One of the coolest things about being a photographer in Paris is getting to know such nice people from all over the world that come to the City of Lights, who trust me to make the best souvenir of their lives possible.
To all of you, I can only be grateful for being a part of this dream of capturing memories that you can treasure for the rest of your life.
Talking about myself?
Not gonna lie, at the beginning I found it a little bit weird telling you about me. And then I thought, one of the things that motivates me the most at the photoshoots, are the encounters that I have with each one of you. I love getting to know you, listen to you, and for you to tell me about your lives. So, what should I feel intimidated? It’s time to repay the confidence you put on me and open that chapter of myself for you.
My name is Ximena, and I’m Mexican. I come from a small town known for its good coffee: Córdoba, Veracruz, where I lived for 19 years. It was there where I discovered what I would come to love doing; photography.
When I was little, people would ask me, what do you want to be when you grow up? To be honest, I had no idea what I wanted to do, but what I did know, is that I wanted to be happy.
While most of my classmates had already chosen their careers, I was frustrated by the fact that I wasn’t able to pick one. With so many existing professions, I believe is not something to think about when you’re that young. And even though I always talked about taking photos, I was afraid of prejudice, about what my parents would say, or how I would be able to «make a life out of it» someday.
I remember the first time I held a camera in my hands. There’s where it all began.
Everything seemed strange, I did not fully understand how that device worked, I didn’t even know what button to press, but I loved doing it. Little by little my curiosity and interest grew to the point of not being able to sleep, researching and experimenting everything about this world. I became addicted to photography. It made me forget about everything, ¡and it felt so good!
There were hard times. I remember when my father told me, “that everything happens for a reason,” or, “that I should stop forcing things to happen.” Mocking me, he also said, “become a photographer? You should get a real job.” That was the first obstacle I encounter to my wish and decision of living in France. However, circumstances like this, were what gave me more strength and motivation to prove that I’m capable of making it on my own.
For a long time I struggled between the idea of staying in the same environment, or go chasing the inspiration that I was lacking. These questions led me to make the most important decision of my life so far.
With photography embraced as my new passion, I knew it was the right choice to dedicate my life to. It was what made me happy and, consequently, everyone around me. I got to know I was very capable, that people really liked my work, and that it was enough to fulfill my dream of living from doing what I was most passionate about. So, I followed my path with a clear goal, not caring about the hard times.
Thanks to a couple of school trips that I’d made before, I found that France was the right country for me. I was fascinated by all of its art museums, photography galleries, expositions, giant libraries filled with books of my favorite photographers. I found inspiration in each and every one of its streets, it was exactly where I wanted to spend the rest of my life. Surrounded by so much art, culture and inspiration, I FELT LIKE FISH IN THE WATER. As soon as I came back from the last trip, I signed up for French classes at school, and my motivation was such that I was the girl who was copied in the exam.
I trusted myself, I knew I had tools and motivations enough to do it in a unique and professional way that would distinguish myself. I fought so hard, that I managed to become a photographer in the city of my dreams, Paris.
How did I manage to live my dream out of my passion?
That’s a question everyone asks me, and know I can answer it freely: with a lot of perseverance, patience and dedication.
I’ll confess that, as many other girls, I arrived wanting to live the French cliche, although without money or my parents help, it was a very complicated beginning.
For starters, I looked into every single option for a 19 year-old girl economic possibilities: scholarships, jobs and student housing. I was very scared of being in a foreign city, knowing no one, and with my mom at a 12 hours flight distance, but I was determined.
Although I had already begun studying French, I still needed to improve it in order to get accepted in a school. So, I took a leap on living with a French family, taking care of their kids, being the driver, and of course, cleaning bathrooms, all while improving the language.
Everything with the purpose of getting a certification and be able to enter a French university. While I was doing all of this, I never stopped taking photos and learning about the best city.
As a matter of fact, those two years seemed endless (thank you, COVID,) but I was admitted at university for studying Arts.
Of course, none of this would’ve been possible without all of the support I get from all of you, trusting me and my work. I thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for helping me fulfill my dream.
Now, after three years, almost two of them studying Arts, and a lot of photography courses in Paris, let me tell you that nothing is easy, but it is possible.
With everything that I’ve been through in perspective, I can certainly say that photography has given me a lot. It made me learn two languages in order to be able to communicate. It freed me, and it helped me trust more in myself, my desires and motivations, allowing me to be more social, travel, and, most of all, enjoy myself and be happy.
When something is important enough for you, you do it even if the odds are not on your side, or you don’t have someone supporting you. The only way to do a great job, is loving what you do.
Being 23 years-old now, and growing in my career as an artist and entrepreneur, I want to tell you that, whatever you do today, will be reflected in your future. And there’s nothing more satisfying that seeing yourself fulfilling your dreams.
Sometimes you’ll have to make a lot of sacrifices if you want to reach a goal, and in my experience, I’m completely happy that I did.
If you wanted to know a little bit more about me and my career, I think you’ve reached this point, so thank you very much for reading me!
And, yes! I’m a young artist, living in Paris, who’s going to make her passion part of your memories in a very singular way.
By : Your photographer in Paris
