Last week I spent a funny and beautiful morning photographing around two lakes not far from where I live. It started out as a cloudy morning, then slowly turned into a glorious sunny day. Though it was freezingly cold, I was so wrapped up in joy at taking photos that I didn’t feel it that much (or was it because of the 3 sweaters and warm heavy trousers I was wearing?!)

These are some shots of the day. Put on your coat, it’s going to be very cold!

The last notes of song are lingering in the room, resonating in the heart.

You have tried to keep your balance, hovering on a hedge between unknown shores and possibilities. Sometimes life gets in the middle, and you chase that balance with all your strengths, a lost struggle leaving you cold and void.

Going on feels like walking on an invisible thread. One false step and it feels like it’d be the end of it all, yet the balance is never attained. 

The notes still bump in your heart, replacing it in its job, pumping the blood through your veins. And you start peeling off the layers, one by one, removing a heavy make up hiding your soul.

You give in, and fall.

And with the fall, comes the balance.

***

The are moments in our lives when life just feels too much and you need to take a step back and remove everything that it’s not you.

I had a conversation with a friend not long ago, and the heart of it was: Keep it Simple.

It’s all about being simple, and doing simple things. The most glorious ideas always come from the very essence of your soul.

It’s useless to clinger to an illusory balance. Life always finds its way to get in the middle.

Breathe. Let it go. Give in.

You’re halfway your way up again.

***

This is the beginning of a new series on these blog, Telling Stories.

What is a photograph if not a story?

The stories you are going to read may not necessarily be autobiographical, they are just one of the million possible stories a photograph can tell. Sometimes the stories are born before the photograph, some other times they spring when looking at the picture.

We hope you’ll enjoy this new series.

And if you missed our first photography and its story, just take a little leap in the past and be ready for a journey…

And you think… “it’s true, I’m not there. Where am I?”

And you think… “what happened?”

I guess LIFE happened.

This project is run by two people so I can only talk for myself. Each one of us has a different life (as good individuals) but I think the feeling remains the same and Marta will agree with me. Life sometimes happens and it gets between you and your projects.

In my case I felt I was getting lost… I got lost among blogs, ideas and many people telling their things at the same time. I got lost in an objective path.  I got lost in my dreams and in the expectations of making them come true. I forgot how could I do that. I got lost in all my energy, which also got lost. I got lost in all the fights you face in real life to actually have a real life. I got tired of this economic situation and of seeing myself building a career with my eyes closed so I couldn’t actually see I was neglecting my wishes, hopes, dreams and expectations. And I opened my eyes and thought “Emma, what are you doing?”

I got lost in all the things I had talked about and all the things I could talk about. I was over with my words. I was not reading, I was no writing.I was not being me. I forgot to take photographs while talking about photography. I forgot to read books when recommending them. I forgot I used to paint with light. I forgot a thimble can also be a kiss and that you can put all your “moments of being” in a box and give all your self to someone. I forgot walking with eyes wide opened.

But then one day you wake up and you find a message like this. Where am I? I am somewhere between reality and dreams, trying to find the right place where to step on. I’m reading and taking my photographs.

We’re very sorry we are “gone”… we are not, we’re still here… I guess it simply has to do with Art in general. It takes so much from you, or you pour so much in it, that you need stop and charge the batteries now and then. All ideas, suggestions and topics are welcome if you want us to discuss them here.

We are lonely walkers walking together… but sometimes you feel like walking in silence and breathe the breeze, and some others, you just find the right words in your tea.

I started with the one thing that I lamented the most, of not having shot around my city a lot and consequently not enriched our The Lonely Walkers tlog. It’s not always easy to look at the streets you walk everyday with fresh eyes, so last week I happily accepted an invitation from a friend and colleague of mine to go out a night and photograph at Luci d’Artista, Christmas lights all around Torino central streets made by famous artists.

It was lot of fun strolling around the city, laughing and taking pictures. It turned out to be a kind of improvised workshop, and I am glad I have helped my friends learn a bit more about photography.

These are some shots from that night.

 Porta Palazzo and beautiful colourful reflections on the wet pavement.

A sea of lights over Piazza Palazzo di Città.

