Mama Casset was born into a wealthy family in Saint-Louis, Senegal. In 1918, his family moved to Dakar. At the age of 12, he became an assistant to a friend of his father, the French photographer Oscar Lataque. He later had the opportunity to join the French Air Force, where he took aerial photographs and reports in French-speaking Africa. After returning to civilian life following the Second World War, Mama Casset opened his African Photo studio in the Medina of Dakar. His black-and-white portraits of both the bourgeoisie and ordinary people, taken exclusively with Leica cameras, were a great success. He gradually lost his sight in later years, ceased his activity, and died in 1992.
