Hi there!
I am Olivier De Rycke, your photographer.
French, I have been living in Riga, Latvia, for more than a decade now with my wife and two daughters. I love nature and trekking, it is always related to photography of course. Pop Rock is my favorite music… This is me in short. But stay tuned and read my story below.
LOOKING THROUGH A LENS
Sometimes,
dreams become passions. They dwell within us, sometimes for years,
but may suddenly ignite from a single spark and enter reality. For
me, photography is one of those passions.
When I inherited my father’s old camera, I did not know what to use it
for. At the time, I was managing a computer shop in Paris.
Photography became an unexpected passion of mine. I never planned to
ever become a professional photographer, much like I never
planned to start my own business.
A LEAP OF FAITH
Opportunities
arise when you least expect it. They have had a way of shaping my
life and altering my path on multiple occasions. As an artist, I have
always been open to them – to embrace what opportunities of life
proposed to me.
Firstly, I chose to work with computers and to
say yes to the proposal of taking over the business. Secondly, I said
yes to photography. Dealing with clients who were photographers in
France, once I found myself in a photography club. Later on
participating in different competitions, at first taking 3rd place
and later on the 1st place made me realize how much my art meant to
some people.
Thirdly, I chose to move to Riga in Latvia. Not only
had I found a love for photography, but I also found another love in
my future wife. Although I started from scratch in Latvia, my
passions became my motivation. I took my leap of faith and, as almost
by chance, I got an opportunity to pursue wedding and portrait.
And to this day I continue to work as an international portrait photographer and destination wedding
photographer in France and all around Europe.
After more than a decade travelling to photograph people, I thought it was time to establish my own studio…
2017, WOP Studija is established.