Andrea Monti

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  • Colour,  Daily photo,  People,  PhotoCritics,  Reportage,  Winter

    Denegata Justitia

    March 2, 2020 /

    Sometimes a picture acquires a meaning that goes beyond the original intent of the photographer. In this case, taken from a reportage I did for Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables featured at Teatro Marrrucino, in Chieti, the photography becomes the archetype of the denegata Justitia. The defendant asks to speak, the justice stares elsewhere.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Different Paths

    December 26, 2012

    Ceci n’est pas un cadre

    December 29, 2013

    RedLight

    November 6, 2015
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  People,  PhotoCritics,  Technique,  Winter

    Breaking the Fourth Wall

    February 17, 2020 /

    Shooting a play is challenging because you must be ready to seize ‘the moment’ and, at the very same time, think of unusual compositions to avoid the boring ‘frontal’ perspective. Shooting part of the reportage from the backstage of Hamlet, with Giorgio Pasotti and Mariangela D’Abbraccio directed by Francesco Tavassi I had the possibility to experiment the breaking of the fourth wall. This picture is one of the results.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Franco Cerri. The Last Jazz Living Legend

    August 16, 2016

    Processing DSLR-digitized film with and without Pentax K-1 Monochrome Custom Image profile

    April 30, 2023

    The Bell Ringer of Nikko

    August 6, 2018
  • Artists,  Colour,  Daily photo,  PhotoCritics,  Technique

    Counter-intuitive Focus

    February 9, 2020 /

    This photo I took during a reportage for a theatre hosting a concert of Uto Ughi shows a counter-intuitive use of focusing. Rather than go for the obvious option, the attention is shifted on the two musicians in the background capturing their concentration, with the leading violin blurred and conceptually, thus, ‘left behind’. The global effect is reinforced by a neat separation between the dark and light parts of the frame.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Though Choice

    June 23, 2014

    Generations

    February 5, 2013

    Inside a Master Luthier’s Workshop

    July 24, 2025
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  People,  PhotoCritics,  Technique,  Winter

    When Colour Helps Composition

    February 7, 2020 /

    This photo I took during a reportage of Miseria e nobiltà – a classic of the Neapolitan comedy by Eduardo Scarpetta – in the mise en scene of Lello Arena e Luciano Melchionna gives a lot of insights on how composition works. The triangle designed by the two actors on the sides and the taller actress in the centre is reinforced by the colours of the costumes: black in the centre, white in the sides. Finally, the purple background behind the black figure enhances the eye-driving effect toward the centre.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Mandatory Photo Position

    August 3, 2019

    So What?

    December 7, 2013

    Just A Phone Call – 1

    February 18, 2015
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  People,  PhotoCritics,  Seasons,  Winter

    On “timing the moment”

    January 20, 2020 /

    This photo I took during an assignment for a reportage on the theatre drama called “Le Signorine” with Giuliana De Sio and Isa Danieli is an excellent example of the “Timing the moment” concept. “Timing the moment” is a skill any event-based photographer should develop (or hone, if he’s gifted enough to have been born with the gift.) Especially in sport – but too in concerts and theatre’s show if you did not attend the rehearsal – you don’t know in advance what is going to happen. A unique mixture of intuition, reflex and decision (what the Japanese would call 決め – kime) allows capturing an unforeseen – and excellent…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Forgotten

    October 15, 2013

    Renovating Milan

    November 18, 2017

    Floating Flower

    May 19, 2015
  • Autumn,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Fashion Shops,  People,  PhotoCritics,  Rome

    Deadly Bored

    January 6, 2020 /

    Once again, the meaning of this picture is counter intuitive and “made up” by the composition. The scene is seen from the perspective of the mannequin: at the end of a hard day spent sitting on the street-front, it (or he?) looks deadly bored and tries to kill the time before the shop closes by casually looking at the next passerby. The directional effect (from the mannequin to the passerby) is achieved by the diagonal connecting the tip of the hat, the feet of the mannequin and the cast of the shadow. Taken as a whole, these elements drive the eye from the mannequin to the persons and not vice-versa.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Where Do I Go From Here?

