Andrea Monti

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  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Milan,  Photography,  Street Photography

    How Privacy Hysteria Killed Street-Photography

    October 22, 2023 /

    At other times I would have dismissed this image as ‘out of focus’ and unusable. Just another missed shot caused by poor focusing technique on a fully manual film camera. Nowadays, however, I have begun to change my attitude towards these kinds of blurred images because of the privacy hysteria affecting the practice of street photography. There have been cases where people have been found guilty of harassment for covertly taking pictures in public spaces, but street photography has nothing to do with criminal behaviour. There is a huge difference between taking sneaky, random, meaningless pictures of people on the street and trying to freeze sketches of life to tell…

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    Andrea Monti

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    A Hellish Look

    March 26, 2024

    Portrait of a Cosplayer

    July 3, 2017

    Where Do I Go From Here?

    October 13, 2016
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Daily photo,  Milan,  People

    The Traveler’s Dilemma: Where To?

    October 21, 2023 /

    Shot on a Voigtländer Bessa R2A with the Nokton Classic 35mm f/1.4, this frame unfolded in less than a breath. A man, motionless, eyes scanning a departure board. Behind him, the chaos of travel hums, but he’s suspended—mid-decision, mid-wondering. No phone, no luggage in view. Just posture and projection. The Bessa’s meter can be unforgiving in contrast-heavy interiors, but I exposed for the board and let the shadows fall where they would. The Nokton, wide open or nearly so, brings in the classic swirl and falloff I wanted—enough sharpness in the centre, enough softness at the edges to suggest thought rather than define action. I didn’t wait for better light.…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Meaningless

    November 9, 2013

    Wire Stylist

    January 31, 2015

    Whatever You Stand For, Vote!

    May 24, 2014
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Downtown,  Milan,  Winter

    Technogym Milan@Night

    April 3, 2022 /

    I photographed this storefront in Milan after dark, intrigued by the way its illuminated windows cut through the night. The architecture itself is not the subject so much as the grid of glowing rectangles, each acting like a screen against the blackness of the street. The strong yellow framing lines draw the eye, repeating rhythmically across the facade, while the deep shadows surrounding them emphasise their intensity. Compositionally, I chose a wide perspective to capture the full stretch of the facade. This decision places emphasis on repetition and geometry rather than on any single detail. The asymmetry of the right side, where a bright advertisement interrupts the rhythm, creates a…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Once A God

    July 15, 2014

    Under the Yellow Umbrella

    March 9, 2013

    Protected: Prova Aurum

    April 25, 2014
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Milan,  Streets&Squares,  Winter

    Late Night@Piazza San Babila

    March 9, 2022 /

    Working with a compact camera like the Panasonic TZ-100 at night is a reminder that you don’t always need a full-frame monster to tell a story — but you do need to understand and embrace the camera’s limitations. The TZ-100’s one-inch sensor is not built for clean, clinical low-light work. Push the ISO and it will show noise quickly; underexpose, and shadow recovery will fall apart. But here, those very traits help carry the mood. The composition rests on a central axis — the illuminated corridor pulling the viewer inward, flanked by the Binova and Ivano Redaelli showrooms. Their glowing interiors act like bookends, framing the pathway and setting a…

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    Andrea Monti

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    A Virtual Glance Dance

    December 28, 2019

    Interpreti Veneziani – Vivaldi’s Four Seasons Live@San Vidal

    September 1, 2017

    Red Moon at the end of August

    September 1, 2023
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Milan,  People,  PhotoCritics,  Winter

    Evolution in Red

    November 20, 2019 /

    The frame unfolds on a Milanese street, a busy scene of people moving in different directions, yet bound by an unplanned visual thread — the colour red. On the far left, a stroller stands out, its fabric vivid against the muted tones of the pavement and stone façades. On the far right, a man in a red jacket, phone pressed to his ear, anchors the other end of the composition. Between them lies the space in which meaning is manufactured by the viewer: a perceived transition from childhood to adulthood, implied but never intended by reality itself. The technical construction supports this interplay. The image uses depth rather than focus…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Red Cross

    October 26, 2017

    Forgotten Bike In A Forgotten House

    April 3, 2013

    Hey Mister!

    June 25, 2015
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Milan,  People,  Street Photography

    Caught In The Act… Almost

    October 4, 2018 /

    One of the unspoken truths of street photography is that the act itself is a balancing game between invisibility and intrusion. You work quietly, melting into the scene, but sometimes the veil slips. This frame captures that instant—when the subject’s eyes meet yours and the candid moment becomes a negotiation. I was mid-frame when the man on the right turned, fixing me with a look that could be read as curiosity or suspicion. The keys in his hand, his stance, and the faint tightening of his jaw all freeze into a moment that could unfold in multiple ways. The man in the background remains unaware, his more relaxed posture offering…

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    Andrea Monti

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    The Ipad Shooter. Who needs a Nikon D4 anymore?

