from the South Tyrol, Italy

Recently Antonino, from South Tyrol, Italy, looked at this website and found that it is “good one!” He likes the intimacy of it as it shows a wonderful insight into the interests other people have, which they are currently using to advantage.

 

Italy and this virus

​

Antonino mentions that he is one of the “lucky ones” who has been able to keep on working during the pandemic; even though it may be done slightly differently. He has managed to continue to teach Italian as a foreign language to German-mother-tongue Italians in the South Tyrol region of Italy

 

His Coro19 activities, including his passion for photography

​

Antonino will be telling us what he has been up to and hopes that this will also help anyone who is thinking of exploring photography during this period when many people have more, a bit more, or a lot, of time on their hands.

 

"I was interested in some of the activities on your website Jamie. In my spare time off from work. I started organising the family Photo Archive and have read a couple of books that have been on my list since “forever”, such as "Boccaccio's Decameron", that was written during the first recorded pandemic in 1348." https://www.brown.edu/Departments/Italian_Studies/dweb/plague/  

​

He has also watched all the movies that he could find by the Russian Director Andrej Tarkovskji like Ivan's Childhood, Anrdej Rublev, The Mirror and Stalker.

https://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/news-bfi/features/fast-track-fandom-where-begin-andrei-tarkovsky

 

As well, he has managed to talk and write to his family and friends, and  luckily, was among the few that could go for a walk in the mountains every day and was able to help in the annual cattle drive to the mountain meadows.

​

 

Tunes into the BBC Radio

As well, since this period is compared to a war one, I started to do what many Italians did during WWII: listen to BBC radio programs, BBC3 when I wake up and before going to bed and BBC4 during the day. This is with occasional breaks to hear Italian radio broadcasting local news. I do not have a TV and I am not comfortable with it: generally, I fall asleep in front of it!

 

                                                         Jamie now asks Antonino about his passion for photography

​

Jamie -  I understand that you are very much into photography, have you heard what photographers are doing during this period of time?

 

 Antonino -

At the moment many famous photographers are shifting their activity to online workshops, for instance

As well some are even doing reportages on COVID, like Alex Majoli https://covid19visualproject.org/en/.

 

Jamie -  Is there any way that people interested in exploring photography could learn during the lockdown?

​

Antonino-  I am not aware of basic online teach-ins, that I could suggest, but if I were you, I would check if Photo-clubs, or Community Colleges, in your area are organising online basic Photography courses.

 

Jamie - What type of camera or cameras do you prefer to use?

 

Antonino -

Concerning cameras, I think that it is very difficult to choose, but I am partial to small mirror-less cameras such as Fuji's X series or Ricoh GR, as I like to travel light, and like street photography. This is because people tend to be more nervous if they are confronted with a large three kilos camera [!], if they think that what you have in your hands is a toy, they are more at ease.

 

Jamie - What type of camera would you suggest for others?

 

Antonino - There are many other brands that offer very good camera-lens systems such as Sony or Lumix. It all depends on how much one is willing to spend and above all on what the individual areas of interest are.

 

Someone interested in macrophotography, landscape, architecture, animals or other subjects, could be inclined to buy Full Frame DSLR cameras, the most popular being Canon and Nikon.

 

Jamie -What if people cannot access these specialist cameras, due to price?

 

Antonino - I also take photos when I go into the mountains and carry my Smartphone. There are now many brands which offer great quality camera software. This allows you to snap a photo and a good quality, if you confine it to online sharing and to small size prints. They offer you a quick and not banal solution for overall photography.

 

     We use a traditional camera as an extension of our eye, but a smartphone camera can be an extension of our entire body.

 

This means that you have a wider range of viewpoints available since the camera does not have to be attached to your eye. Furthermore, smartphone photography offers you a great variety of immediate filters which allow you to give photographs your personal touch without having to pass it through a computer software.

​

                                      Jamie  ...thank you Antonino for your great contribution to our website!

​

      ............some examples of Antonino's photography both urban and rural.....click on the image to enlarge