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Andrea Monti

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  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Rome,  Streets&Squares

    5 (improbable) Frames with a roll of Ferrania Orto and a Nikon 35TI

    February 28, 2024 /

    The photographer is a peculiar type of social being, characterised by a ‘rules are meant to be broken’ attitude in the search for the perfect exposure. So, sooner or later, all the dogmas about composition, hyperfocal, zone system, rule of thirds, etc. will be put aside to try something ‘different’. This is what happened with these five images, taken at night in Piazza Venezia and Via Salaria in Rome with a Ferrania Orto on a Nikon 35TI; a rather strange choice given the inherent limitations of an orthocromatic film and a 2,8 35mm lens of a compact camera in this scenario. Against all odds the 35TI performed well (especially in…

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    Andrea Monti

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    The Silent Listeners

    December 27, 2013

    Faces in the Façade: A Ghostly Smile in Stone

    November 15, 2014

    Pentacon 50/1.8 and Nikon Z5 – An Empirical Field Test

    January 18, 2026
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Boulevards,  Daily photo,  Marketing,  Rome,  Seasons,  Urban Landscape

    Iphone 15 Billboard in Via XX Settembre

    February 14, 2024 /

    This is an attempt to exploit the limitations of an orthocromatic film. Shadows and highlights were deliberately pushed, as was the contrast. This isn’t about the billboard. Not really. Yes, there’s a giant child smiling over Rome, her face stretched across several metres of vinyl, captured “with an iPhone 15,” if we’re to believe the tagline. She’s luminous, playful, part of a campaign you’ve probably already seen before you’ve even looked at it. But the photograph is something else. This was shot on orthocromatic film—intentionally. Shadows are carved in deeper than they should be. Highlights flare and collapse detail. The tonal scale isn’t flattering, and it isn’t faithful. It’s limited.…

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    Andrea Monti

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

    December 8, 2015

    Lightblade

    September 6, 2013

    The Sprint Before the Ride

    August 8, 2013
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Rome,  Streets&Squares,  Winter

    A jam in via Alessandria

    December 8, 2023 /

    Taking pictures with a fully manual camera is a way to keep practising the basics. Honestly, I would not use a film camera for a professional assignment —at least, not as the main one— but it’s worth doing it in a less challenging condition.As per the technicalities, waiting for the next batch of Ferrania Orto to arrive, I resorted to a Kodak Tri-X 400 roll, which is my favourite film at these ISOs.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Rockabilly

    September 15, 2013

    A Contemporary-Art Installation?

    March 31, 2013

    Buying Chocolate

    October 31, 2015
  • Autumn,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Docks

    Red Beam

    October 24, 2023 /

    Night photography has always been an exercise in restraint and patience. The camera sees differently than the human eye after dark — more unforgiving, more literal. This frame, taken with a Fuji X-T4 paired with the Viltrox XF 85/1.8, is my attempt to balance that literalness with the suggestion of stillness. The subject is minimal: a breakwater crowned by a small red beacon, its reflection trembling down the harbour water. Compositionally, it’s brutally simple — the light dead-centre, symmetry imposed on a chaotic environment. There’s an honesty to the stark framing; nothing distracts from the red flare and its molten trail on the surface. Technically, the exposure was a delicate…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Al Di Meola, Peo Alfonsi, Sergio Martinez – Live @ Teatro della Villa Comunale – Roseto degli Abruzzi

    July 30, 2025

    Pizza Maker@Ueno’s Park

    June 6, 2018

    Open Window

    February 4, 2015
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Docks

    A Lighthouse

    October 11, 2023 /

    Another example of how the Viltrox XF 56/1.4 performs in very low light.To be honest, the Fuji X-T4’s X-Trans sensor played its part.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Good Manners

    September 29, 2013

    Smile!

    August 7, 2013

    Efesto’s New Production Line

    September 20, 2014
  • Autumn,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Docks

    Modern Moai?

    October 10, 2023 /

    Still pushing the Viltrox AF 56/1,4 XF on a Fuji X-T4.The limit has not been reached just yet.

