Francois de Melogue

Photographer, reformed chef, cookbook author, and bon vivant.

When I was 12 years old, I bought my first camera, a Canon AE-1. No subject was too mundane to escape the click of my shutter. I became fascinated by the power of still pictures to freeze moments in time and the stories they held within their frames. 

My bedroom quickly transformed into a dark room where I learned to roll my own film and process black and white images from start to finish. I quickly graduated from portraits of the family dog to pictures of the various clubs I belonged to for school publications. 

At the same time another passion was simmering in the pot. I grew up the proud son of French immigrants who taught me to love food and the conviviality of the table. This love soon replaced my camera as I embarked on a lengthy career as an accomplished chef. Though a duck fat stained camera was never too far away from my hands.

Life has come full circle. After leaving the kitchens and authoring 2 cookbooks, including an Amazon Top 50 book on French cooking, I returned to my first love – photography. I am continuing on my quest to document the world around and share the incredible stories frozen in time.

I still write for Medium and Simple French Cooking.