by Yvette Depaepe 
Published the 9th of May 2022

Thomas de Franzoni loves to travel, walk in the woods, enjoy the peace and listen to the sounds of nature. Being able to convey these sensations with an image is not easy, but it is the main reason that drives him to look for situations in nature that can transmit them. Thomas likes all kinds of photography, but only with landscapes he conveys these emotions.  I'm in awe with his work which often gives me goose bumps.
Let me take you on a journey to discover so much beauty and learn more about Thomas.

'The Last Dance'

Dear Thomas, first I would like to thank you so much for taking the time to answer this questionnaire! To begin, please introduce yourself shortly and tell us more about you, your hobbies or other projects you are involved in!

I was born and raised in Friuli Venezia Giulia,  a small region in northeastern Italy. I really love to be out in nature, and each time I am, I love it even more! Since I began photography, nature has been a great inspiration to me. You can really find beauty everywhere, and "thanks" to Covid, I've discovered many nice locations not far from my home. Photography is not my job, but it takes up a lot of time and energy in my life. The more I am out in nature taking photos, the more I like it, that's for sure.

'Roots'

When and how did you start your photographic journey?

I have always been very fascinated by photographs, postcards and images. But I felt these things were beyond my reach, as I thought I was not capable of creating such photographic images. Then as an adult, I finally decided to buy an entry level camera. Shortly thereafter my son was born, and I felt the need to immortalize the moments of our life with him. I would have never thought of dedicating myself to other genres of photography as well.

'On the Top of the Hill'

For many of us photography is either a hobby or a way of life. How would you define your relationship with photography?

As I said, photography is not my job, although I would love it to be. At the moment it is a hobby to which I devote most of my free time.

'As the Sun Touches the Sky'

What would be the most important experience so far that has influenced your steps in photography?

A couple of years ago I went on a trip to the Dolomites with other photographers. We knew each other because we had a landscape chat on a social media platform. I really enjoyed that time, I spent 5 days with nice people and I grew as a photographer. We shared our past experiences, we gave each other good tips, and it was a very useful experience in many aspects. The climate was very friendly, and there were people who loved photography and nature and who felt great being outdoors sharing the same passion.

'Right into the Bliss'

Why are you so drawn by landscape photography?

Certainly from the fact that I like to travel, walk in the woods, enjoy the peace and listen to the sounds of nature. Being able to convey these sensations with an image is not easy, but it is the main reason that drives me to look for situations in nature that can transmit them. I like all kinds of photography, but only with landscapes can I convey these emotions that I've mentioned above.

'Lord of the Wasteland'

What is more important to you, the mood,/story behind your images or the technical perfection?

Without a doubt the emotions and the story. These are really the basis from which I want to start to make a photo that I look at with pleasure. The technical aspect is less important but I believe that for a photo to be successful, it is necessary to look for the best solution for its realization. The means we have at our disposal, camera, lenses, filters, are tools that, if used correctly, give a great help for the realization of a good photo.

'Untouchable'

What generally is your relationship to your subject matter beyond being an observer? 
Do you carefully prepare the locations where you are intending to photograph?

The excursions in the mountains, the walks in the woods, the moments of peace that the mountain lakes give you, these are the things that make me feel good. In these environments I find myself particularly at ease and serene, and combining photography with these feelings has been the normal consequence. What's better than enjoying nature and taking the opportunity to capture the moment with a photo?

Before going out, I always study the place thanks to all the help that can be found on the net - planning seats, times, and sometimes even favourable weather conditions if possible. Lately I've discovered new places in my region, not very famous from a photographic point of view, but which give me a lot of satisfaction. Now there are some very popular and crowded places, but better to go further and discover something less photogenic but unknown.

'Last Breath'

Describe your overall photographic vision.

I believe that my landscapes belong to the definition of fine art, as I don't like making "Postcard" photos, but I want to convey the landscape as I see and live it. This is the most difficult aspect to grasp because the climatic conditions greatly affect the photo and the atmosphere that you want to recreate. I try to emphasize lights, shadows, contrasts as much as possible and I'm not a fan of replacing some parts of the photo, such as the skies. Unfortunately, conditions are not always favourable and many times you return home empty handed.

