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Andrea Monti

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  • Boston,  Colour,  Court,  Daily photo,  Social Control,  Summer

    Justice measured as the distance between Words and Facts

    July 10, 2023 /

    This photo, in itself, is nothing special. Bur it carries an implicit message about law and rights: the level of democracy in a country is measured by the distance between bold statements and the daily courtroom’s reality.

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    Andrea Monti

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    The Spanish Sense of Flesh – 2

    June 28, 2014

    Bus Driver

    September 16, 2016

    Tiles

    October 31, 2014
  • Boston,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Downtown,  Street Markets,  Summer

    A Cornhole Board – Independence Day Edition

    July 8, 2023 /

    I took this photograph in Boston on July 4th, and for me, it captures a small but telling fragment of the day’s celebrations. No fireworks, no parade—just a simple cornhole board dressed in the American flag, surrounded by scattered red and blue beanbags on a sunlit brick pavement. It’s an image that speaks to the quieter, more tactile traditions that sit alongside the grand spectacle. Compositionally, I let the board occupy the upper right of the frame, its diagonal placement adding a sense of movement and inviting the viewer’s eye from the legs toward the target hole. The wooden box in the foreground balances the frame and anchors the bottom…

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    Andrea Monti

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    A Relaxed Call

    February 12, 2014

    To Do or To Own? (or the Photographer’s Dilemma)

    March 2, 2025

    Close up of an Ethnic Chessboard

    September 1, 2018
  • Artists,  Boston,  Colour,  Daily photo,  People,  Seasons,  Summer

    Elishéva live@Faneuil Hall

    July 8, 2023 /

    Boston is an incredibly vibrant city and hosts many live events in theatres and outdoor venues. At Boston’s Faneuil Hall, I took some pictures of Elishéva, a soulful jazz singer, while she was rehearsing. Boston in summer has its own rhythm—a blend of footsteps, street chatter, and, if you’re lucky, the pulse of live music spilling into the air. I took this photograph during one of those moments when the city seems to pause and listen. The singer, shaded under her cap and oversized sunglasses, leans into the microphone with an intimacy that draws you in, while her guitarist locks eyes with her, an unspoken conversation carried through chords. From a…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Max Gazzè Tour 2016 Live @Pescara

    February 1, 2016

    Has Street-Photography a limit?

    December 19, 2012

    The Street Photographer Rights In Italy. The Leaflet

    July 10, 2014
  • Boston,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Exhibitions,  Summer

    Tesla Coils@Boston Science Museum

    July 4, 2023 /

    Capturing a Tesla coil mid-discharge is less about speed and more about timing. The arcs of electricity, chaotic and brief, demand an intuitive trigger finger and a dose of luck. I didn’t want the image to become a science illustration; I wanted it to hold some tension between spectacle and control, between the purity of mathematics and the danger of raw power. The coils themselves form a natural anchor in the bottom third of the frame, giving structure to what would otherwise be an abstract burst of energy. I shot through a safety mesh, letting it subtly ghost across the image, a reminder of the physical danger involved in what…

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    Andrea Monti

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    The Lost Lock

    June 12, 2014

    Three Tires

    May 18, 2022

    The Double Helix

    October 13, 2013
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Rome,  Summer

    Guarding Democracy

    June 14, 2023 /

    Shot on film, this frame came from a day of walking — not searching, just watching. I didn’t need to look far. Two officers, positioned under a temporary gazebo, leaned into casual conversation, framed by the barricade they were meant to man. Beyond them, a crowd gathered in orderly concentration. The juxtaposition wasn’t loud, but it was clear: authority in the foreground, public in the distance. The separation was both literal and symbolic. The choice to shoot from behind the barrier wasn’t just compositional — it was contextual. I wanted to keep the divide intact. The vertical bars bisecting the two officers are rigid, unforgiving. They draw the eye down,…

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    Andrea Monti

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    The Stare of a T800

    August 4, 2015

    My camera’s early test shots

    December 20, 2012

    Justice measured as the distance between Words and Facts

    July 10, 2023
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Seasons,  Spring,  Visual

    Abstract

    May 9, 2023 /

    There’s a particular pleasure in encountering an image that resists immediate recognition. This photograph—an interplay of industrial forms, bolts, struts, and cylindrical elements—sits somewhere between documentation and abstraction. Strip away the context, and it becomes less about what these structures are and more about what they do visually: dividing the frame, catching light, and setting up a rhythm of repetition and interruption. The composition is rigidly symmetrical along the vertical axis, yet it doesn’t feel overly formal or sterile. The imperfections—paint chipping, scuffs, a touch of grime—are what give it character. These blemishes remind us this isn’t a CAD rendering but a real, weathered object, doing its job in the…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Flashes’ Forgotten Powersuits

