WePhoto Portrait Vol. 6 Dear all, This is yet another proud moment to be releasing the next edition in Portrait Photography under our ‘The Series’ banner. Since 2014 when WePhoto Group was founded we have come this far out of sheer passion for this art. Over the time, thanks to the continuous help and support of many likeminded colleagues who have been as enthusiast as I am supporting this cause, that today we have created many platforms and thematic pages to represent the various genres in photography. Today WePhoto group has the widest presence across Facebook representing almost every possible genre of photography. As of date there are thematic pages, with picture boards on Pinterest, a dedicated web portal and more than 75 books published on issuu.com. This annual collection called - The Series - is made of eBooks each belonging to a specific photographic genre, and includes the artwork of several authors from Italy and abroad. The one in your hands is the sixth thematic book dedicated to Portrait Photography. Apart from the e-version these publications are available in the form of coffee table books as well. Editorial Board Mario Bunčuga: Editor & Art Director Pankaj Anand: Review Associate Priyanka Agrawal: Review Associate Germana De Chellis: Chief Graphic Designer & Portrait Group Leader
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We are so excited and happy to feature these beautiful images and most of all, be able to share them with a wide range of viewers. Please spread a word around by sharing, and recommend to as many as you can to download these free eBooks from our webpages and links given ahead. Do leave your positive feedback on the eStores if you care. This is how you may help us grow and share our passion for photography! In this Book you can also find the links to our Facebook Group - WePhoto. Come and join the group, invite your friends to share their work in there and enjoy some of the best images from around the world. My special thanks to Germana de Chellis, Chief of WePhoto Portrait Group/Page, closely supported by Maria Giovanna Quaranta, who have helped me select images, contact
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Gratitude My special thanks to Germana de Chellis, Chief of WePhoto Portrait Group/Page, closely supported by Maria Giovanna Quaranta, who have helped me select images, contact authors and collect materials. These people may always be found putting things together at the back office. Thanks to all the authors who have made this volume such a great collection with their valuable contributions. Thanks to our staff too, which is constantly managing and taking care of the group with its 12 thematic pages, pin-boards and online magazines. Thanks to my admin colleagues for their patient dedication. All this time when I remain away from the routine management of our network, they are the ones who take care of everything for the groups. I have no words to express my gratitude for the wonderful work they do every day with great passion and commitment.
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The Authors
Alle Lodoli
Germana De Chellis
Cristina Rezzi
Fernando Branquinho
Gianmatteo Smiderle
Francis Ho
Jacopo Marchini
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Copyright All rights are reserved to WePhoto and Mario Bunčuga for this entire eBook and to individual authors for their work included in the related chapters. This book can be downloaded for free and distributed freely only as a whole. The images and text are exclusive property of the authors who might authorize their use elsewhere at their own discretion, if contacted personally in advance. You may also order a print version coffee table book from our link through Peecho online print service. Any misuse or otherwise will be prosecuted through the prevalent rules on the subject of copyright.
© 2018 WePhoto
© 2018 Mario Buncuga
© 2018 Alle Lodoli
© 2018 Cristina Rezzi
© 2018 Fernando Branquinho
© 2018 Francis Ho
© 2018 Germana De Chellis
© 2018 Gianmatteo Smiderle
© 2018 Jacopo Marchini
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Portrait Photography
For us, the human beings, there could be nothing more ‘personal’ than a portrait. You look through a pair of eyes and find every single person hiding some emotions deep within. Making of a portrait involves intricate techniques, observant eyes, and a creative mind because a portrait is not supposed to be merely an image; it rather has to hold the essence of the individual personality. Whether it is a gorgeous girl with languid eyes, a rude old man with his skin marked by time, or a child with sad eyes, their portrait has to strike the conscience of a viewer. It has to make them lose their heart. Our job as a photographer is to seize the dream of that girl and make the viewer feel the sourness of the old man’s suffering. Presented here within is a collection of some of the best works of our time.
Mario Bunčuga
April 2018
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ALLE LODOLI Cremona, Italia
instagram.com/alle.lodoli/ facebook.com/alle.lodoli.1 facebook.com/MADmag.AoP/?ref=bookmarks
I am a photo amateur from a little town of Italy, called Cremona. Ever since I discovered photography, my world has changed many a time and is, I’m sure, destined to change all over again. I am in love with the sensations that I feel when I hold my camera, more so when I get a perfect shot. What I love more than anything is the human side of photography that involves a connection with the people by way of dialogue and planning of a shoot.
I focus more on aesthetics of the result, displaying the situations and the feelings behind my pictures, rather than their technical detailing.That would be boring. One may ask me what I felt like when I took a picture or even better, what made me take that. Let me be brutally clear to say that I don’t have a photographer’s mind nor the heart. But I do have a hunger, a really good appetite, for good pictures. You may laugh at this but my ideology will still remain the same. 10
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CRISTINA REZZI Roma, Italia
www.rezzicristina.com facebook.com/cristina.rezzi instagram.com/cristinarezzi/ I was born in Rome in 1967 and since I was little I was always curious about that little metal toy my father used. He was a photographer and the toy was his camera. Whenever my family traveled, I would take a lot of shots, bringing home the unforgettable images that captured beautiful moments and permanent memories. While things change with time these memory would remain forever. It wasn’t easy shifting from the analog Yashica to the digital one. To learn to have total control of the camera I attended photography courses. After initial skepticism, I could discover a new fascinating world with technology that, if used in the right way, could make us create strong imagery. I’m very grateful to some friends and my photography teachers that fueled my desire to show how fantastic and satisfying a successful photo shoot can be.
