An Exclusive Interview with Gabriele Ferrazzi

Gabriele Ferrazzi, an Italian passionate photographer, who likes travelling a lot. He lives in Rome and works in a consulting company of IT. If Gabriele is not in the office, he is certainly travelling; as he says, “I live to discover and understand the world. Photography is a powerful way to tell stories with your own eyes. Since my childhood I have tried to pursue my passions. Give me a backpack, a camera and let me live my adventure.”

In the world of photography Gabriele grew up as an autodidact. While spending adventurers 5 months in Africa, his most beloved companion was his camera. The photographs that he took with it on the road inspired him in many ways. And, this love for photography encouraged him to create a website where he publishes all the images and the articles about his travels and the moments that he captures. If you meet an Italian on the road with a big smile, a backpack, and a camera, most likely it will be Gabriele, and he will be ready to share a new story that he experienced.

In this “Exclusive Interview” section, today we have the opportunity to talk with Gabriele Ferrazzi, as his photograph was winner of Photo of the Month – 23rd Month, 2nd Place. Let’s discover more about him, and his forays into photography in the following interview with him.

Light & Composition: Hello, Gabriele Ferrazzi. How does it feel, being selected as the winner of Photo of the Month, 2nd Place, April 2012?

Gabriele Ferrazzi: I’m really honored to be selected as the winner of Photo of the Month (2nd place). It isn’t much time, that I have started to publish my works and this is a confidence boost for me!

L&C: The photograph, “Photographer” which was selected as Photo of the Month, 2nd Place is a beautiful sunset photograph with an artistic perspective, correct lighting, and very well presented. Overall, this is a great composition! Tell us more about your experience of taking this photograph.

Gabriele: This shot is one of my favorite. I was in a overland truck long the way from Cape Town to Istanbul, after a long day on the road in the desert, the sun was going down and we decided to stop for the night. Immediately I jumped down from the truck with my camera and I started to run in direction to a small hill of rock. I took a lot of photos of the horizon and when I finished I went back to set my tent. One of the guys who was traveling with me, was still on the rock hill and I decided to try a silhouette photo with an amazing sunset…

L&C: Besides this winning photograph, many people liked and voted for several others of your photographs in the Photo of the Month contest. You must be proud. How do you see your journey to the world of photography so far?

Gabriele: I’m just on the first step of photography world. It’s so good that my photos are loved and I’ll try to grow up more and more. I hope to tell more and more stories with my photography…

L&C: As we know, you are originally from Italy, which has its own rich diverse cultural and artistic heritage. Do you think depicting life in Italy portrays a different essence? How much does that influence your work?

Gabriele: I’m Italian, but I like to define myself like a world citizen. My country is a fantastic place, full of history, monuments and small villages with stories to tell. Probably all Italians have a small amount of artistic skill in DNA, but I think only knowing the differences around the world, it is possible to learn something useful.

L&C: We see so many different genres of photography in your portfolio. Do you like a particular genre of photography?

Gabriele: If I could choose, probably my perfect shot should be in the wild…but in any case, it’s a good think to know technique and good composition of many kind of photography. Probably it depends on my mood, some days I like to stay in a traffic of a metropolis, other day I prefer to stay alone in the middle of nowhere…

L&C: One of the keys to any style of photography is visualization. Please tell us how you started this process and what you did afterwards.

Gabriele: As I already said I am self taught. The process was natural and easy… I found a new passion and I followed my instinct. That’s what I do with my camera… The visualization is the result of my instinct.

L&C: Gabriele, have you ever exhibited your work? If so, then tell us about your first exhibiting experience.

Gabriele: Few of my photos were published on magazines and exposed in Rome, and I received a couple of recognitions , but I never organized a real exposition with my shots. I will do it in the future…

L&C: Are you involved with any photography organizations? How does this help you in your photography?

Gabriele: I started with five of my friends a new project about wild photography in the nature. We are building a website and as soon as possible and we will start to organize workshops and trips taking photos in the wild….

L&C: What advice would you give our readers who want to take part in the journey around the world with Photo of the Day?

Gabriele: I don’t feel I can give advices… Just follow your passions and doing something natural… A good shot as like a good work in the life, will be done only if you will love what you are doing…

L&C: Thank you, Gabriele, for sharing your feelings and experiences with us.

Gabriele: Thank you too, to give me the opportunity to share my works and also to participate on your communities of photographer from all around the world.