    Read More
    Andrea Monti

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    Sweet Dilemma

    November 4, 2015

    A Couple of Windows

    January 5, 2018

    A creative approach to zone focusing with superfast manual lenses and mirrorless cameras in street photography

    September 28, 2024
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Bridges,  Daily photo

    Floating

    October 7, 2023 /

    Another shot taken with the Viltrox 56/1,4 XF and a Fuji X-T4.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Portrait of a young scholar

    October 28, 2013

    A Fix for the Wikipedia Photos’ Copyright Scams?

    December 19, 2020

    Small Talk

    February 10, 2014
  • Autumn,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Docks

    Sailing Home

    October 4, 2023 /

    The quality of the Viltrox 56 1/4 XF never ceases to amaze me.This image was taken with an X-T4 at ISO1600, so the quality of the sensor plays a significant role in the overall result. However, as the lens is not supported in Affinity Photo 2, the image is wysiwyg in the sense that no profile-based corrections have been applied.

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    Andrea Monti

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    The Shoesfixer

    September 7, 2014

    Steve Hackett – Live@Teatro d’Annunzio

    July 8, 2017

    A Droplet

    February 21, 2021
  • B&W,  Boston,  Buildings,  Daily photo,  Docks,  Downtown,  Parks,  Streets&Squares,  Summer,  Travels

    From Waltham to Boston

    August 4, 2023 /

    ‘From Waltham to Boston’, an offshoot of a bigger project on documenting Boston’s pulse, is now available on Amazon as a Kindle e-book.

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    Andrea Monti

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    London in Motion: A Night Ride in a Single Frame

    October 26, 2016

    The Prisoner’s View from the Sospiri’s Bridge

    September 25, 2017

    Snaps of a Flamenco recital…

    April 26, 2013
  • Daily photo,  Portfolio,  Street Photography,  Travels,  Urban Landscape

    Hidden in Plain Sight. A Japanese Journey

    August 3, 2023 /

    Although I have a lot of pictures from my various trips to Japan, organising them into a book is a challenge. The photos themselves are good enough to deserve publication. However, most of them are affected by a ‘déjà-vu’ effect. People on the subway, crowded crossroads, striking contrasts between modernity and the past, or between rural areas and highly urbanised ones, pop culture vs. business culture… no matter how hard I try, every single photo gives the feeling that someone has already done it. I am neither an anthropologist nor an expert on Japanese society, so I have no reasonable explanation for this feeling. Perhaps it is simply a matter…

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    Andrea Monti

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    A Pensive Nun

    December 14, 2016

    A Modern Orpheus

    November 24, 2015

    Nightlife in Bruxelles

    June 27, 2014
  • B&W,  Boston,  Cars&Bikes,  Daily photo,  Streets&Squares,  Summer

    UnortORTOdox (Ferrania)

    July 22, 2023 /

    This is an unorthodox use of an orthochromatic film (namely, Ferrania Orto.) It is not supposed to be the first choice for reportage or travel photography, but rules are made to be broken, aren’t they? As per the photo, it was taken in North End, Boston’s Little Italy.

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    Andrea Monti

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    The Sinking Giant

    December 6, 2013

    Mind Your Business…

    January 9, 2013

    Into The Cube

    November 18, 2014
  • Boston,  Cars&Bikes,  Colour,  Streets&Squares,  Winter

    A Maserati GranTurismo

    July 15, 2023 /

    Another piece of Italy in Boston…

    Read More
    Andrea Monti

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    As Deep As The Ocean

    April 15, 2016

    Horizon Bending, Again

    April 28, 2014

    The Bodyguard in Red

    April 13, 2014
  • Boston,  Cars&Bikes,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Downtown,  Summer

