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Andrea Monti

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  • Artists,  B&W,  Daily photo,  People,  Reportage,  Winter

    John De Leo’s Grande Abarasse Orchestra – Live

    February 10, 2015 /

    This is a reportage I did during a concert of the John De Leo’s Grande Abarasse Orchestra. Covering this performance reminded me why live concert photography is such a balancing act between observation and anticipation. Each of these images, though part of a single reportage, serves as a fragment of a larger narrative – one built on rhythm, tension, and fleeting expressions. The colour frame of the full band provides essential context, grounding the viewer in the environment. The arrangement on stage is clear, with good use of depth to layer the musicians. The lighting, though moody and uneven, is handled competently, preserving detail without blowing the highlights from the stage…

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    Andrea Monti

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    The Godfather

    July 23, 2014

    A Sad Harley-Davidson

    August 10, 2013

    Barbarians at the Gates

    September 21, 2013
  • Artists,  B&W,  Daily photo,  People

    A Cello’s Player

    February 8, 2015 /

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    Andrea Monti

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    A Different Passion…

    June 12, 2016

    Sergey Krylov live@Teatro Marrucino

    February 21, 2022

    Saturday Night Fight Fever

    October 19, 2025
  • Artists,  B&W,  Daily photo,  People

    Having Sax

    February 6, 2015 /

    This shot isn’t about music. It’s about friction — brass on fingers, sweat on grip, breath on reed. I didn’t wait for the solo. I framed the pause before it, when everything is coiled. The hand is relaxed, but not idle. It knows exactly where it is. I shot tight with a fast prime, 85mm wide open, to isolate the curve of the bell and the roughness of the horn’s surface — pitted and worn, not polished. This instrument has stories. It’s been around. The monochrome helps strip it down to form and texture. You feel the decades in that metal. The grain is intentional. So is the low-key lighting.…

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    Andrea Monti

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    A Cello Player

    April 24, 2017

    Money Doesn’t Smell

    April 2, 2015

    The Calm Newsreader

    July 4, 2013
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Garbage,  Past&Relics,  Spring

    Too Big To Be Dumped

    January 10, 2015 /

    This frame came to life walking past an alley where time seems to have hit pause. The bins stand in perfect alignment, regimented like bureaucratic soldiers, while behind them, the decaying wall tells a different story—chaotic, layered, unresolved. I shot this with a 35mm prime, letting the midday sun carve stark shadows that add to the irony of this supposed order. The exposure demanded precision. Too much light and I’d have lost the texture on the old plaster; too little and the bins would sink into murk. I leaned into the contrast, embracing the Leica’s natural tonal harshness in black and white. No dramatic angles, no “decisive moment” flourish—just frontal,…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Superpila still rides…

    December 10, 2018

    The Google Experiment

    February 1, 2014

    Via Collina, Empty, From Above

    September 13, 2014
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Visual,  Winter

    A Modern Nazca?

    December 4, 2014 /

    This image is one of those moments when photography abandons literalism and moves into interpretation. What you’re looking at is, in fact, a stretch of pavement and asphalt intersected by strong shadows—but the shallow depth of field and the grain structure render it unmoored from immediate recognition. The blurred lines could be mistaken for ancient geoglyphs seen from above, hence the tongue-in-cheek title. The parallel bands, intersecting curves, and sudden diagonals call to mind aerial archaeology, even though the camera was barely a metre from the ground. The ambiguity invites a double take, and in that pause, the viewer starts to reconstruct meaning. Technically, this is a photograph of deliberate…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Still Together

    April 20, 2013

    Under the Bridge

    November 6, 2013

    Breaking the Fourth Wall

    February 17, 2020
  • B&W,  Buildings,  Daily photo,  Past&Relics,  Winter

    Faces in the Façade: A Ghostly Smile in Stone

    November 15, 2014 /

    The camera tilts upward, catching the weathered skin of a building where plaster peels like old parchment. Two circles and an arch, carved decades ago, sit quietly above the passageway. Yet in this photograph, the mind cannot help but play: the decoration forms a round-eyed, wide-mouthed face, its features soft and slightly comic. The resemblance is uncanny—here is the echo of the Marshmallow Man from Ghostbusters, peering down with an oblivious grin. The cracked and flaking surface becomes its aging skin, the faded stucco a reminder that even ghosts of pop culture can find new haunts in architecture. Light and shadow turn structural detail into character. The deep arch below reads…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Over There!

