Interview: Photographer Tino Serraiocco (Italy)

Can you tell us a little about you?

Hello everybody. My name is Tino, I was born 42 years ago in Reggio Emilia, Italy. In this area, in the center of the Italian MotorValley, was born my passions about motors and racing. I currently work for a company in the automotive sector, where I am lucky enough to combine this interest with photography and information technology, dealing with social media and corporate communication, combined with steel life photography. Since I was a child I have always been a curious, observer: I like to look at the details of places, people, animals and grasp their details and nuances, a characteristic that has then distinguished my way of photography.

How and when did you get into photography?

Years ago I had a serious motorcycle accident so I could no longer ride the bike as I had done up to that moment, however, I didn't want to give up this passion. My group of friends continued to attend the circuits and so I realized that I could be part of that world from a different angle: becoming a witness through photography. For this reason, photographing immediately became something extremely important and through experience and study, I started a path of personal and professional growth that has led me and leads me to constantly evolve.

What does photography mean to you?

Photography for me is a state of mind, is the meeting of two worlds: mine and the real one. Photography is the exact result of that encounter: reality intertwined with my sensations. When I shoot, I feel like I can stop time and be able to superimpose what I feel on it. Each photo speaks about what I see and the way I feel it.

Please briefly describe your photography style for our readers.

I like the details in focus, the eyes in particular, I try to capture the glow, the intensity, the expressiveness. My shots are a continuous game between what must impose itself in the foreground, meaningful and speaking, and a more blurred, indefinite, dreamy reality. The result that I try to achieve is never the same: just as the perception of reality changes for everyone, so does my way of interpreting and feeling it.

Where do you get inspiration from?

I draw inspiration from everyday life, from everything I see around me: the world presents itself to me as a great bazaar from which to draw ideas. I love dialogue and comparison with other photographers and I am part of an association that offers events, but also visiting exhibitions, places, cities, leafing through magazines, looking, constitutes for me a moment of continuous enrichment. I have the habit of taking photographic notes, even with the use of my cell phone: I try to capture what I feel, what the images transmit to me, internalize them and process them. This leads to evolving every day in a style that changes over time and to trace a path open to change and to the multiplicity of perspectives.

Do you think in advance what you want in the picture?

When I agree with the models or the client who commissions the work, there is a moment of planning the work. we decide together poses, makeup and outfits together: from the comparison, good ideas are born and in my head, I can already visualize possible results. Entering the heart of the shooting, I let myself be carried away by the moment, by the sensations, by the real "encounter with the other" and the work continues with more personal and instinctive shots.

Studio, on location or both?

I have no particular preferences. On the outside set , I grasp the potential and suggestions given by the environment, reality becomes a stage where the subject moves and interacts with his surroundings, expressing emotions. I often shoot in a small equipped studio, especially in the winter months. Here I have the opportunity to train my creativity, creating light conditions and non-canonical atmospheres, coming to personally build lights and spotlights.

Would you consider yourself a hobbyist or a paid professional? I consider myself a professional. I have received awards, make publications, and acknowledgments. I have created dozens of fashion catalogs for clothing companies, I am contacted by models for shooting for promotional purposes, I perform industrial and product photography for the company where I work, I hold theoretical and practical courses both on the use of the camera and on the techniques of laying. In collaboration with professional models, I also held courses for girls who approached the world of photography as models.

What has been your most memorable session and why?

In 2015 a model with whom I worked assiduously, Chiara Rui, looked for me because she had been contacted by a magazine for a photo shooting. The magazine was Modellenland, this magazie. It was the first time I had to deal with such a prestigious magazine: I felt the pressure of having to do a good job. A wet fashion shoot in a tub full of milk and flowers had been agreed: I had never experienced this type of shooting before. It was difficult both for the control of the reflection of the lights on the surface of the milk and for the choice of poses, which had to express sensuality without being vulgar. I could say that I was aware of having become a professional photographer from that moment, for having put into play all the technical skills learned so far, has been able to combine them with creativity and aesthetics, and because that service proved to be a springboard for many collaborations that i had afterward. Chiara R. – Paradise Shadows - TinoFotografie.it

Nikon or Canon? Favorite lens?

Fuji. I have been switching to this brand for 5 years now with extreme enthusiasm and satisfaction, abandoning Canon. I have experimented with various brands, and done many tests, but only with Fuji do I have a feeling of full control when I shoot, I have the perception that the camera realizes what I have in mind quickly. Having manageability, quick access to manual controls and excellent automatisms are essential for me and not found in other brands. I use only fixed lenses for my shots, with the maximum possible focal aperture.

What is one piece of advice you would like to offer a new photographer looking to start their own business?

I recommend carefully evaluating the possibilities that the local area offers: especially at the beginning, if you want to do this as a paid job, you need a certain adaptation to the needs of the local market. For example, if industrial activities have a strong mechanical vocation, it will be easier to find work in product photography; if the territory has fashion or textile companies, it will be easier to find customers in the field of fashion and fashion photography. One must never abandon personal experimentation, but broaden one's skills to commercial opportunities.

What do you think of our new magazine?

The new format is very interesting, easy to read and gives excellent visibility: it is a continuous source of inspiration, with cutting-edge and strong impact proposals. The online version reaches many people, a great way to make yourself known.

www.tinofotografie.it

Tino - Italy - Photos (@tinofotografie) • Foto e video di Instagram

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