Photographer Uses Visual Alchemy to Create Mesmerizing Timelapses

Born in Lyon, France, Thomas Blanchard is an award-winning artist who has reached worldwide acclaim, numerous exhibitions, and recognition for his powerful visual works blending chemistry and art into mesmerizing timelapses.

Speaking with PetaPixel about his latest project, Thomas Blanchard describes himself as not quite a photographer or videographer by name, but rather a “visual alchemist,” which foreshadows his use of photography and video to document organic and experimental art pieces often created through the use of chemical or mineral reactions. His fascinating timelapses are complex, thought-out projects created over long periods using pigments, inks, gold powder, and metals, no artificial intelligence but mixed media in every sense, hard to pin down with a one-word title.

Visual Alchemy

“I don’t really consider myself a photographer in the classical sense of the term. My career path has been built around video, with a fascination for movement and slow transformations. What inspires me is the ability of images to reveal phenomena invisible to the naked eye,” Blanchard explains.

“Although my background is in video, I use photography as a tool to capture micro-events. Slow movements, chemical reactions. What fascinates me is the passage of time, things invisible to the naked eye, and how to reveal them through images,” he says.

Blanchard has a vast body of work documenting his chemical experiments, often macro intimate looks at the finest details difficult to see with the naked eye. His projects have been commissioned and featured by brands from Apple to Sony, Dolby Laboratories, LG, Huawei, and Samsung with exhibitions around the world, including at the Casablanca Biennale of Contemporary Art, the Artechouse Art Center in Washington DC, the New York Spring Studio, and the Museum of Contemporary Art, KMCA from SEOUL, and the Atelier des Lumières de Paris.

Crystals

Blanchard’s newest project is aptly titled Crystals. The culmination of seven months of “methodical exploration around the crystallization process of potassium phosphate,” Blanchard described taking over 150,000 photographs, one every minute, for a continuous timelapse documenting the slow transformation of the mesmerizing and blooming crystal formations.

Therefore, timelapses and the stills that comprise them are the methods through which Blanchard blends his experimental science, chemistry, and art.

“What inspires me is the ability of images to reveal phenomena invisible to the naked eye. The evolution of a material, the birth of a texture, an imperceptible change that becomes spectacular when you play with time,” Blanchard describes. “I started using photography as a tool to create timelapses, not to freeze an instant, but to highlight movement through a series of still images. It was this temporal dimension, this idea of making the invisible visible, that made me want to immerse myself in this type of visual creation. I would describe my visual style as organic, experimental and immersive.”

‘It’s Always the Idea and the Eye That Make the Image’

When asked how gear affects his work, Blanchard says the most crucial part is having a good macro lens and a camera capable of shooting in 8K. However, he recalls that, early in his career, he would make clips and videos with the most rudimentary equipment, whatever he had on hand, and would not let a basic kit stop him from creating.

He uses a Canon R5, 5DSR, and a 100mm macro lens for his timelapses and still photos. When he is not creating timelapses but real-time video, he uses a RED Helium 8K, which he loves because of its exceptional image quality and flexibility for cropping or slowing footage down.

“These are powerful tools, but at the end of the day, it’s always the idea and the eye that make the image.”

‘Nature, Science and Chemistry’

Blanchard is inspired by nature to create emotive, organic, and inviting imagery that invites viewers into a thoughtful space.

“I’m particularly drawn to the blossoming of nature, those moments when something is slowly born, unfolded or transformed. Capturing these fragile, often imperceptible moments is at the heart of my work. My creative process is strongly influenced by nature, science and chemistry, but also by emotions. I’m constantly experimenting. I test inks, crystals, liquids, flowers, plants and textures. Sometimes for days or weeks on end, until I come up with a result that suits me. There is no script, the material itself guides the process. I seek to create sensory, almost hypnotic images that invite the viewer into a state of active contemplation.”

His final pieces are achieved without a fixed workflow, but an idea such as a visual phenomenon or material that inspires him from a flower to a texture or ink that he then experiments with. In his studio, he loses himself in the process, which he operates solo from set up, to lighting, and materials. The overall creation is a blend of experience as well as an element of randomness that leads to happy accidents. Therefore, he’s not afraid to fail just in case something beautiful is discovered along the way.

“What I find most gratifying is when everything falls into place, framing, sharpness, movement… especially in a process as uncertain as capillary Crystallization,” Blanchard explains. “Very often, the shots are botched, the crystals fall out of the frame or don’t grow as I had anticipated. There’s a real element of randomness. With capillarity, the crystals are absorbed by the materials, then they emerge a little further out, sometimes advancing in fractals. I often have to guess in advance where they will develop. I bet on the left, and eventually it grows to the right. It’s frustrating, but it’s also what makes the right shot all the more satisfying.”

“When everything works, when the image is well composed, sharp, and the movement of the crystals is fluid and visually strong, it’s a real moment of joy. What I love is when the unpredictable becomes perfect.”

Sometimes, that unpredictability leads to challenges he uses his experience and keen eye to overcome.

‘Unstable Processes’ Lead to ‘Happy Accidents’

Blanchard described one such instance when unpredictability resulted in a fantastic result.

“I often work with very unstable processes, such as capillary crystallization, or reactions between inks, paints and organic materials. One of the biggest challenges is that I can never totally predict what’s going to happen. Sometimes, a reaction seems to be going well, but then stops dead in its tracks, or produces a completely unexpected result. I remember a shoot in Japan, where I had to show off a brand new camera. Everything was ready: the materials, the lighting, the set. But the air extraction from the housing was from the front, and this simple air flow disrupted my mixes to the point of ruining a good part of the shots. It’s this kind of detail that you can’t always anticipate, especially when you’re working with such sensitive elements.”

Being able to adjust and save the shoot, sometimes the happy accidents become the photo shoot, such as the image shown and described below.

“In the course of my tests, I noticed that the potassium phosphate-saturated solution could, in some cases, overflow the Petri dish and spill onto the black background. For this specific shot, I therefore anticipated this phenomenon and did everything in my power to capture this fractal development outside the dish. I’ve never succeeded in reproducing exactly the same result. The balance between the saturation of the solution and the rigidity of the paper played a key role. What I like about this image is the impression of intertwining cords, like living matter in the process of being woven,” Blanchard recalls.

“I also like the other images that follow, but it’s a different feeling. I find them more contemplative, reminding me of coral or seascapes. There’s a kind of organic slowness to this series that I find very poetic.”

Blanchard states that he’s had to “learn by doing” and spends a great deal of time on his projects, discovering what works and doesn’t. Through the years, he’s developed his style of top-down view over organic structures, often foregoing color entirely to utilize black and white, particularly for his crystallization projects, which are the most delicate and textural.

‘I Still Have a Lot to Explore’

Despite his extensive portfolio and years of experience, Blanchard describes himself as still learning. When asked what’s next, he says that there are so many more experiments to come, and most of all, he’s not afraid to fail along the way of discovering something beautiful.

“I still have a lot to explore. I’m hoping to experiment with other types of crystallization, notably with ammonium chloride, which could give very different and interesting visual results,” he says.

“At the same time, I’m also thinking about refocusing on pure photography, on more static projects, particularly around nature, but with atypical lighting. I’m still thinking about it, it’s a transitional phase where I’m looking to renew my practice a little while retaining my sensitivity to materials, textures and organic reactions.”

Thomas Blanchard’s work can be found on his website, Instagram, and Vimeo, where he shares his full timelapse projects.

Image credits: Thomas Blanchard