    October 13, 2016

    Gigi Cifarelli Guitar Solo (feat. Michele Di Toro) – Live@Florian Espace Pescara

    March 8, 2016

    A Lockheed C-130 Hercules

    January 31, 2021
  • Autumn,  Boulevards,  Colour,  Daily photo,  People,  PhotoCritics,  Rome

    A Virtual Glance Dance

    December 28, 2019 /

    The essence of this photo is all in the glances of the protagonists. The man looks at the woman, the woman looks at the luxury car. The essence of this photo is all in the glances of the protagonists. The man looks at the woman, and the woman looks at the luxury car. It is this subtle game of glances that tells a story and turns the photography from a casual picture into something worth seeing. Once again, it is not relevant whether the people portrayed are actually involved in the “glance dance”, as what matters is the image to convey the meaning created by the overall result. This confirms…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Asimo’s Ancestor@Tsukuba World1985 Expo

    June 30, 2018

    London in Motion: A Night Ride in a Single Frame

    October 26, 2016

    Mulberry Street, When Benito II Was Still There…

    July 7, 2014
  • Artists,  Colour,  Daily photo,  People,  PhotoCritics,  Portraits,  Technique,  Winter

    The Power of Underexposing

    December 25, 2019 /

    This portrait was built in the shadows. Underexposing by design meant letting darkness dominate the frame, allowing only the essentials — the face, the glint of an earring, the folds of the dress — to emerge. The result is a scene stripped of distraction, where every visible element has earned its place. The composition is weighted to the left, pulling the viewer into the subject’s gaze and leaving negative space to amplify the drama. The rich crimson of the gown benefits from the controlled exposure: under normal lighting, its details might have flattened into uniform red; here, the fabric’s texture and the embroidery’s sparkle gain depth from the way light…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Empty Chairs in the Tuileries

    October 19, 2013

    An illuminated escape path will help you to reach the exits …

    November 10, 2013

    Lunar Network Or Snowy Mountain?

    May 5, 2015
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  PhotoCritics,  Rome,  Winter

    When Tilted Photos Work

    December 18, 2019 /

    Tilted photos are very challenging to take. It is easy to break the composition, lose an essential part of the scene, or take a bad picture. Furthermore, making sense out of a diagonal orientation with a ratio that is not square (Hasselblad people, I can hear you loud and clear!) adds layers of difficulties. As counterintuitive as it might look, this photo taken in a “normal” orientation would have lost all its visual impact.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Who Said That Music Is Relaxing?

    August 14, 2013

    Smoke is everywhere…

    February 21, 2013

    A Sailor

    July 28, 2014
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  People,  PhotoCritics,  Rome,  Winter

    Good Plan, Poor Execution

    December 15, 2019 /

    The idea behind the composition is entirely correct. The mannequins and the girl form a triangle, as does the direction of the stares, conveying both a sense of symmetry and counterposing the liveness of a human being to the puppets’ lack of. A poor execution, though, led to the mannequins’ head cut, turning a visually appealing photography into a meaningless shot.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Santino’s Photo& Video at Broadway

    August 7, 2014

    Still Together

    April 20, 2013

    A Sailor

    July 28, 2014
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Downtown,  Observer Bias,  PhotoCritics,  Rome,  Winter

    Light as Meaning Shifter

    December 11, 2019 /

    The original idea behind this picture was to match the emptiness of the shop with the facelessness of the mannequin posing as a store clerk, to convey a general feeling of depersonalization. Unfortunately, the big lightblot represented by the poster close to the mannequin catches the observer’s attention and reduce the effectiveness of the composition. Instead of connecting the mannequin with the internal part of the store thus making sense of the whole picture, the eye just “sees” an ad poster.

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    Andrea Monti

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    Justice Under Construction

    March 31, 2015

    Oh…MG!

