Francois Lopez: Not for the Faint

Unposed

INTERVIEW BY: EMILY ARAUZA

JULY 11th, 2025         

Francois Lopez is more than a photographer, he’s a visual poet, an emotionalist, a storyteller whose lens doesn’t just frame moments, it excavates truth. Based in Houston, Francois moves fluidly between roles: journalist, creative director, and writer. But at the core of it all is his relentless pursuit of raw human connection. From documenting his friends’ lives as a kid to fearlessly photographing strangers on the street, his journey has been marked by deep personal loss, inner rebellion, and a camera that became both anchor and outlet. Francois’ work doesn’t shy away from discomfort; instead, it demands vulnerability. Inspired by legends like Harry Benson and Richard Avedon yet shaped just as much by his own pain, Francois creates with a purpose: to feel, to provoke, and to free. In this conversation, he opens up about the moment he found his voice, the near-breaking point that fueled his rise, and why he believes some of the most powerful art is born not from perfection, but from the fight to keep going.

Francois Lopez: “Hey! My name is Francois Lopez! I'm a photographer, Journalist, creative director, emotionalist and writer based out of Houston.”

Emily Arauza: “Hey Francois, I love how many creative spaces you’re tapped into all of it. That kind of range says a lot. How old were you when you first picked up a camera or started telling stories?

FL: “Thank you, I really appreciate that. Well when I was 11; I believe in 6th grade year, my brother introduced film photography to me and at that time it just scratched a different part of my brain. From that point on if all the homies were going out or whenever everyone linked up, I ALWAYS brought my camera. Capturing moments of new clothing pieces we just obtained as a group or just doing stupid shit and experimenting as youths. I always knew I wanted to capture raw moments, I always knew my eye would benefit me in the long run. Fast forward, about 14 years old freshman year my father passed away and it threw me into an extremely dark place. My emotions were boiling, I couldn't keep myself neutral. I dropped all sports and started plummeting/flunking everything little by little. By sophomore year I figured I'd just pick up photography as a class in high school. Ultimately, it gave me a better sense of purpose .. made me realize why i was put here, gave me something to look forward to and keep going. I remember my high school photo teacher being so hard on me not because she was being awful but because the work I was producing had so much potential but I would keep myself in a box .. I had no voice at that time. I just know my work revolved around pain/emotion. It wasn't till my senior year when I decided to go venture out and capture homeless people around my area. I'll tell you what, at that time I remember being so scared that I didn't want to get out of my car and approach my subject playing his guitar at the corner. Eventually, I got out and approached slowly but with a camera in my hand. As I was getting closer; the man I was walking up to began charging at me with a knife .. I honestly don't know how I de-escalated that situation but I remember telling him I was doing a project for school and was wondering if he could sing me a song. He eventually agreed. Everything had clicked for me; the raw moment .. the stranger to stranger interaction .. REAL nitty gritty. Shit that no one wants to do or thinks they’re too good to get down and dirty with these individuals, I WILL. There's a real fine line between human love and I'm with it all the way, I absolutely love people. Everyone is somebody's baby, everyone has a story. Since then I knew I was going to be a voice to be reckoned with.”

EA: “That’s insane, Francois. You started so young, and the way you talk about your work, especially tying it back to that emotional shift after your dad passed is real. That story about the man with the guitar gave me chills. You really lived that moment, and it shows how committed you are to capturing truth, not just images. I can tell you don’t just take photos, you feel them. That line you said, “everyone is somebody’s baby,” is very moving to say the least. It’s crazy how your camera basically became your way out, your anchor. Do you feel like you’ve found your voice now, or is it still evolving with you?”

FL: “Oh I've most definitely found my voice but I feel like I'll always be evolving regardless of the lengths I reach. I love learning and experimenting, I refuse to ever be put in a box again! Photography and actually capturing what I was feeling saved my life.”

EA: “I really respect that mindset. The fact that you’ve found your voice but still stay open to growing says a lot. A lot of people hit a certain point and plateau, but you can tell this is more than just a craft for you. It’s personal. It saved you. I can tell there’s real weight behind what you capture. Who were some of your inspirations early on or even now? Whether it’s photographers, filmmakers, writers, or anyone else who helped shape the way you see things.”

FL: “All my work ultimately revolves around emotion. I want you to question me, feel uncomfortable about my thought process. Nonetheless, I provoke thought in individuals that want to feel. I'm human .. I'm rough on the edges just like everyone else. I absolutely give all credit to photographers like Harry Benson, Richard Avedon, and Jerry Uelsmann for my craft. I studied these individuals night after night back then. I fell in love with their eyes and how they moved as an artist. Honestly as narcissistic as it sounds I've always been my own inspiration, I had to grow up real fast prior to picking up my camera. All I've ever really known was pain. Whether it was within my household, amongst my family or having to deal with my alcoholic father. I couldn't create with him here. To him everything I felt was invalid, depression was the devil and therefore non existent. I remember being punched in my face at 11 years old because I stated I didn't want to be alive anymore. I draw inspiration from my pain;  my past alongside my present. I've grown to make flowers grow from ashes.”

EA: “That makes so much sense. The way you center emotion in your work is clear. You’re not creating just to make something look good. You want people to actually feel something, even if it’s uncomfortable. That’s what sets real artists apart. And the fact that you’re honest about being rough around the edges makes your work even more human. People connect with that.Harry Benson, Avedon, Uelsmann—that’s a serious lineup. Each of them has such a distinct way of seeing. What pulled you toward their work in particular? Was it their approach to people, the way they told stories, or something you felt in their images that you wanted to carry into your own? Also, that's not narcissism, that's the truth. Sometimes you really are the only one who pushes you forward, especially when everything around you is falling apart. The fact that you had to carry that kind of pain so young and still found a way to turn it into something meaningful says everything.”