The sun is always shining…

Reflections of Piazza Carignano on my favourite bookshop window.

Detail of the light installation in Piazza Carignano.

It obviously was a good excuse to photograph more than just Christmas light installations, and be inspired.

Mysterious masks in the old University.

Colours flowing on the river Po

And here the four of us almost at the end of our peculiar excursion, exhausted but happy.

This is what I am doing in this post. Looking back at 2011, a difficult year both personally and professionally. But also full of good, beautiful and important moments. Here’s the story in 10 photograph.

I knew the year would be a hard one, but I love this image because it reminds me the bliss of being a child with dreams, to play with life and not take it too seriously. Times may have been tough, but there have been colours and joy.

This is a photographed I exposed both in June and in October. For these two exhibitions I had to portray corners of my valley, which is quite a challenging one for me as I had to force my eyes to look differently at well known places.

2011 was a year of big celebrations for the 150th anniversary of Italian unification, and for Turin in particularly as it had been Italy’s first capital. In May the city was peacefully invaded by the Alpini, a branch of the Italian Army that is greatly loved here. It was moving to see them wearing their peculiar hats so proudly – especially the eldest.

Summer came with one of my dearest friends’ wedding, and it was an honour for me to photograph it. This is the shot I love the most, mother and daughter holding hands so delicately and lovingly.

In August I travelled to Cantabria and discovered a charming region of Spain, with its endless beaches, the wind, the smell of the ocean, the ever changing sky, and the green of its soft hills. Hours and hours of fascinating walks.

Fishbone is a newlyborn brand producing amazing t-shirts. Behind it, two talented guys from Turin – and two good friends of mine. It was a pleasure and lot of fun collaborating with them for some promo shootings.

Autumn came, but still I did some beautiful excursions on the Alps. Rain or sun, I’m always overwhelmed by natural precious beauties. Simple as rain or sunlight, but never trivial.

October 19th: less than a day in London, rushing through South Kensigton and Notting Hill and than to a concert in Shepherd’s Bush Rd. Emma and I meeting after more than a year. Exhausting and exhilarating. I would do it again right now.

My last trip in 2011 was to Zürich to visit a friend living there. 4 days of talks and walks, and me more and more fascinated by this city.

Then a last photo, out of my top 10. Music permeating every single day of this year, my faithful companion during the worst and best moments, my hopes, dreams and loves.

It’s late on a winter’s day and the boat has set sail. The assuring shore is slowly fading away in the night, swallowing everything in its darkening cold blue, and earth and sky are melting into each other in a blurring vision. Soon it will disappear in the distance.

You’re holding on to a promise of hope and love, and you’re leaving everything you know to chase it. You’ve never feel any lonelier, yet you know that now that you’re going out at sea there is no turning back. 

The Journey has begun.

***

Life is a journey. A big mysterious journey. Sometimes you know exactly where you are going, and some other times you have no clue at where you are headed. You get at a crossroad and have to choose your way, and maybe you feel at loss. Some decisions we make will mould the rest of our lives, just like the decisions we won’t take.

Emma and I have decided to embark on a new journey, we’re making plans and we know plans always change. We once saw our destination, like in a faraway dream, and now we are holding on to that dream, because we are hopeless dreamers.

This new year will be a year of hard work for us, our boat has just set sail and we don’t really know if we’ll ever make it to the other shore. We are far more interested in the journey, as it’s along the way that the most amazing things will happen. Of course doubts and fear are always there, buzzing in our minds and tempting us to come back.

There is no turning back. Once you’ve left, you can only move forward. Life will never be the same anyway.

We do hope you’ll enjoy your journey this new year, whatever is it and wherever you are headed. May it be filled with hope, dreams and love.

We wish you the best for 2012. We wish you love, and more love.

Future plans and projects are a map of what we want to become but what you have done so far is a definition of who you are in this very moment right now.

We are looking forward for the new year coming, a new path to walk, a new project, a new life, a new journey or, if you like it better, a new turning point in our lives. As Marta told me once “you can only move forward.”

But how was the path we walked so far?

