The week goes to Matteo Pezzi, for self-titled “Paris“. Juxtaposed subjects sharing something unexpectedly in common makes the moment. The modern woman using smartphone is passé, unsurprising. But the nun! Who represents what some people would regard as anachronistic!
Matteo describes himself as an “Italian nostalgic photographer, living in Strasbourg”. The street shot is “nostalgic” because of its composition, location, and subjects. He captured the image on Feb. 25, 2018, using Fujifilm X100F. Vitals: f/8, ISO 200, 1/180 sec, 23mm. Yesterday, Fuji announced the camera’s successor, the X100V, with larger sensor, updated fixed lens, and articulating rear LCD screen.
Matteo joined Flickr in June 2010. I highly recommend a trip to his website for a preview of his picture/coffee table book WOW Vol. 1—Paris chambre de bonne. He explains about the origins of the 130-photo hardcover:
For those who don’t know, chambres de bonne are small rooms at the top floor, originally used by bourgeois families’ domestics. Today, they’re the ‘flats’ for non-rich people who arrive/live in Paris by themselves. The price per square meter is amazingly high, and the size amazingly small. My chambre de bonne was 11 square meters, I lived there for 3 years, and so many people visited that I lost count…
For 3 years I brought a camera with me everywhere I went, laundry included: I’m not sure I wanna know how many pictures I’ve made, but they’re a lot! In order to choose these 130 I’ve re-watched all of them. I wondered both what and why the hell I was doing what I was doing, but living it all again with my eyes was a trip and a treat. Your heart aches and heals at the same time, and my advice for everybody is to buy a camera, take pictures, and watch them after a while (it helps discovering that you can win even by losing).
He adds: “It’s my farewell to Paris, now that I don’t live there anymore”.
Photo Credit: Matteo Pezzi