Interview: Photographer Enrico Pignatti (Italy)
Can you tell us a little about you?
I am Enrico Pignatti, Italian photographer, born in Mirandola (Modena) in 1979.
How and when did you get into photography?
Since I was a child I have always enjoyed taking photographs, but I have always done it in an amateur way. In 2011 I bought my first digital SLR, a Nikon D5100, and I felt the need to join a photographic club in my area to attend a basic course to learn how to use it. After attending several photography courses, and having discovered the love for portraits, I decided to open my own small photo studio and became a professional photographer in 2016.
What does photography mean to you?
Photography is my greatest passion, especially that of portraiture. I am quite a shy and introverted person but, with a camera in hand, I transform myself to get in tune with the person I have to photograph. The interaction and the feeling that must be created with the person in front of me is the part that I like most of my work because making sure that people allow me to enter their soul to mix it a little with mine, it represents a challenge and is the true magic of the portrait.
Please briefly describe your photography style for our readers.
I am a portrait photographer specializing in Boudoir photography. My shots are always elegant and sensual, never vulgar: I prefer photographs that leave room for the imagination, that almost seem stolen. My post production is not invasive, I limit myself to minimal skin retouching so that my images are true, authentic, not "plasitified". I love black and white because, when I look at a photograph, it allows me to focus my gaze on the details, shapes and contrasts of light and shadows, thus searching for a deeper meaning of the image I'm looking at.
Where do you get inspiration from?
I find my inspiration above all in the books of great photographers (my favorite photographers are Vincent Peters and Gabriele Rigon), but also in magazines and even in films or TV series. In general, however, anything can become a source of inspiration: a novel, a TV commercial, the daily news as well as a scene that you may happen to witness walking around your city.
Do you think in advance what you want in the picture?
I usually start a photo session with very specific ideas in my head which are then almost always integrated with other improvised ones.
Studio, on location or both?
Both things, although I prefer to shoot in locations with natural light.
Would you consider yourself a hobbyist or a paid professional?
I am a professional photographer who also gives himself space to personal projects for the pure pleasure of shooting.
What has been your most memorable session and why?
My favorite session was in August 2020, in Misano Adriatico. It was a personal project in which I photographed Eugenia Muzzi, a professional model with whom we are friends, together with my partner, Francesca Terenziani (fashion photographer) and Gabriele Rigon, one of my two favorite photographers.
Nikon or Canon? Favorite lens?
I use Nikon, I have a D750 and a Df as digital SLRs and an analogue F5, but I don't have any favorite lenses, I use what I need when I need it.
What is one piece of advice you would like to offer a new photographer looking to start their own business?
I can only recommend that you study, experiment and work honestly.
Whatdo you think of our new magazine?
It is a very nice magazine, it deserves a greater circulation, perhaps on newsstands. I have known this magazine for some time also because, a couple of years ago you also interviewed my partner Francesca.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sognidilucephotolab/
Website: www.enricopignatti.it