    A Ferrari 812 GTS in Boston

    July 14, 2023 /

    Amid the urban thrum of a bustling boulevard in Boston, a Ferrari 812 GTS rests with theatrical poise, like a tenor waiting for the curtain to rise. Its rosso corsa bodywork catches the sun like a blade, slicing through the cluttered backdrop of imitation, of diluted Italian flair printed onto shirts, menus, slogans. But here—here is the real thing. This image captures more than automotive power. It embodies the burden and brilliance of authenticity in a world obsessed with mimicry. The Ferrari’s uncompromising lines, forged in Maranello, don’t shout. They assert. In contrast to the busy street and distracted passers-by, the car is still, composed, sovereign. It doesn’t need motion…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Generations

    February 5, 2013

    Streetlight Duet

    June 30, 2014

    At the theater, between two scenes

    June 15, 2015
  • 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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    Just a soccer field… Part 2

    February 4, 2014

    Stairway to nothing

    September 18, 2013

    The Violinist

    July 1, 2015
  • 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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    Merleria Livia

    February 14, 2015

    Skull of Glass at the London Science Museum

    September 27, 2016

    Processing a DSLR Digitised Black and White Film with Affinity Photo

    January 24, 2023
  • 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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    Shooting Sanda (Chinese Kickboxing) Bouts

    June 26, 2025

    Partner in Glam

    May 3, 2023

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

    October 3, 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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    Friend or Foe?

    January 21, 2013

    DxO Pure Raw empirical test

    November 22, 2022

    Duel Inside The Cage

    November 20, 2014
  • 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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    Carl Zeiss Ultron 50/1,8 and Pentax K1 – An Empirical Field Test

    February 11, 2026

    Guarding Democracy

    June 14, 2023

    Two Beers, One Cigarette

    April 23, 2014
  • 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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    Handling the Fishnet

    October 28, 2014

    @Rome Maker Faire – 2

    October 10, 2014

    Lost

    July 13, 2015
  • 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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    Run Like Hell, Pinocchio!

    February 24, 2015

    The Abused Balcony

    February 17, 2014

    Natural Silohuette

    September 8, 2017
  • 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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    Coats

    March 19, 2023

    Viltrox AF85/1,8 II XF. Reflexless?

    April 2, 2021

    Stadio Olimpico, seen from Tribuna Monte Mario

    October 1, 2022
  • Autumn,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Docks,  Helsinki

    A Vessel Moored on the Pier

    September 27, 2022 /

    Read More
    Andrea Monti

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    Fantozzi’s chairs

    May 4, 2013

    Dress Different

    March 15, 2015

    Friend or Foe?

    January 21, 2013
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Doors&Windows,  Gear,  Photography,  Thoughts

    The Mystique of Film

    August 24, 2022 /

    I have resisted for a long time before giving out my two cents about the neverending debate ‘film vs digital’. I gave up after the next self-delusion I read in a well-known ‘semi-pro’ (purposely not linked) online photography magazine. It featured the umpteenth column explaining how shooting film ‘gets the experience back’, going full-manual ‘forces you thinking’, having limited exposures ‘pushes you to become more selective’, and all the usual motives connected with the choice of travelling on a horse-powered chariot instead of using a regular car. There is no need to shoot film to experience all that. Set the camera on full manual, disable OIS and IBIS, use a…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Tables and Chairs, at Night

    May 7, 2013

    Las Ramblas’ Lifestyle

    April 18, 2014

    Waiting for the Fish

    December 18, 2021
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Docks,  Spring

    A Gull, Posing

    June 17, 2022 /

    A gull sits perched on a bollard by the water, its body angled just enough to suggest awareness of being seen. The rust-stained base, heavy and industrial, contrasts sharply with the lightness of the bird resting on top. It is a moment where function and chance converge, turning a docking post into a stage. Composition is centred and deliberate. The bollard fills the frame vertically, anchoring the image, while the gull becomes both subject and ornament. The blurred surface of the water behind isolates the scene, stripping away distraction so the viewer confronts the simple pairing of steel and feathers. Technically, exposure is well handled. The whites of the gull’s…

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    Andrea Monti

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    @Rome Maker Faire – 6. A Statue(?)

    October 21, 2014

    Should I Stay or Should I Go?

    November 29, 2013

    Taking-Off

    April 15, 2021
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