FL: “I was gravitated towards Harry Benson because regardless of friends or family he was a journalist alongside public figures, he said it himself if his right hand man was shot dead next to him he’d photograph it. Why? Because as awful as it sounds it's a moment, the rawest moment to man. Which it ultimately happened with the Robert Kennedy assassination, Harry was his photographer and standing right next to him, what do you think he did ? He captured that photo. Avedon, because of his way of portrait capturing. He was raw with his subjects. His series “in the American west” was absolutely astonishing and controversial in my opinion. It was a force, I loved it. Now Jerry Uelsmann worked primarily in the dark room. He was insane at manipulating images on photo paper, what graphic designers do now. He did it with darkroom enlargers, a single negative/ different capture in each enlarger exposed onto photo paper to create one surreal image. Look him up, he was too ahead of his time!”

EA: “That explains a lot. Benson had the guts to stay in the moment, even when it was tragic. That Kennedy shot still feels unreal. And Avedon’s “In the American West” really did force people to see what they’d usually look past. Both of them captured the truth in a way that wasn’t pretty, but it was real. What is it about rawness that pulls you in? Is it honesty, the rebellion, or something deeper?”

FL: “Most of all, each one was free. Free minded, free willed; they thought for themselves! Rawness to me? It's real, it's not something you can fake. It's in front of your face whether you like it or not. Try and lie ? The truths right here! And most definitely the rebellion, as much as I love people. People are my subjects, I want to see how humans react.”

EA: “That’s real. Rawness doesn’t ask for permission, it just exists. And I can hear the rebellion in the way you talk about it, you’re not just observing people, you’re challenging them to face themselves. When did it click for you that this was what you were meant to do? Not just something you were good at, but the thing that made you feel like you?”

FL: “A year after graduating, I fell off real bad. I had no more emotion to give out, I decided I was ready to go. As crazy as it is I've always been an adrenaline junkie, I knew what it felt like to have my life flash across my eyes. I loved it. I always passed this tower on the way to work and I began thinking to myself I could easily climb this. Eventually I found myself climbing, trying to feel something again, getting to the top leaning myself over the edge and teasing myself. I couldn't seem to get scared or get that feeling in my belly. I wasn't me. I couldn’t understand what it meant, so I began calling family members, friends and no one answered my call. All I remember is I got so pissed off at the thought of my people giving up on me, I said to myself “the biggest f you will be me doing everything I said I was going to do” At this time I had already shot for some good names that held weight, I was slowly rising. I walked myself down and honestly I never looked back again.”

EA: “The way you described climbing that tower and chasing a feeling just trying to wake something up in yourself—it’s heavy. That silence from the people you reached out to must’ve felt like the end, but somehow it became the beginning. That line about doing everything you said you would do hit hard. That’s not just survival, that's the purpose. Do you feel like that moment still fuels how you create now? Or has what drives you shifted since then?”

FL: "It's easy to “forget” about a certain moment with time. As humans we grow. Those emotions eventually deteriorate but are developed again and then become a “thing of the past” but you learn and know how to catch yourself when it arises again. At the end of the day, I'm a fighter. I'll be damned if my own conscience tells me I can't, I will. Nowadays I enjoy being comfortable in my shoes/body. I create beautiful work and that fuels me to create more. My work WILL live past me.”

EA: “The way you talked about emotions shifting but never fully leaving, that hit. You’re not running from the past anymore, you’ve grown with it. And now it’s like your work comes from a place of strength, not just survival. That last line stuck with me. Your work will live past you. What do you want people to take away from it when they see it years from now? What do you hope sticks with them?”

FL: “My captures hold power, strength, and free will. I want my audience to learn how to understand their emotions as well. It's ok to be weird, it's ok to fight for what you love to do, most of all when things go wrong and all odds are against you .. feel it but just make sure you make that journey and come back. I hope I'm able to light the spark amongst my audience's minds; like mine was as a kid.”

EA: “That’s beautiful. Your intention is clear and it’s real—your work doesn’t just reflect how you feel, it gives people permission to feel too. That kind of impact stays. Here’s something I don’t think I’ve asked yet: When you’re not behind the camera, when you’re not creating or chasing a vision—who are you? What grounds you outside of the art?”

FL: “Outside of creating; I'm either skateboarding, I like to walk around a lot and scout locations, I brainstorm a lot too. I'll go to little shops or cafes and people watch with some good music.. I'm pretty boring outside of my art work but I've grown to enjoy being alone, everything I do is alone. I think more with a simple life and I'm ok with that. My work is really the highlight of me!”

EA: “I really relate to that. I’m the same way—walking, running, just being out on my own helps me clear my head and make sense of things. It’s like that quiet time resets something, and I can see how that kind of space shapes the way you create too. Your work definitely feels intentional and grounded in that stillness. I’ve really appreciated hearing your story. Before we wrap, is there any advice you’d give to someone just starting out? Especially someone who feels like the odds are stacked against them?

FL: "I'll always say produce, produce, produce. You really never know; some of the work that you produce and think is ass will be ur most prominent piece or project and widely understood amongst the industry. It's always the mind that's everyone's biggest enemy; get a hold of it and keep going. Through that you’ll find your voice alongside your niche. Put all those little voices behind you, it's only you, Always.”