    May 29, 2022

    Surreal Judo

    December 11, 2016

    Cold Freezing Tour Through Oslo’s Fjord

    October 4, 2014
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Bruxelles,  Daily photo,  Visual

    Histoire d’O

    November 11, 2014 /

    Photography has a curious relationship with meaning. Sometimes it offers us a direct line to an obvious narrative; other times, it teases us with ambiguity, compelling the mind to reach for significance where perhaps none exists. This image—an aged, weathered architectural oval, framed in peeling plaster—belongs firmly in the latter category. Its title, Histoire d’O, borrows knowingly from the controversial novel of the same name, inviting the viewer to read into its form, its texture, and its emptiness. Technically, the photograph demonstrates a strong command of tonal control. The black-and-white treatment emphasises the interplay between texture and shadow, revealing the rough grain of the plaster, the fine cracks tracing across…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Bulbs

    January 12, 2015

    On Film Simulation or ‘is fiction more real than reality, and why should we care?’

    July 19, 2025

    Carl Zeiss T* 50 1,5 Sonnar and EOS EF-M 18-55

    August 4, 2013
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Gates&Fences,  Lines,  Winter

    A Fence

    November 6, 2014 /

    What drew me to make this photograph was not the fence itself, but the way it interacted with the geometry behind it. The wire grid overlays the diagonal of the concrete stair and handrail, creating a tension between rigid containment and directional movement. The eye wants to follow the slope upward, yet is repeatedly interrupted by the vertical and horizontal bars in the foreground. In terms of composition, the alignment was deliberate. I positioned the frame so that the grid sat almost perfectly square, avoiding converging lines that would soften its structural authority. The diagonal cuts through the otherwise orthogonal arrangement, introducing a dynamic that stops the image from becoming…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Lost in Le Puglie

    December 2, 2015

    At the theater, between two scenes

    June 15, 2015

    Feuer

    July 10, 2021
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Visual

    Tiles

    October 31, 2014 /

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    Andrea Monti

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    Weight Training @ Rome’s Stadio Olimpico

    October 9, 2018

    Keep Out!

    November 30, 2019

    Is AI-generated art actually killing ‘real’ Art?

    September 16, 2022
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Cities,  Daily photo,  Oslo,  Parks,  People,  Urban Landscape

    The Seagull And The Sentinel

    October 27, 2014 /

      In front of the solemn geometry of a royal palace in Oslo, the eye is drawn not to the grand columns or orderly facade, but to the understated absurdity playing out on the forecourt. To the far right, a sentinel paces with ceremonial rigour — upright, focused, unyielding. His role is one of symbol and service: a visible reminder of authority, history, and order. But his dedication unfolds before an almost entirely empty square. Almost. Because to the left, alone and unconcerned, a seagull meanders across the open expanse. It neither salutes nor flees. It simply exists — indifferent to the weight of flags, uniforms, or palatial power. This…

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    Andrea Monti

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    The Power of Underexposing

    December 25, 2019

    The Commuter

    July 24, 2017

    What, IMO, Street-Photography Is All About – One Shot Story

    November 9, 2025
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Daily photo,  Docks,  Oslo

    Boat Dock Bumpers

    October 26, 2014 /

    I made this photograph on a quiet, overcast day when the water was calm enough to reflect tone more than light. The ferry was easing in slowly, its pace unhurried. The dock’s side, lined with worn tires acting as bumpers, formed a long diagonal that led straight to the vessel. The structure looked utilitarian and weathered, shaped entirely by function rather than aesthetics. That mattered to me. I wanted to capture the work of the place, not the impression of it.

