Beat
I mainly cover entertainment stories, but I also shoot breaking news, day-to-day events and features.
One Shot
“My most iconic image is one of a burning bicycle, which I shot in 2007 while covering a massive California forest fire. Firefighters had yet to make their way to this spot, and I could only watch the power of the flames burning everything in their path. When I spotted this bicycle, it was compelling and showed the sheer destruction caused by the fire. Despite the lack of human presence, the scene felt intimate and sad.”
Profile
When I was 19, I asked my father to get me a camera. I got a Canon Rebel, which I still own, and started taking photos in Naples, Italy.
I am a self-taught photojournalist. I learnt the tools of the trade on my own, by experimenting and trying out different things.
At the age of 20, I did an internship for about a year at a daily newspaper in Naples, called “Il Mattino”. It offered me an unobstructed view of how photojournalists worked and I observed, practiced and learnt a lot. At the time we used to photograph on black-and-white film, so I also learnt to develop and print. Even though I enjoy the advantages of the digital era, I do miss printing in black and white.
My first big assignment was a massive university protest in Naples. It happened during my internship, and I had to learn fast how to operate in a frantic, dangerous, unstable environment, with rocks flying over my head, while still explaining what was going on with my pictures. I learnt that a story with no intimacy does not capture the viewer’s attention.
I generally shoot entertainment stories, but I think covering California wildfires is the thing that has left the biggest mark on me. They are tragic, destructive events, in which people lose their homes and the memories they have built up over a lifetime. I feel I have the opportunity and the duty to capture this, and to make compelling images that will move people’s emotions.
I have had the opportunity to cover lots of exciting assignments, and I can say with certainty that events like the Oscars, the Grammys, the Cannes Film Festival and the Toronto Film festival are the ones that make my creative juices flow.
My audience is everywhere. I think that with a compelling, intimate, eye-catching photo, I can capture anybody’s attention. If I manage to do that, then I feel that my job has been done.
Lessons come flying at me every day. The important thing is always being ready to learn, and never thinking that I know it all.
I respect my dad. He always taught me never to compromise my integrity, and to be an example for others to follow.
I feel blessed to be part of an organisation as incredible as Reuters. Ever since I started my internship in Naples, almost 20 years ago, I always dreamed of being a Reuters photographer.
Behind the Scenes