    November 3, 2013

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

    September 16, 2022

    Steve Hackett – Live@Teatro d’Annunzio

    July 8, 2017
  • Autumn,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Milan,  People

    Posing at Milan’s Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II

    October 1, 2018 /

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    Andrea Monti

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    The Hamlet’s Dilemma

    May 20, 2014

    Kime in Photography

    June 9, 2013

    A sample of the Carl Zeiss Jena 135/F4 Sonnar and a Fuji X-T3

    February 5, 2023
  • Cities,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Milan,  People,  Social Control,  Winter

    The Quiet Riot

    November 19, 2017 /

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    Andrea Monti

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    Good Manners

    September 29, 2013

    A Stop in Reggio Emilia

    February 21, 2024

    Mandatory Photo Position

    August 3, 2019
  • B&W,  Buildings,  Daily photo,  Downtown,  Milan

    Renovating Milan

    November 18, 2017 /

    Milan, November 2017. A construction site—not the kind that demands attention, but the quiet kind that hides behind fabric and scaffolding. I took this photo walking past it for the third or fourth time. What stopped me wasn’t the building itself, but its ghost. Behind the mesh screen, the silhouette of the old façade still lingered, like a memory bleeding through fabric. Chimneys, outlines, the suggestion of windows. The city behind the curtain. At the bottom, the standard construction notice: printed bureaucracy stapled to metal, a reminder that change is always sanctioned, scheduled, structured. But the rest of the image resists clarity. Straight lines waver, verticals drift. Even the fence…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Yes, We…Can

    May 16, 2014

    Fujifilm XF 18-120 just snapped in two

    September 10, 2023

    Who Can It Be Now?

    February 18, 2016
  • Autumn,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Downtown,  Milan

    Late Evening Break In Piazza Dante

    October 21, 2017 /

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    Andrea Monti

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    Sala degli Onori @ Triennale di Milano

    May 19, 2017

    Freeze!

    December 19, 2014

    Relax At The Rapallo’s Marina

    August 2, 2014
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Exhibitions,  Milan,  Spring

    Sala degli Onori @ Triennale di Milano

    May 19, 2017 /

    Photographing grand interiors is always a test of discipline — a challenge to convey scale, symmetry, and atmosphere without letting the vastness swallow the human presence within it. In this image of the Sala degli Onori, the composition succeeds in balancing the architecture with the people inhabiting it, rendering a space that is both imposing and accessible. The shot is anchored by a strong central perspective. The converging lines of the marble floor and rows of white chairs pull the viewer’s gaze directly towards the far wall, where the mural forms a natural focal point. The figure walking down the central aisle provides a crucial sense of scale; without her,…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Yet Another Tokyo Tower Nightshot

    July 27, 2017

    Portrait of a Cosplayer

    July 3, 2017

    Guru Meditation

    May 12, 2014
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Gear,  Milan,  People,  Winter

    After a Tough Day

    January 30, 2016 /

    I  took this photo with a Fujifilm X-E2 and a Leica Elmarit 90/2,8. Manual focusing with the split-image option has been fairly easy.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Beach in black

    January 5, 2013

    A Rural View

    December 8, 2014

    Crate

    January 24, 2015
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Milan,  Restaurants&Bar,  Winter

    Reflexes

    December 30, 2015 /

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    Andrea Monti

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    Red Storm

    June 30, 2013

    Interior Design at Aurum

    May 26, 2013

    Staying Behind

    November 28, 2013
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Milan,  Reportage,  Winter

    Labcoats In A Moment Of Rest

    December 28, 2015 /

    The lab was quiet. Machines still hummed, but the people had stepped away—lunch maybe, or a seminar down the corridor. I found this row of coats, slack and ghostlike, lined up with the kind of accidental symmetry that only happens when no one’s trying. Each hook bore a name: Stef, Erica, Anna, Sara, Giorgio… markers of identity in a place that prizes protocol over personality. Shot on a Canon 5D Mark II with the 24–105, the image leaned into its neutrality. No attempt to stylise the whites or fake a sterile glow. The coats were wrinkled, some slightly yellowed at the seams. I kept the exposure honest—highlights restrained just below…

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    Andrea Monti

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    A chat on a lake shore

    May 6, 2013

    A Broken Gearwheel

    August 27, 2014

    The Crew’s Rest

    July 20, 2014
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Milan,  People,  Winter

    Last Puff Before the Ride

    December 26, 2015 /

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    Andrea Monti

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    Hard work

    February 13, 2013

    (Not so) Intelligent Design

    October 26, 2018

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

    April 4, 2021
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Milan,  People,  Restaurants&Bar,  Winter

    Busy

    December 24, 2015 /

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    Andrea Monti

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    Splinter

    March 13, 2021

    Up from the Waterline

    December 3, 2016

    Waiting For The Patrons – 1

    June 17, 2015
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Milan,  People,  Winter

    Earbuds

    December 22, 2015 /

    A man crosses the street in mid-stride, headphones enclosing him in his own private world. Behind him, a line of people stands at the tram stop, their stillness a counterpoint to his movement. The tram, painted in tired colours, seems almost fixed in place, its presence dwarfed by the weathered façade of the building above. The sign EgyptAir—faded, peeling—hangs over the scene like an echo from another time, hinting at journeys and destinations that have little to do with this grey urban moment. The building’s windows are uneven in tone, some dark, some reflecting a pale sky, all framed by streaks of wear from decades of weather. What draws the eye…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Singers

    February 19, 2014

    Garbage As Usual – Pantheon’s Nearby

    October 4, 2019

    Different Life

    June 24, 2016
  • Colour,  Milan,  OutOfFocus,  People,  Restaurants&Bar,  Summer

    A (Out-of-Focus) Break Between Lunch and Supper

    December 8, 2015 /

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    Andrea Monti

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    A Fix for the Wikipedia Photos’ Copyright Scams?