    April 11, 2014

    Three Shots in Franco Summa’s Studio

    August 19, 2026

    Bus Driver

    September 16, 2016
  • Artists,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Spring

    Niccolò Fabi – Meno Per Meno Tour 2023 – Live@Teatro Massimo, Pescara

    May 7, 2023 /

    Covering Niccolò Fabi’s concert for Rockol, gave me the opportunity to test an X-T4 with an XF 150-600. The image quality is on a par with the X-T3. This was to be expected. However, I have some reservations about the autofocus. The lens also needs to be examined in more detail before I can form an informed opinion.

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    Andrea Monti

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    A Fix for the Wikipedia Photos’ Copyright Scams?

    December 19, 2020

    Portrait of a Waiter

    July 22, 2013

    Skull of Glass at the London Science Museum

    September 27, 2016
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  People,  Rome,  Spring

    Partner in Glam

    May 3, 2023 /

    I framed this shot fast — the kind of street moment that gives you three seconds to get it or lose it. What pulled me in wasn’t the man alone, nor the advert behind him. It was the convergence. His physical presence, heavy and brooding, intersecting perfectly with the oversized face of the model. Two expressions, one contemplative, one seductive, unintentionally in conversation. The poster reads Partner in glam. A marketing line, forgettable in most contexts. But set against this man, seated in shadow, caught mid-thought, it takes on irony. Or honesty. Depends how you read it. Technically, the photo leans hard into contrast. Shot in direct sunlight, the shadows…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Enough Is Enough…

    March 2, 2013

    The Answer is On the Wall

    August 28, 2020

    Waiting For The Bus On Las Ramblas

    August 19, 2014
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  People,  Rome,  Spring,  Technique

    A Frame Within a Frame Within a Frame

    April 23, 2023 /

    The irony didn’t hit me until I developed the roll—an expired Ilford XP2 Super 400 that had been lounging at the bottom of a drawer for years. Shot with a Voigtländer Bessa R2 paired with the Nokton 35mm f/1.4, this image is as much a meditation on layers as it is a commentary on isolation. What initially looked like an ordinary street shot—girl on a call, perched on a windowsill—turned out to be a trifecta of enclosures: her physical pose wrapped in posture and winter clothing, set within the architecture of the window, itself encased in the framing of the building. Beyond, the city reflects itself, ghostlike, on the glass—another…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Luck is an Attitude

    January 25, 2014

    Foto-Grafo featured on Yanidel.net

    March 20, 2013

    Argument on the Range

    November 7, 2016
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  People,  Technique,  Winter

    Coats

    March 19, 2023 /

    Getting rid of film noise is a recurring necessity when shooting film at (relatively) high ISO.In this photo the negative was digitised using a Pentax K-1 Mark I and a Pentax FA 100/2,8 Macro. Then, before inverting the curves to make a positive, it was fed into DxO PureRaw3 (by the way, it properly recognized the camera and lens). Finally, in Affinity Photo Develop Persona’s Details tab, once the curves were inverted, it was necessary to tweak the Noise Reduction options by setting Luminance to 50% and Luminance Details to 0.

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    Andrea Monti

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    A relic from the (recent) past

    April 30, 2013

    Smile!

    August 7, 2013

    Relax At The Rapallo’s Marina

    August 2, 2014
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Doors&Windows,  Gear,  Winter

    Powermeters

    February 18, 2023 /

    This photo was taken with an Ilford XP2 Super 400, a Voigtländer Bessa R2 and a Voigtländer 35mm f/1.4 II lens. The film was digitised using a Pentax K-1 and a Pentax FA 100/2.8 Marco mounted on a custom-built rig. The resulting raw was processed in Affinity Photo. In Develop Persona, first the image was turned in black and white, then the master curve was intverted and finally exposure, contrast and other parameters were tweaked.

