Vivacy. Based in Boulogne-Billancourt, he shares with students the balance between commissioned constraints and personal artistic vision that shapes a professional photographer’s career. - Sylvain Estibal – Agence France-Presse
Sylvain Estibal began his career as a freelance photographer (the war in Bosnia, the fall of the Berlin Wall, Africa) before joining AFP as a photo editor, and then serving as head of the photo website and archives, photo editor-in-chief for Latin America based in Uruguay, and photo editor-in-chief for Europe and Africa. He was then appointed director of the Mexico City bureau, and later director of the Middle East and North Africa region, based in Cyprus. He is also a feature film director (César for Best First Film for Le Cochon de Gaza in 2012) and a writer, author of several novels published by Actes Sud, one of which was adapted for the cinema (Le Dernier Vol de Lancaster). - Didier Fèvre – Photojournalist
A senior sports photojournalist at the newspaper L’Équipe, Didier Fevre covered the world’s major sporting events from 1985 to 2015: the Olympic Games, the FIFA World Cup, the Tour de France, Roland-Garros and the World Athletics Championships.
As part of the Spéos-AFP-MAP partnership, he trained Moroccan photographers in preparation for the 2030 FIFA World Cup to be held in Morocco. At Spéos, he passes on to students the techniques and instincts of photojournalism: anticipating the action, choosing positions, working fast and meeting the editing requirements of a press environment. - Karel Prinsloo – Photojournalist
Karel Prinsloo is an award-winning Namibian photojournalist with more than 35 years of experience. A former Chief Photographer for Associated Press in East Africa for a decade, he has covered conflicts, humanitarian crises and major global events across Africa and beyond. His work has received a World Press Photo Award and has been published internationally.
Now based in Paris, he works with UNICEF and other UN agencies and NGOs, documenting humanitarian stories around the world. At Spéos, he shares his field experience and passion for photojournalism, with a particular focus on visual storytelling, ethics and the challenges of truth and authenticity in an era of misinformation and image manipulation.
Computer imaging
- Arvin Emtiazi – Retoucher, Developer
A retoucher specialising in luxury (jewellery, watchmaking, beauty, cosmetics and fashion), Arvin Emtiazi has worked for 10 years with agencies representing houses from the Richemont, LVMH and Kering groups, as well as for major auction houses.
Teaching the Advanced Photoshop module at Spéos, he builds on the techniques students have already acquired, but above all passes on little-known tools and unconventional approaches: the ones that work where the obvious methods fail, and that separate a clean file from a publishable one. To this he adds the standards of luxury houses in retouching and colour, agency production methods, and a hands-on approach to AI and its evolving role in retouching. With a background in computer science, he also develops his own tools: Photoshop automations and plugins in ExtendScript, UXP and C++, as well as AI imaging pipelines. - Federico Garcia-Mochales – Creative Director
A graduate of ENSAD (the Paris National School of Decorative Arts) and a lecturer at Sorbonne Nouvelle University, Federico Garcia-Mochales is a creative director working at the crossroads of photography, graphic design, video, and event scenography. His transdisciplinary approach informs his teaching: he shows students how to develop a coherent visual project, from concept to final form. - Richard Maillot – 3D Expert
A CG and VFX supervisor, 2D/3D production workflow consultant and trainer, he has worked for more than 25 years in digital imaging, at the crossroads of creation, technology and production. He has contributed to numerous projects combining 3D, compositing, visual effects, photography and video, and advises professionals and companies on optimising their workflows, particularly around generative artificial intelligence. At Spéos, he gives students the fundamentals of 3D (camera, geometry, materials, lighting, rendering) so that they can integrate it as a technical and creative enabler in a workflow combining photography, 3D and post-production. - Emmanuel Molia – Photographer, Retoucher, Director, and Graphic Designer
A portrait photographer and a specialist in Photoshop and Lightroom (Adobe Certified Expert and Adobe Certified Instructor), Emmanuel Molia draws on his experience as a photographer and retoucher to bring students a hands-on approach focused on the new AI features of these programs and on the current demands of production. - Emmanuel Pineau – Photographer and Filmmaker
Emmanuel Pineau worked as a camera assistant on feature films for around ten years before becoming a director of photography in 2004. A long-standing collaborator of Sophie Delaporte, the two work together for editorial titles (i-D, Vogue) and for brands (Dior, Le Bon Marché). He passes on to students a cinematographic culture applied to photography – light, framing, and rhythm.
Printing techniques
- Hervé Gergaud – Photographer and Printer
A printer and retoucher with thirty-five years of experience, Hervé Gergaud spent thirteen years at Magnum Photos, working alongside Sebastião Salgado, Henri Cartier-Bresson, and Raymond Depardon. A member of the Millennium Images agency (London) since 2019, he continues to support Salgado’s exhibitions worldwide. He passes on to students the culture of fine-art printing, from the silver darkroom to digital post-processing. - Hervé Petit – Consultant (Color and Printing)
A specialist in color management and printing technologies, Hervé Petit consults for Calibrite and several professional monitor brands after spending more than 10 years at LaCie and then at Getty Images. He gives students the essentials of colorimetry, how to work with a professional lab, and the techniques and tips for mastering the entire graphic chain – in both color and black and white – to reduce the gap between screen display and digital print.
Image management and publication
- Fabrice Dunou – Architecture and Interior Photographer
See “Fashion” section. - Claire Stalder – Photo Editor, Image Management Specialist – Academic Coordinator
With a background as a photo editor and academic advisor at Spéos, Claire Stalder teaches students how to organize their archives using Lightroom Classic and how to effectively use metadata. She also helps them understand the photography market and build their online presence, from social media to websites.