    July 23, 2015

    Wire Stylist

    January 31, 2015
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  OutOfFocus,  PhotoCritics,  Rome,  Visual,  Winter

    Photopanning in Rome

    December 3, 2019 /

    Photo panning is an art in itself and – when adequately practised – is able to deliver a stunning visual experience. In this picture (that has not been altered but for contrast and clarity) the overall experience reminds the Impressionism aesthetics.

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    Andrea Monti

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    A videographer…

    February 27, 2013

    Traffic Jam in Bruxelles

    April 7, 2014

    Seeking Directions

    March 18, 2013
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Gear

    A Weird Fujifilm Battery Issue for X-series cameras

    December 2, 2019 /

    A defective battery can cause a Fujifilm X-series camera to start rattling and displaying blue, white or purple-striped screen in the LCD viewfinder. After three months of troubleshooting, having the camera traveling back and fro between my studio and Fujifilm Italy tech support, they have been able to identify the issue: a defective battery didn’t send enough power to the camera, thus jeopardizing its operation. Here is a Youtube video I made that shows the issue

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    Andrea Monti

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    Did You Forget Something?

    October 3, 2016

    Last Check Before the Start

    July 29, 2015

    Fireworks on Film

    January 19, 2013
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Jewelry,  Observer Bias,  PhotoCritics,  Rome,  Winter

    Keep Out!

    November 30, 2019 /

    This photo conveys a message of “rejection”: first, a security guard who blocks access to the jewellery and then a signal of a prohibition of access reinforces the concept, thanks to a composition that guides the eye to a diagonal that goes from the bottom to the top, from left to right. Obviously, there is nothing “true” about all this because the overall result is the result of the organization of the spaces and the management of the perspective that allow connecting semantically elements that, in reality, have no relationship between them. It would have been enough to shoot from a different angle – or not juxtapose the security guard…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Open Interior

    March 14, 2021

    Mind The Gap!

    July 5, 2014

    Do Not Disturb the News Reader

    February 24, 2014
  • 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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    The Doorman

    September 1, 2013

    The Mailbox

    May 5, 2013

    The Argument

    December 27, 2012
  • Autumn,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Gear,  Technique,  Thoughts

    Will The iPhone Kill Traditional Cameras? Not Very

    October 15, 2019 /

    This isn’t a critique of smartphones in general—it’s a direct response to the overconfident marketing myth that an iPhone can replace a dedicated camera in every scenario. I took this photo to illustrate the limitations, and it delivered. Overprocessed, hyper-smooth, plasticky where it should have texture, and clinically shallow in all the wrong ways. Technically, the iPhone did what it was programmed to do: expose for the highlights, boost saturation, fake depth of field with computational blur, and call it “smart.” The result is a scene that looks like a rendering rather than a photograph. The contrast between the dead leaves and the healthy ones is crushed into flatness. No…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Zebra Crossing

    March 14, 2014

    Home on the Range

    May 17, 2015

    Urban Scavenger

    June 28, 2013
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  People,  Seasons,  Street Photography,  Summer

    In the Rain, A Helping Hand

    July 10, 2019 /

    The rain hit fast and hard. Streets turned to rivers in minutes. I was sheltering under a bus stop roof, camera still strapped around my shoulder, when I saw the man go down. Not dramatically—just a slow, heavy fall as he misjudged the kerb under the surge of water. Then came the officer. No hesitation. No fuss. Just a clean, instinctive move to lift him. The Leica didn’t leave my eye. I shot quickly—no time to compose in a traditional sense, but sometimes the moment doesn’t wait for your geometry. The turquoise pole on the left anchors the frame almost by accident. The crossing lines in the background help balance…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Urban Totem

    April 29, 2014

    Traffic Jam in Rome

    December 14, 2015

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

    August 4, 2013
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Gear,  Thoughts,  Winter