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    Andrea Monti

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    The El Prat’s Lounge

    June 5, 2014

    Lonely cart

    March 4, 2013

    A Two-Masted Schooner

    October 25, 2014
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Daily Video,  Docks,  Photography,  Winter

    Editing a photo taken with a Carl Zeiss Jena 135/4 Sonnar and a Fuji X-T3

    February 8, 2023 /

    A vintage Carl Zeiss Jena 135/4 Sonnar whose RF mount has been replaced with a Fuji X mount by Adriano Lolli (https://www.adrianololli.com).Coupled with a Fuji X-T3, it delivers pleasant results. Post production is highly subjective, so the final outcome might no be ‘acceptable’ to some taste. Still, the lens is very good.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Hanging Bottle

    October 11, 2014

    Portrait of a Lawyer

    October 5, 2013

    The Cameraman

    July 17, 2013
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Gear,  Photography,  Winter

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

    February 5, 2023 /

    This photo was taken with an old Carl Zeiss Jena 135/4 Sonnar whose Contax RF mount was replaced by a Fuji X mount by Master Adriano Lolli.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Rest on the lake

    April 29, 2013

    A Lamppost

    November 26, 2014

    Belgian Gloves

    October 15, 2015
  • Bruxelles,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Downtown,  Jewellery,  Winter

    Floating

    February 5, 2023 /

    This image was born out of a fascination with stillness in the midst of implied movement. The mannequin — suspended, curled, caught in an almost foetal position — seems to drift within a capsule that looks as though it could be orbiting somewhere far beyond Earth. The large, circular light behind it could be a porthole, a hatch, or simply a stage light; its blinding white obscures what might be beyond, giving the scene a surreal, detached quality. Technically, the biggest challenge was exposure. The extreme contrast between the brilliant backlight and the darker figure risked losing detail on both ends. I chose to protect the highlights, letting the shadows…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Portrait of Keyboard Player

    May 18, 2014

    Quality Check. Try Before You Buy

    April 10, 2014

    Hanging Clothes Waiting to Dry

    February 18, 2014
  • Daily photo,  Daily Video,  Technique,  Winter

    Unattainable 1:1 magnification with the JJC FDA S-1 and Micro Nikkor 60 2,8

    January 29, 2023 /

    The JJC FDA S-1 does not allow a 1:1 magnification with the Micro Nikkor 60 2,8. It only reaches a smaller factor (about 80%.The probable reason is the excessive lenght of the original step-down ring.Using a thinner step-down ring, as it has been done in this video, does not improve the outcome.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Sky Patrol

    September 12, 2021

    Mediterranean Games 2009

    June 28, 2015

    In Hoc Signo

    August 20, 2015
  • Daily Video,  Photography,  Technique,  Winter

    Processing a DSLR Digitised Black and White Film with Affinity Photo

    January 24, 2023 /

    This videos shows how to process a Black and White film digitised with a DSLR camera.The process starts from opening the RAW file in Affinity Photo’s Develop Persona. In short and in order, the steps are:

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    Andrea Monti

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    The Angel Maker

    February 25, 2014

    An inconvenient way to spend time.

    March 15, 2013

    Dark Omen

    December 31, 2021
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  People,  Stockholm,  Summer,  Technique,  Travels

    DSLR film scanning: episode three

    January 24, 2023 /

    This is, by far, the most pleasing result I have ever had from digitising a film negative with a DSLR.Contrary to many suggestions found on Youtube, I did not invert the negative RAW curve by tweaking the Master RGB option. I did it, instead, channel-bychannel minding each clipping point. This approach allowed for a better reproduction of the grey tones, and in the end a fair result.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Different Life

    June 24, 2016

    Duel Inside The Cage

    November 20, 2014

    Pino Ammendola – L’ultima notte di Bonfiglio Liborio@Teatro Marrucino

    May 13, 2022
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Downtown,  Gear,  Stockholm,  Summer

    Another attempt at DLSR film scanning

    January 21, 2023 /

    Still trying.I digitised the negative with a Pentax K-1 and the FA 100 2.8 Macro lens using the JJC clone of Nikon ES-2. Postproduction is done in Pixelmator Pro. I used a Nikon 35TI and a Kodak BW400CN to take the original photo. Strangely enough, the JJC does not allow a 1:1 ratio with the Micro Nikkor 60 2.8.The instructions advise to mount the 62mm to 52mm step-down ring, the #2 52mm barrel-shaped tube and finally the film holder. These instructions are clearly wrong, as it is not possible to get 1:1 magnification with this setup.So I removed the tube and mounted the film carrier directly on the 62mm to…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Bent

    April 21, 2014

    Portrait of a Master luthier

    October 26, 2013

    The Quest for Belgian Chocolate…

    April 11, 2017
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Gear,  People,  Seasons,  Summer,  Technique

    An attempt at DSLR-made film digitization

    January 14, 2023 /

    This is the first usable result of the attempt to DSLR-scan films. I tried several approaches, including the standard tripod holding the camera perpendicularly to a flat, LED-lighted surface. However, I finally went for a different solution: a horizontal rig with two moving plates, a micrometric head holding the film and three-axis and a panoramic head holding the camera.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Holding Against the Tide

