Cathedral of Nôtre Dame, Amiens

Henri Le Secq was born in Paris on 18 August 1818. He initially studied painting with Paul Delaroche and exhibited his work at the Paris Salon in 1843. However, he soon became interested in photography and began experimenting with the medium in the early 1850s. Le Secq is best known for his photographs of medieval architecture and sculpture. He was a member of the Société Héliographique, which was dedicated to promoting photography as an art form, and was one of the first photographers to use the wet collodion process, which allowed for sharper and more detailed images. Le Secq's photographs of Gothic cathedrals and other architectural landmarks were highly regarded for their technical precision and artistic composition. He also photographed the streets and buildings of Paris, capturing the city's changing urban landscape during a period of rapid modernisation. In addition to his photographic work, Le Secq painted throughout his life and was a member of the French Academy of Fine Arts. He died in Paris on 23 December 1882 at the age of 64.