'Wake Me Up When September Ends'

Can you please tell us something more about your workflow from the idea to the final product?

I try to get a file in the field that is as good as possible, also using techniques such as bracketing and focus stacking. This will make post production easier. For editing programs I use lightroom, photoshop, the nik collection and some panels for the creation of luminosity and tonality masks. In lightroom I adjust the lights and colours as much as possible because the raw file offers much more processing possibilities than the file I open in photoshop. My workflow is quite linear, it follows a line of mine that I have developed over time, but you have to adapt it a little to the photo and what you want to get as a final result. I follow a lot of tutorials because I want to know learn other techniques and other processing styles. You never stop learning.

'Fall From Grace'

Where do you look to find inspiration and what inspires you the most?

I look at many photo publishing sites every day. I consider this an exercise to be done every day to improve - to understand which photos impress me the most and why. I find it really useful in getting a critical and trained eye.

At the moment I consider 1x the platform with the highest quality level, and therefore I am really proud to be able to propose my photographs and now to write these lines for the interview.

'Shadows Fading in the Haze'

Many are of the opinion that the gear is not very important when the passion for photography is strong. However, can you please share with us what gear you use (camera, lenses, lighting, tripod, etc.)?

The equipment is not the main thing to get a good photo, but it certainly can help achieve success. I believe that in landscape photography the equipment is more important than in other genres such as "street".

I now have professional equipment, and I obviously notice much better file quality than when I used cheaper equipment. Looking at my photos, however, I don't think that the most recent ones are better, as the scene, the atmosphere, the story still remain at the base. So the new photos have a better quality but that doesn't mean they are more beautiful as images.
I have a full frame camera from Sony, a Sony 16 - 35 lens, a Sony 24 - 105, a Sigma 100 - 400 and a pair of Sony fixed focal lengths for portraits.

'Ending Days'

What would be your favourite photo? Please tell us the story behind it.

I don't think I have a photo that I particularly like, but if I have to choose one I will go with "Change of Seasons". At the moment it is the one that gave me recognition at very important international competitions.
It was one of the most difficult photos to take, due to the prohibitive climatic conditions. I know the place very well, I know that in mid-June the water flow is considerable due to the melting of the snow. I had studied the parable of the sun, but I did not imagine finding such a strong wind. The water vapour of the waterfall was very intense, it bathed everything at a distance of several meters. I had very little time to be able to catch the sun in the right place. When I opened the raws on the pc I was very nervous because I did not know if I was able to take any successful photos. After all the post production work, I can say that I am satisfied.

'Change of Seasons'

Who are your favourite photographers or mentors whose works have influenced you and your photography?

I think I have been fascinated by many photographers, in different periods of my life.
Among my favourite artists I can mention Alexander Schönberg,  Max Rive, Marc Adamus, Daniel Řeřicha, Martin Rak, Filipe Correia, Martin Podt, Daniel Kordan, Kai Ziehl, Ole Henrik Skjelstad and Nick Green. But there are many others who I respect and whose work I admire.

'Relention'

Now, since we have almost reached the end of this interview, I would kindly ask you to share with us your plans or photographic projects you would like to be involved in.

In the last two years, for reasons that we all know well, I have travelled very little. I hope to be able to organize some excursions for this summer and especially for autumn which is my favourite season. If I manage to organize a trip to the Dolomites with my photographer friends, this will be fantastic. I would say that my projects will be a return to normalcy, and this will be enough for me.

'A Night at the Opera'

Is there anything else you wish to add and what do you think about 1X as a home base for your work?

1X is definitely my home base for my work now. Since I discovered it, I spend some time every day to watch all the latest photos published and Awarded. It is undoubtedly the platform that offers a very high quality given the names of absolute importance of the members, and a great visibility.

'Somewhere in Time'

'Viva Emptiness'

'Memories of a Time to Come'

'Towards Oblivion'

'Glory to the Brave'