b. 1820, d. 1880
photographer
French

"Being a painter myself...whenever I could dispense with architectural precision, I indulged in the picturesque, in which case I sacrificed a few details when necessary in favor of an imposing effect that would give a monument its real character and also preserve the poetic charm that surrounds it." --Charles Nègre

Charles Nègre began to photograph in 1844 in order to collect visual images to use in preparation for his paintings. Unlike many painters who turned to the new medium, Nègre never ceased to paint. He is best known for his landscape and architectural photographs of Paris, Chartres, and the Midi, a region in southern France. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Nègre printed all of his own photographs and was renowned as a photographic printer. He retired in 1863 and died at Cannes, France.