I love all genres of photography, but most of all portraiture. I discovered an exciting new world at the concerts, waiting and seizing at the right moment the shots that could immortalize the expressions, gestures, or whims, from its challenging lighting situations. For me getting in tune with my subject is prerequisite in order to bring out a good picture. I believe photography comes from the heart. It is a passion which allows the eyes to catch every single unrepeatable moment. That is why I like talking through my photographs. “The most difficult thing for a photographer is to u n d e r s t a n d w h a t h e c a n s h o w, m a ke , comprehend and later make realize what we bring inside of us. The raw material is common to everyone, within everyone’s reach: there is no such thing as a key to photograph. That’s why photography is the most difficult artistic discipline, because it’s the easiest: with the same alphabet, everyone can write different things.” -Franco Fontana 22
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FERNANDO BRANQUINHO Cruz de Pa, PORTUGAL
www.retratista.pt facebook.com/retratista.fotoestudio flickr.com/photos/aki_jazz
Fernando Branquinho, an expert in conceptual and illustrative photography, holds several national and international qualifications for professional photography since 2012. He was awarded with two qualifications in 2015: In Derby, UK as a Qualified European Photographer (QEP) in photography category- Illustration; and in Granada, ESP in the photography category- Portrait. In 2016, he was awarded the European Graphic Design Award of the Year by the Federation of European Professional Photographers (FEP).
He joined the Portuguese team for the World Photographic Cup held in Texas in 2016 where Portugal won this competition for the first time. In 2017, he was again selected to compete in Yokohama (Japan), where the Portuguese took the podium for the second consecutive year and consecrated two world champions in photography. In 2017, he was one of the finalists in the Fashion photography category for European Photographer of the Year, having won a distinction award in this category and a merit a w a rd i n t h e c a t e g o r y o f I l l u s t r a t i o n photography. He is currently the Ambassador of the prestigious studio lighting brand Hensel for Portugal and Artistic Director at the studio "Retratista" in Portugal, where he produces images for advertising, catalog, fashion and co n ce p t u a l p o r t r a i t s . H e a l s o t e a c h e s photometry and studio lighting and creative digital image manipulation. 34
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FRANCIS HO Hong kong, China
facebook.com/francis.ho.hk
I was born and live in Hong Kong. I had my first camera eight years ago, primarily for the documentation of a six-month project in Cheng Dao/China for my company.
After the project was over I got to attend a portrait course and that is how I started taking portrait photos. I mainly work with women portraiture in nature light. Photography for me is a passion and a way to ease the pressures of my everyday work. 46
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GERMANA DE CHELLIS Roma, Italia
facebook.com/gdechellis1 facebook.com/dechellisph gurushots.com/germana/photos instagram.com/germanadechellis
My love for portrait photography has gone to such a point where I realize that even when I am out doing street photography, I am still looking for a face to portray.
The moment I figure an interesting face in the crowd, I find myself instantly freezing their expression with the camera in my hands, consciously or by chance, and the results are mostly gratifying and rewarding Spontaneity and naturalness are the two fundamental elements that I look for before taking a picture. I will narrow down my field of vision at a passerby in the street who draws my attention through a gesture, a smile or a pose. 58
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GIANMATTEO SMIDERLE Vicenza, Italia
facebook.com/profile.php?id=100014315620628
Born in Padua in 1976, Gianmatteo now lives in Vicenza. He got acquainted with photography at the age of 30, when he started with a small digital camera. From there on he started shooting at various motor shows and fairs, but unfortunately his life went through a spin in 2015 when he separated from his partner of twenty years.
However he bounced back from this heartbreak with a slightly diversified passion. Armed with a SLR, his first, he attempted the first individual shoot and was hugely admired for it. He is currently studying photography in a planned way and undergoing training courses in order to be able to get recognized one day as a real professional. 70
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JACOPO MARCHINI Portovenere, Italia
jacopomarchini@hotmail.it www.susannamaurandi.it/ instagram.com/jacopo_marchini/?hl=it
Born and grown up in Portovenere, Jacopo studied in Italy and USA and later joined a prestigious travel company in Valtur as a Manager and Coordinator. Photography was always a constant in his student life and the passion grew more while he was working in the tourism industry. This helped him achieve in a short span what others hope to achieve in a lifetime- turn his ‘passion’ into ‘profession’. After being hired for photographic services for music bands, fashion, wedding, photo books and reports of all kinds, Jacopo improved his technical studies by joining Centro Sperimentale di Fotografia CSF Adams in Rome where he learnt cutting-edge photographic techniques, advanced lighting and post production, also refining his skills with Adobe Photoshop and plug-ins related to creative post-production.
Today he works and photographs for SuMa Photo, a part of SuMa Events, a prestigious communication agency, for which he coordinates the entire sector linked to the visual arts and creative images. His creativity makes him popular in the video industry, where he shoots, directs, performs and edits videos for commercials, taking care of every detail linked to each sector as Director of Photography. "For me being creative has become a way of life. Today creativity is considered as a switch that can be switched on and off at will, deciding according to a situation whether to be creative or not. For me creativity is to live, learn and do what you love. That's how I began to live.. by learning and doing the things I love every day.� 82
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