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    Andrea Monti

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    We Are All Made of Stars

    February 28, 2018

    In praise of ‘cheap’ lenses for ‘pro’ works

    April 4, 2021

    The Hacker and the Photographer

    August 22, 2016
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Daily photo,  Docks,  Oslo

    A Two-Masted Schooner

    October 25, 2014 /

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    Andrea Monti

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    The Path To Freedom

    September 29, 2014

    The TelcoMan

    January 26, 2015

    Full Moon

    May 9, 2017
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Buildings,  Daily photo,  Docks,  Oslo

    The Oslo Opera House

    October 24, 2014 /

    I’ve always believed that architecture reveals a different truth when seen from the water. Shooting the Oslo Opera House from the sea reinforced that idea for me. From this vantage point, the building doesn’t just sit on the waterfront—it seems to grow out of it, its sloping planes echoing the movement of the harbour while anchoring themselves firmly into the city skyline. For this photograph, I chose a framing that allowed the Opera House to dominate without isolating it. The surrounding water occupies enough of the lower frame to set the context, while the upper section leaves room for the building to breathe against the sky. This separation of planes—sea,…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Mistress Of Puppets

    April 30, 2017

    The Bored Bassman

    March 16, 2013

    Wave Riders

    September 20, 2013
  • B&W,  Boulevards,  Cities,  Daily photo,  Oslo,  People

    Downtown Pulse

    October 17, 2014 /

    This photograph captures the rhythm of a city centre street, a place where architecture and human movement converge. The composition is anchored by the façades: the mix of brick and ornate plasterwork recalls different eras of urban growth, while the signage and shopfronts bring the scene firmly into the present. The café on the left introduces a quieter layer — seated figures just visible through the glass — while pedestrians animate the open space in the middle ground. Technically, the exposure holds balance across the tonal range. The overcast light provides a diffuse softness, avoiding hard shadows and allowing the details in both masonry and pavement to remain legible. The…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Leaving The Actor’s Studio

    January 14, 2014

    Moon, hand-held

    April 30, 2021

    Fast Food Loneliness in Nagoya…

    July 17, 2019
  • B&W,  Cities,  Daily photo,  Oslo,  People,  Street Photography,  Thoughts

    Norwegian Suits

    October 15, 2014 /

    A missed opportunity for a good photo. I shot too early and failed to frame the guy with the bicycle whose look would have been a nice “counterpart” with the serious attire of the businessmen he was crossing.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Ni État Ni Patron

    June 8, 2014

    A Single(‘s) Call

    September 24, 2016

    Out of Focus, again

    October 3, 2013
  • B&W,  Cities,  Daily photo,  Oslo,  People

    Zebra Crossing in Oslo… With Red Light

    October 12, 2014 /

    I took this frame while walking toward the Royal Palace in Oslo, on a typically overcast Scandinavian morning. I was drawn not by the architecture, but by the quiet absurdity playing out in front of me: the man, dead-centre, marching briskly across a zebra crossing, fully aware of the red pedestrian light glowing above him. He wasn’t rushing. He wasn’t unaware. He simply decided to cross. Behind him, another pedestrian also defies the signal. Meanwhile, the older gentleman to the left seems locked in step with the more visible figure—a generational echo, perhaps. Their trajectories don’t intersect, but they form a compositional rhythm that pulls the image together. The image…

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    Andrea Monti

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    John De Leo’s Grande Abarasse Orchestra – Live

    February 10, 2015

    Seeing What Isn’t There

    October 27, 2015

    The Guardian

    January 19, 2014
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Cities,  Daily photo,  Oslo,  People

    Hanging Bottle

    October 11, 2014 /

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    Andrea Monti

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    On Tips’n Tricks to ‘take you photos to the next level’

    May 29, 2025

    A Lonely Table

    March 8, 2015

    Reflexes

    December 30, 2015
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Boulevards,  Daily photo,  Oslo,  OutOfFocus,  People

    Out Of Focus, Once More

    October 6, 2014 /

    Missed focus. Again. And no, it wasn’t intentional. This wasn’t a conceptual experiment, nor a nod to dreamlike abstraction. It was simply a technical failure, shot with a manual lens, rushed framing, and an optimistic assumption that I’d nailed the hyperfocal distance. I hadn’t. Still, I kept the frame. It’s a street in Munich, pigeons pecking at the ground, firemen walking down the centre. A homeless encampment crowds the left edge. None of it sharp. But despite that—or maybe because of it—the image speaks. Context persists. Silhouettes are enough. The story doesn’t vanish with the detail. Technically, the photo lacks precision: the aperture was too wide, depth of field too…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Free Ride

