Paola is a French photojournalist and documentary photographer based in New York and a member of Women Photograph. With a background in Political Science and Urban Development, she transitioned from the public and development sector to photojournalism in 2020. A graduate of the Documentary Practice & Visual Journalism program at the International Center of Photography, where she received the Director’s Fellowship, her work focuses on cultural identity, social justice, and community resilience. It aims to challenge entrenched biases, from documenting youth in the digital age (Silent Radar) to gun violence prevention, or the American political divide. She has also worked on local climate stories such as the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in North Carolina. She has collaborated with The New York Times, The Washington Post, New York Magazine, the Wall Street Journal, The New Republic, and The Guardian, amongst others.
Paola recently founded a mentorship program for women photographers: Stories Not Singles.
Available for assignments.
You can support her work with a donation here. 🤍
Contact: paola.chapdelaine@gmail.com / +1 (332) 254-4821
SELECTED CLIENTS
Editorial clients: The New York Times, the Washington Post, New York Magazine, The New Republic, The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal, NYC Tourism, AFP...
Organisations: Sotheby's, Audubon, Feminist, French Ministry of Ecology, MSF (Doctors Without Borders), Le Wagon coding school...
AWARDS / EXHIBITIONS
2025. Rotterdam Photo Festival
2024. Dior Award for Photography and Visual Arts for Young Talents laureate / Exhibition at LUMA, Arles
2024. New York Portfolio Review, NYC
2023. Homecoming 2022 & 2023 Collective exhibition, RIT City Space, Rochester, NY
2023. CPOY. Finalist in the Portrait category / Award of Excellence in the Portait category / Award of Excellence in the Interpretive Eve category
2023. Lenscratch Student Prize. Honorable Mention
2023. Photoville. 'Change: the urban and natural landscape' - in collaboration with ASMP, NYC
2023. "Breaking more boundaries" group exhibition, Culture Lab LIC, NYC
2023. Lucie Foundation - The Portrait Project Take Two. Finalist in the B/W category
2023. 'Lifelines' OYC group exhibition, International Center of Photography, NYC
2023. Women Street Photographers annual exhibition, NYC
2022. Selection in the 2022 Pride Project by Feminist and Art Feminist // Online exhibition + Artist Feature
2022. Trophée Femmes d'Impact laureate - artist category
2022. Laureate of the Pic for Change contest by Pic&Pick // Group exhibition at the Polka Factory, Paris, France
2020. 2 Honorable Mentions at the Paris Photography Awards (1)
2020. Jury's pick and 3rd people's choice award, "Saveurs d'Australie" Contest, Wipplay
2017. Directed "Undocumented", a short documentary film about 'La Colmena' a Staten Island organization helping undocumented immigrants find safe day labor. Selected in the "social impact" category of the MegaCities ShortDocs competition.
EDUCATION
2024. IWMF Newsroom Safety Training
2023. Eddie Adams Workshop XXXVI
2023. Documentary Photography & Visual Journalism, International Center of Photography (ICP), New York - Dean's scholarship
2016. Master in Urban Governance, Sciences Po
2014. Bachelor in Political Science, Sciences Po Bordeaux