    December 19, 2020

    Americana Skating – Italian National Championship 2019

    February 4, 2019

    Nico Cilli Band@Chiostro Comunale – Città S.Angelo

    September 9, 2013
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Milan,  Streets&Squares

    Ray-Ban in Milan

    October 5, 2015 /

    It’s not just about what sits on the roof—it’s about what it says without blinking. Shot in the heart of Milan, this image captures a building that has seen eras come and go, crowned by a brand that has spent decades convincing the world to look cool while blocking out the light. The lettering floats above the stone like graffiti gentrified by permanence. I framed the photo dead-on, as if to let the architecture and the logo negotiate their own contrast. The façade is neoclassical, orderly, almost too proud to wear an ad. But there it is—Ray-Ban—scribbled in neon above cornices and keystones, as defiant as it is inevitable. Black…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Shooting the Shooter…

    February 12, 2013

    Busy

    January 8, 2013

    Portrait of a young guitar player

    May 4, 2014
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Daily photo,  Downtown,  Milan,  People

    Shaken

    October 1, 2015 /

    The frame is a study in disarray — not in subject matter alone, but in its very execution. The scene, taken on a busy street, is blurred throughout: the figures, the car, the elegant repetition of arches behind them. Whether caused by an unsteady hand, a slow shutter, or a deliberate choice, the result is an image where nothing stands still enough to become the focal point. Two figures anchor the composition: one in the foreground to the left, caught mid-turn, the other to the right, hunched over something in his hands. Their outlines dissolve into the tonal softness, denying the viewer access to facial expression or fine detail. The…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Unkempt

    December 4, 2015

    Milan

    March 19, 2015

    Accidental Precision

    February 12, 2016
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Milan,  OutOfFocus,  People,  Restaurants&Bar,  Street Photography,  Winter

    The Street Photographer Dilemma: Film or Digital

    March 21, 2015 /

    To me Street-Photography is digital. I missed this shot because I wasn’t able to properly focus my full-manual kit, as I would have do with an average digital camera. There is no point in wasting film in an highly fault-rate activity such as Street Photography.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Different Financial Transactions

    November 3, 2016

    Christmas Time at Covent Garden

    December 25, 2013

    Nick Beggs

    July 12, 2017
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Milan,  People,  Winter

    Milan

    March 19, 2015 /

    There are street scenes that announce themselves loudly, and then there are those that slip into your view almost without you noticing—until the details start to unfold. This was the latter. I was standing at the corner of Via Francesco Sforza when the alignment of people, traffic, and light presented itself in a way that felt quintessentially Milanese. The group waiting at the crossing tells a quiet story of the city: a man lost in his phone, another holding a leather briefcase, a woman dressed sharply but practically, and a cyclist easing forward, impatient to move on. Behind them, the ECOBus—route 73 to San Babila—anchors the scene firmly in the…

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    Andrea Monti

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    A Couch in the Yard

    November 18, 2013

    One Shot Story: (Un)Available Coin Lockers at Shin Osaka Station

    December 22, 2024

    Boats

    September 18, 2021
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Milan,  People,  Photography,  Winter

    Dress Different

    March 15, 2015 /

    According to the fashion-photography standards this is a perfectly usable shot. To me, that’s simply a missed photo.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Pillars Of The Beach

    August 25, 2013

    The Expired Film Series – Episode 6 – Kodak Portra 400 – November 2016 shot in Sept. 2023

    June 5, 2024

    Against the Tide

    January 30, 2014
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Milan,  People,  Restaurants&Bar,  Winter

    Message Check Before Breakfast

    December 12, 2014 /

    This shot came together in the quiet seconds between espresso orders and the whir of the barista’s machine. I didn’t ask him to pose — I never do in moments like these. His posture, leaning forward, eyes fixed on the screen, scarf still clutched tight from the cold outside, told the full story. The light was unforgiving in its neutrality — ceiling fixtures and flat fluorescents don’t do any favours, but sometimes they just let the environment breathe. I pushed the ISO higher than I’d normally like, sacrificing a bit of cleanliness for immediacy. Still, the rendering holds: detail in the wool coat, a soft drop-off in the background, and…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Caught In The Act… Almost

    October 4, 2018

    Outside the Nobel Museum

    June 30, 2016

    Bronine Volkit Camera Hub. Mixed feelings

    November 30, 2021
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