Between 1857 and 2000, four photographers, from father to son, invent and transmit the art of mountain photography. Their family name is Tairraz.
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The story begins in Chamonix in 1857. Joseph, son of the trustee (mayor) in Geneva buys a daguerreotype apparatus. Four years later, he captures, in front of Augustus Rosalie Bisson, official photographer of the Emperor, the first photography at the top of Mont Blanc. Not long after, the young man opened his photography studio in the center of Chamonix.
He later handed the reins of the studio over to his son, George. The dynasty begins. For a century and a half, it is the incomparable Tairraz photographers of the Mont Blanc mountain range over generations. They dabble as well in the film industry and create a binding friendship with other great names in the Alps, such as Roger Frisson-Roche and Gaston Rébuffat.
Guide - Photographer
First photograph from the summit of the Mont-Blanc
Creation of the brand name « Photographie Alpine »
The beginning of tourism photography
He acquires an exceptional mastery of photographic technique in his studio
Leica comes out with its’ first 35mm camera: Miniaturization promises new horizons.
Beyond technical capabilities, Georges Tairraz II brings his touch to compositions. The image becomes an art.
The art of photography is passed from generation to generation
Miniaturization has peaked. The photographer can devote himself exclusively to his passion of photography and travelling expeditions.
Pierre Tairraz is an exceptional climber which allows him to be far from his subject and to magnify the composition
With this dual expertise, Pierre Tairraz creates and imposes his unmatched style
The democratization of helicopter use provides new points of view in
For over 40 years, Pierre Tairraz was devoted to mountain photography