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5 frames exploring the Sporting Gun Culture in Italy
Firearms and gun culture are a very sensitive issue. Privately owned weapons are associated to mass shooting and individual killings, street violence and law enforcement abuses. When confronted with the killing of innocent people, talk is cheap and it is perfectly reasonable to invoke restrictions and even outright bans. There are, however, many people who are not involved in ‘prepper’ or ‘zombie apocalypse is coming’ state of mind, and who only want to practice a sport or foster their interest in military history, mechanics or other types of knowledge related to building and handling of a weapon. So, whatever the view on the matter, from the absolute opposition to any…
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Feuer
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Servicing a Beretta 98FS
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Servicing a Sig Sauer P226
This frame came together as a study of routine and tactility rather than drama. The hands, well-worn and pragmatic, are in mid-action—focused, unposed, doing what they’ve likely done a hundred times before. It’s not a glamour shot of a weapon. It’s a photograph of labour, care, and the quiet diligence of someone who knows their way around a mechanical system. The Sig Sauer P226, known for its precision and reliability, has always struck me as more tool than totem. That sense informed how I chose to shoot this: close, compressed, honest. I avoided depth-of-field tricks or shallow focus. The visual language here is functional, echoing the subject matter. The background…
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A Shooter
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Lost Bag
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Getting In The Zone Before the Shot
I made this image in the seconds before the pistol was raised. No noise, no movement, just controlled breath and interior focus. The athlete’s posture says everything: shoulders relaxed, chin tucked, eyes slightly lowered toward the monitor—not in distraction, but in calibration. He’s not looking at the target; he’s visualising the result before the mechanics begin. The setting is sterile by necessity. A shooting range must eliminate variables. No colour, no texture, no distractions. That flatness worked in my favour—clean background, no depth needed, only presence. I framed it with intention: the shooter on the right third, facing inward, and the monitor on the opposite axis, forming a visual loop…
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Argument on the Range
I took this photograph during a sports shooting competition, and despite what the title might suggest, there was no animosity in the air—only a civil, animated exchange between two competitors. In the image, the man on the left, in his blue cap, leans forward slightly, speaking with deliberate emphasis, while the man on the right, hands raised, listens intently, possibly offering a counterpoint. Behind them, a third figure stands blurred, clipboard in hand, an observer or official adding quiet context to the scene. From a compositional standpoint, the choice of shallow depth of field works in favour of the narrative. The two men in sharp focus create an intimate focal…
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The BatFire
A butterfly with wings of fire. 火の翼を持つ蝶
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On the Range
Some photographs work because of what they don’t show. This one places us directly behind the central figure, hands clasped loosely at the back, body framed squarely in the centre of the image. The ear protection, branded shooting vest, and steady stance make it clear we’re at a firing range, but the subject’s face — and therefore any emotional cue — is withheld. We are instead invited to take in the scene from their perspective, sharing their field of vision, yet also remaining an observer of them. Compositionally, the image uses depth effectively. The open car boot in the middle ground, with its blurred figure in white, provides a counterpoint…
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Home on the Range
There’s a moment—right before the shot breaks—when everything else falls away. This frame captures that exact moment. The quiet before the concussion. The balance between intent and mechanics. Taken in a professional range under full control, it documents not violence, but discipline. Focus. Precision. The brass tells its own story: just-fired casings scattered like punctuation marks on the shooter’s rhythm. The rifle rests steady on a bipod—cold, functional, ready. The shooter’s hand is not tense, but deliberate. His chain bracelet glints faintly in the sterile light, an unexpected human contrast to the black polymer and steel. This isn’t combat. It’s not theatre. It’s a place where performance meets protocol. Where…