New experiences that changed our lives, that became a before and after in who we are now. Different points of view. People we met (through the internet and in person) who has enriched our inspiration. New voices that we have listened to here in our own house, The Lonely Walkers (and hope we’ll have more of them in 2012.) New challenges combining this project and the hard work of life itself. We have seen how the distance between us increased and how it also disappeared for a few hours. We have made decisions and we have bought tickets for that one-way ticket. We have learnt. And we have learnt to believe.

So I don’t want to talk about 2012. I don’t want to pour much expectations in it because if I learnt something is that everything changes so fast and so radically. I can only hope to keep working, keep creating, keep inspiration coming, keep inspiring, keep sharing, keep making things happen. And then, in twelve month we’ll tell you about all the things we were planning now

Be happy and enjoy a wonderful new year, full of moments, smiles, good readings and photographs!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Love,

The Lonely Walkers.

I love your photo of the people on horses crossing the mirage. What is the story behind it?

It took me a while to express what was behind this photograph – especially to express it in 140 characters – and Kirk Martin‘s question kept spinning in my head for a few hours, and made me decide to write this post at last. So thank you Kirk for inspiring me, and if you are reading this I hope you’ll enjoy it.

So here’s the full story.

This photo was taken in the Camargue region, South France. This place has always fascinated me since the very first time I went there because of its natural beauties and peculiarities. Most of the region is a protected natural area, so if you are passionate about nature this is a must. You can walk for hours and hours through numerous paths in the lagoon, observe animals (mostly flamingos), and be amazed at light reflections on water at sunrise and sunset.

I love water and this element really fascinates me. Water is life, and it’s a universe on its own. More than what’s in it, I love its surface and its ever changing trompe l’œils. Just like mirrors, water surfaces reveal us a parallel life, make us peep into its secret side. With its blurring and ephemeral contours, reality is suddenly widened, reminding us of multiple possibilities.

This photograph is also about the greatness of simple things, like a horse ride on a beach on a winter’s day. Or a walk with a camera, not for an assignment but just for cherishing your passion. It’s very often said that less is more, and it’s true. It’s about pouring your love into everything you’re doing because you know you’re going your own way. No matter which way, or how fast you are going: enjoy your ride, wherever you are headed; take all the time that you need, and savour every second.

The third story – but not the least important – is the stories you might see in this photo. Multiple realities as well as multiple interpretations, and every single one so true.

Of course I’ll be more than happy to know your stories if you feel like sharing them.

I was enjoying some days migrating from a friend’s house to a friend’s house, enjoying the time with them and laughing as much as I could. It was gooood to let the stress out of my head and I truly needed it.

Why so much stress? Apart from the few exams I had to correct, I was dealing with some final details (and problems in the middle of the road) to ultimate and give birth to my WEBSITE!!!

This is it, emmaespejo.com designed by Thomas J. Hole:

Have you ever designed a website? If not designed, have you ever thought and decided how to make your perfect website? I don’t know how it was for you but it was hard work for me and I think I will never be 100% happy with any image that represents me. As perfectionist as I am I never find the perfect logo or the perfect font to use so, although some things get close to what I want, I need to SEE IT and know it’s a part of me, to feel it me, to feel every part as if it was a honest description of the person I am.  My artistic side, as other artists, makes me change my mind pretty often, not too radically but still a change: the mood, the softness, whether a line here or not, maybe it’s too serious, should it look funnier?… background colour, text colour, languages, two separated pages for the language or everything together?

After you face all this questions you end with a last one: Who am I?! And, sometimes, it may happen that you end feeling with no personality, that you don’t like anything that you decided and that, in the end, you don’t want a website (in a extreme case)

I “designed” mine leaving it pretty minimalistic. I believe in white background for photography, pretty classy and a “photography book” style. Photographs shouldn’t need anything else surrounding to make them better, they should be enough to build a whole identity. And that is my thought when I look at those books with of favourite photographers: a white page and a photograph in the middle. That’s it.

So my current website was created with that motto in mind. I may change it (for sure) it will develop (better word than “change”) and it will also work to learn along the way, for future projects, for this project, and to make thing a little bit more “perfect.” Because you cannot make it perfect the first time.

Hope you like it, it is focused basically on my wedding photography and some other personal stuff. You’re very welcome to come over and if you need a wedding photographer, you know where to find us!