    December 11, 2013

    Hard Spam

    April 1, 2013

    Why Writing About Photography Matters (or: The Importance of Re-inventing the Wheel)

    April 9, 2026
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Gear,  Winter

    Pixelmator Pro Debanding and Electronic Shutter

    December 24, 2022 /

    Pixelmator Pro Deband feature does not work on banding caused by the well known electronic shutter lag. The Deband feature has not been advertised as working also with ES-induced banding, so the fact that it can not handle it is not a bug. However, this limit seriously reduces the appeal of the new feature. I have flagged the issue to Pixelmator Pro Support: currently, they are out of work, but eventually, they should get back to me with some news. Good news, hopefully.

    Read More
    Andrea Monti

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    Footprint

    April 24, 2014

    Gravity on Pause

    September 5, 2025

    Ninja-Turtles?

    April 30, 2014
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Docks,  Winter

    The Silent Geometry of a Trabocco

    December 22, 2022 /

    This image came out of a walk I almost didn’t take. The light was beginning to fall into that uncertain hour, not quite golden but leaning into it, with a softness that flatters without deceiving. I was drawn to the trabocco — that wooden skeleton of fishing history jutting into the Adriatic like a forgotten broadcast antenna. Technically, the image lives and breathes in its lines. Everything points outward — cables, poles, railings — a quiet explosion of geometry pushing against the calmness of the sea. The house, slightly off-centre, serves as a visual anchor, balancing the thrust of the lines while allowing the scene to feel alive, not over-symmetrical.…

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    Andrea Monti

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    We Are All Made of Stars

    February 28, 2018

    Busy

    January 8, 2013

    Off Duty

    September 4, 2015
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Docks,  Winter

    Fisherman’s Fatigues

    December 19, 2022 /

    I shot this one late in the day, when the light had softened just enough to graze the worn textures without flattening them. The fatigue in the title isn’t poetic—these clothes, half-limp, half-hardened with salt and use, are the remnants of someone’s labour, someone likely still out at sea. I didn’t stage anything. These were just there, draped across makeshift wooden trestles, drying under the weight of their own exhaustion. What makes this image work technically, for me, is the tension between stillness and implication. Nothing moves in the frame, yet everything speaks of motion just ceased—pulling ropes, lifting crates, hours on a rolling deck. The shallow depth of field,…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Lockpicking Tools

    December 11, 2018

    Breaking the Fourth Wall

    February 17, 2020

    Yet Another Tokyo Tower Nightshot

    July 27, 2017
  • Artists,  Colour,  Daily photo,  People,  Winter

    Daniele Silvestri – Teatri 2022 – Live@Teatro Massimo, Pescara

    December 16, 2022 /

    This is the Daniele Silvestri’s Teatri 2022 coverage I did on behalf of Rockol.it using good old Nikons (a D610 with the Sigma 150-600 contemporary and a D750 with a Nikkor 24-120). As a matter of personal taste, I still like a reflex more than a mirrorless camera. The possibility offered by the latter to shoot in total silence with the Electronic Shutter is invaluable in specific contexts such as classical concerts or theatrical plays, nowthistanding the downfalls (banding and distorted images). However (and, once again, this is a matter of personal opinion), a reflex still allow a better connection with the environment at least thanks to the optical viewfinder.…

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    Andrea Monti

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    And Justice For All

    May 15, 2015

    Mario Asks for it!

    April 9, 2014

    This is a stadium, not a correctional facility

    August 25, 2026
  • Actors,  Colour,  Daily photo,  People,  Winter

    Norina shouts at Don Pasquale

    December 12, 2022 /

    This picture is part of the reportage I did for Gaetano Donizetti’s Don Pasquale, featured on December 11, 2022, at Teatro Marrucino. It has been the chance to experiment a few tricks to avoid the banding effect caused by the LED pulse frequency and the sensor’s delay in EFC is used. I chose to go for time rather than aperture priority mode. I also set the shutter speed at 1/50, as suggested in many forums, and the trick worked. In some cases, banding was still present, but it was insignificant. I also tried to shoot in full manual (leaving only the focus in auto.) Some pictures ended up overexposed, and…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Has Street-Photography a limit?

    December 19, 2012

    @ Mediterranean Beach Games 2015 – Wrestling, Italy vs France (And a primer on sport photography – Part 5)

    October 9, 2015

    Gravity on Pause

    September 5, 2025
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