    Wasted Shot Because iPhone 7 Poor Low-Light Handling

    January 22, 2019 /

    There’s a certain frustration in watching a scene unfold that you know deserves better than the tool in your hands can give it. This was one of those moments. The Adige was shrouded in mist, the bridge arches glowing faintly from warm streetlights, the water reflecting pinpricks of gold — a scene so atmospheric it almost photographed itself. Almost. The iPhone 7 Plus, for all its merit in good daylight, simply doesn’t hold up when the light falls away. The sensor struggles, the noise reduction turns painterly, and dynamic range collapses into a murky smear. What was meant to be a layered play of mist, water, and stone turned into…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Hard Spam

    April 1, 2013

    Sun Worshipers

    January 3, 2022

    Pavement

    November 16, 2014
  • Autumn,  B&W,  Daily photo,  Photography

    (Not so) Intelligent Design

    October 26, 2018 /

    A white hand dryer, sleek and sterile, is mounted firmly on a tiled wall. Below it dangles a single electric cable, ending uselessly in an unplugged RJ connector. There is no socket in sight. No conduit, no power. Just absence. The image is clean, quiet—and absurd. The title, Intelligent Design, delivers a sharp, dry irony. It borrows from the vocabulary of creationist theology to highlight a mundane failure of basic planning. What was meant to be functional is, quite literally, disconnected. In this unassuming scene, the promise of utility is contradicted by execution. The dryer, meant to dry hands, is impotent. The infrastructure, meant to enable function, is missing. Photographically, the…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Fireworks on Film

    January 19, 2013

    Lost in mumbling

    September 22, 2013

    Portrait of aTocaor

    October 8, 2013
  • 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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    Abruzzo’s made Coke??

    March 26, 2013

    A Fence

    November 6, 2014

    A ghostly bystander

    September 21, 2013
  • B&W,  Daily photo,  Lines,  Photography,  Spring

    The Solitude of Power

    May 6, 2018 /

    In this staged tableau, a single white king stands isolated at the centre of a chessboard, surrounded by a dense perimeter of pawns, bishops, rooks, and knights—black and white alike. The visual symmetry is precise, the tension deliberate. It is a composition that speaks of power, but also of its limits. The king is both the most important and the weakest piece on the board. Its capture ends the game, yet it is immobile without protection. The title, The King’s Solitude, plays on this paradox: the sovereign stands alone, sovereign yet vulnerable, elevated yet exposed. In the context of international relations, this image evokes the precarious nature of leadership on the…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Open Window

    February 4, 2015

    VueScan and the missed Bits-per-pixel

    December 1, 2013

    A young Iron Maiden fan

    April 8, 2013
  • Colour,  Daily photo,  Gear,  Winter

    Fujifilm XF 100-400: a quick test

    January 12, 2018 /

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    Andrea Monti

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    Hands of a Steward

    November 22, 2019

    The Heart Of Giulietta

    October 30, 2014

    A Single(‘s) Call

    September 24, 2016
  • Autumn,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Photography,  Rome,  Visual

    An Essay on Light

    October 13, 2017 /

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    Andrea Monti

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    Il barbiere di Siviglia – Don Bartolo mad at Rosina

    November 28, 2020

    Play It Again, Sam!

    April 13, 2017

    Gotcha!

    August 16, 2013
  • Autumn,  Colour,  Daily photo,  Rome,  Technique,  Visual

    An Essay in Composition

    October 11, 2017 /

    I made this image out of defiance. The street was a mess of cars, headlights flaring, bodies moving — and instead of chasing sharpness or narrative, I stripped it down to pure visual rhythm. Defocused on purpose. Not by mistake, not due to speed, but as a choice to let form take over function. What remains is balance. The white beam on the right anchors the frame, violent in intensity, flaring just enough to fracture the blacks. On the left, the warmer tones — yellows, reds, soft reflections in polished metal — counterbalance with weight and curve. The centre dissolves into suggestion. Light, motion, nothing literal. The street disappears. Technically,…

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    Andrea Monti

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    Guess who’s happier?

    May 27, 2013

    Zebra Crossing

    March 14, 2014

    The Google Experiment

    February 1, 2014
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