Storytelling
- Karen Lajon – Senior Reporter
A senior reporter at Le Journal du Dimanche from 1986 to 2023, Karen Lajon covered the major conflicts of recent decades – the Gulf War, the Balkans, Iran – over her 35 years on the international news desk. A 1998 Lagardère Foundation laureate, she writes the column “Femmes du Monde.” She passes on to students a form of storytelling grounded in investigation and on-the-ground immersion.
Visual identity
- Alice Santinelli – Photo Editor – Project Management
After studying languages and geopolitics and spending several years in Paris labs, Alice Santinelli has worked independently since 2016, supporting photographers with their books, exhibitions, and the fundraising tied to their archives (Cameraphoto, Rouchon Heritage). Co-president of the ANI (the French National Association of Photo Editors), a juror (Prix Nadar 2025, Prix Mentor 2025, jury president of Bièvres 2025), and a speaker (Arles 2025), she shares with students a grounding in art history and aesthetics, as well as a wide-ranging view of modern and contemporary photographic practice. - Antoaneta Metchanova – Founder of La Maison Hush Hush
Creative Director with an international career (Ogilvy & Mather, BBDO, Publicis), Antoaneta Metchanova has led numerous campaigns for iconic global brands in luxury, beauty, technology, automotive, and lifestyle. She has been awarded more than 100 industry distinctions. Founder of La Maison Hush Hush (2015), she develops brands at the intersection of authentic brand values, the high standards of luxury craftsmanship, and contemporary culture. At Spéos, she shares her expertise in visual identity and international communication strategy.
Video
- Federico Garcia-Mochales – Creative Director
See “Digital Image Processing” section. - Stéphanie Haski – Director, Camera Operator, and Editor (Documentary, Web Reportages, Video Installations)
A director and video technician for more than 15 years, Stéphanie Haski works on projects that share a common interest in how individuals relate to their environments – both social and spatial. She directed Accorps, a 2015 documentary in which she filmed two socio-aestheticians working with vulnerable groups (those facing illness or hardship). She also produces web series for the Joséphine and Sierra Prod organizations, as well as participatory films through the Artou collective. To Spéos students, she teaches the fundamentals of documentary filmmaking and video tools (framing, sound, editing) with an emphasis on autonomy. - David Le Glanic – Writer-Director
David Le Glanic has been a writer-director for over 25 years. Trained in audiovisual directing, he began his career on the news programme Envoyé Spécial before directing his first 52-minute documentary, on the history of Spanish cinema, for Canal+.
He then went on to direct numerous portraits of leading figures in French cinema and the arts for Paul Amar’s programme Recto Verso on Paris Première: Jeanne Moreau, Patrice Chéreau, Bertrand Tavernier, Claude Chabrol, Costa-Gavras, Jean-Paul Gaultier… Awarded at many international festivals, he now alternates between TV documentaries and corporate films (advertising, web series, fiction), with a constant focus on aesthetics and emotional truth. At Spéos, he shares his experience of writing, shooting and editing to make students fully autonomous, from brief to delivery.
Business
- Nedim Imre – Photographer
A Paris-based photographer and director specializing in industrial and construction photography (Bouygues, Total) and a licensed drone pilot since 2014, Nedim Imre also serves as Secretary General of the Union of Professional Photographers (UPP). He shares with students the expertise of commissioned photography for major corporate clients, along with an organizational vision of the profession informed by his work with the UPP.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Patrick Sambiasi – Digital Retoucher and Photographer at LVMH
A fashion and fine art photographer, Patrick Sambiasi was born in Italy and moved to France at the age of 13. After studying film in England, he turned to photography and graduated from Spéos in Paris, where he specialised in studio photography and digital retouching. In 2021, his series Anywhere but Here was a finalist for the Prix Picto de la Photographie de Mode. Since 2024, he has worked as a retoucher and digital operator at LVMH, on e-commerce and haute couture productions. - Sasha Sparks – Photographer, Multimedia Artist, and Creative Director
See “Fashion” section. - Thierry Van Biesen – Photographer and Promptographer
A fashion and advertising photographer for 30 years – Castelbajac, Kate Spade, Cirque du Soleil, Neiman Marcus, Sony, Marie-Claire US, ELLE Japan, Madame Figaro, TANK – and the 2013 ASMP Fashion Photographer of the Year, Thierry Van Biesen is a pioneer of creative AI (using DALL·E from 2022) and publishes regularly on photography in the era of generative AI. He passes on to students a clear-headed strategy for evolving toward the role of “promptographer.”
Photographic Culture
- Véronique Besnard – Photographer
A documentary photographer with an MA from the University of Brighton and a degree from Sciences Po Grenoble, Véronique Besnard is the author of the Kings Road series on asylum seekers in Brighton – selected by the Royal Photographic Society, The Guardian, and the HSBC Foundation. She has published Additional Satellite (2012) and La mise en images du conflit afghan (L’Harmattan, 2005). She shares with students an engaged photographic culture and a critical sensibility for visual storytelling.
French as a Foreign Language
- Emily Chabenat – Teacher of French as a Foreign Language (FLE)
English as a Foreign Language
- Nezha Kandoussi – Language Consultant
Black & White Laboratory
- Pierre-Yves Mahé – Photographer, Inventor of the Stop-System Method, President of the Spéos Group
Founder of Spéos in 1985 – the first photography school in France to offer professional programs in English – Pierre-Yves Mahé is a graduate of HEC and worked as an advertising photographer before devoting himself to teaching. The inventor of the Stop-System method, he is co-author of Photographier comme un pro avec la méthode du Stop-System and has directed the Maison Nicéphore Niépce since 1999. He passes on to students mastery of silver-halide printing and a historical perspective on photography. - Note: This list is accurate at the time of publication, and is indicative of the range of professors at Spéos.
However, the faculty is subject to change at any time due to their other professional obligations.