    October 2, 2014

    Late Evening Break In Piazza Dante

    October 21, 2017

    The Expired Film Series – Episode 7 – Kodak Portra 160 – June 2015 shot in Oct. 2023

    January 11, 2024
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Daily photo,  Oslo

    Lady Gaga Art Rave

    October 5, 2014 /

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    Andrea Monti

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    While the kids grow-up…

    July 25, 2013

    Ready For Lunch

    November 1, 2014

    London Swash

    September 3, 2014
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Daily photo,  Oslo,  People

    Cold Freezing Tour Through Oslo’s Fjord

    October 4, 2014 /

    I took this photograph aboard a ferry cutting through the Oslo fjord in winter. The cold was penetrating, the kind that seeps into bones despite layers of clothing. The passengers’ body language tells the story more effectively than words: one figure wrapped in a blanket, hands folded in stillness; the other with a camera resting idly on his lap, shoulders hunched, jeans stiffened by the chill. Compositionally, I aimed for a low angle, using the perspective of the floor and the rug leading diagonally into the frame. This draws the eye directly toward the two figures without needing to show their full faces. The benches on either side narrow the…

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    Andrea Monti

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    The Leica M9 CCDgate Outrageous Case

    December 11, 2014

    A few shots from a Paco de Lucia live performance

    July 31, 2013

    Landed

    December 19, 2013
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Photo Journalism,  Photography,  Street Photography,  Thoughts

    Italy, Street-Photography and The Law – A Real Case

    October 3, 2014 /

    Last July, members of the Polizia municipale of Rome seized the camera of a British-Brazilian street-photographer, Simon Griffee, while he was documenting the way they dealt with an immigrant. As Simon’s lawyer I’ve filed an appeal and a week ago the Court of Rome revoked the seizure. The battle is not over, yet, but hopefully Simon’s camera will be back on his hands pretty soon. As soon as possible I will release a thorough analysis of the case matched with what the law says, in theory.

    Read More
    Andrea Monti

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    Make Sense (or: Meaning is in the Eye of the Beholder)

    October 10, 2025

    The Lifeguard’s Tools

    August 24, 2013

    Having Sax

    February 6, 2015
  • B&W,  Cars&Bikes,  Daily photo,  Oslo,  Parks,  People

    Free Ride

    October 2, 2014 /

    Read More
    Andrea Monti

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    Peeping the Misery

    September 4, 2013

    Full Moon

    May 9, 2017

    Why You Should Only Shoot in Your Backyard (or ‘The Art of Belonging’)

    December 19, 2024
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Daily photo,  Fashion Shops,  Oslo,  People

    Behind a Shop Window in Oslo

    October 1, 2014 /

    This was one of those scenes that unfolded on its own terms. No decisive moment, no split-second drama—just a man behind glass, cleaning or adjusting or both, surrounded by faceless mannequins and the awkward geometry of retail preparation. I raised the Nikon 35 TI and pressed the shutter before overthinking it. Shot through the shop window, the glass worked both against me and with me. It introduced layers—literal and symbolic. Reflections were minimal but present, just enough to remind us we’re on the outside looking in. The man is inside a constructed world, arranging it, tidying its surfaces for consumption. The mannequins—blank-eyed children—stand frozen, already staged, while he works between…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Generations – I

    August 6, 2014

    Late Night Conversation at Cardinal’s Wharf

    September 29, 2016

    Knocking on lion’s door

    April 22, 2013
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Oslo,  Parks,  People

    The Wild Bunch

    September 30, 2014 /

    Read More
    Andrea Monti

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    AI or not AI?

    October 3, 2023

    The Expired Film Series – Episode 2 – Ilford XP2Super 400 – Nov. 2017 shot in May 2023

    July 25, 2023

    A Master Luthier in his lab…

    May 14, 2013
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