Sunday Edition: Adrian Vila and Renato Rampolla
Sunday Edition: Adrian Vila and Renato Rampolla
PHOTOSNACK #342
Every Sunday, I contact photographers previously featured on PHOTOSNACK and ask them to send me their spontaneous thoughts, observations, reflections, or advice.
Today, I am sharing the messages I received from Adrian Vila and Renato Rampolla.
Adrian Vila
Photography, for me, is a way to discover the world. I always thought my hometown was a boring and rather ugly place; it wasn't until I went back years later, as a photographer, that I saw its beauty.
Now, every time I visit, I spend hours walking on the streets and country roads, camera in hand, seeing what I'd missed seeing before.
A camera can be much more than a device that captures light. It can be a window to a whole new world, one we can create and share with others.
Adrian Vila was featured in PHOTOSNACK #285.
Renato Rampolla
It’s been said that the two most important days in your life are the day when you were born, and the day you figure out why. I think that idea resonates deeply with image-making as well. When you know your purpose, it guides everything you do, including your creative process.
I struggle with the notion of labels and categories such as portrait photographer, landscape photographer or street photographer, etc. Labels limit creativity and miss the bigger picture. My images are made up of portraits, nature and images taken on the street, yet they are related.
For instance, my Dignity project celebrates the dignity and resilience of humanity, capturing people living on the margins, while my Sanctuary project explores the dignity and resilience of nature. Both projects, while distinct, touch on the idea of finding beauty, strength, and peace in unexpected places. Whether it's the quiet strength of a person who has faced unimaginable hardship or the serene refuge nature offers, there’s a deeper connection between them that goes beyond the surface.
Connecting with the subject in a deeper way, is how I approach photography. It's about capturing a feeling. When I create an image, it’s not just about representing what it looks like on the outside; it’s about tapping into the essence, the core of what I’m seeing and experiencing. That’s where the real magic happens. The image becomes more than just a picture—it starts to tell a story, share an emotion, and communicate something that words often can’t fully express.
Whether I’m working on homelessness, pictures on the streets, or exploring the sanctuary of nature, I’m always looking for that deeper connection, that essence that makes something truly resonate. It’s the difference between simply seeing and truly experiencing. And that’s what I want to bring out in my work—the idea that there’s more than meets the eye, that every person, every place, and every moment has a deeper story to tell.
Let that sense of purpose guide your image-making, and you’ll find that your work becomes more meaningful, more impactful, and more connected to that bigger picture we all strive to see.
Renato Rampolla was featured in PHOTOSNACK #302.
Sunday Editions connect you with photographers whose work you previously explored through PHOTOSNACK.
I want to reveal some authentic parts of the people behind the cameras.
I don't ask them any specific questions. I ask them to share whatever comes to mind when they think about YOU, the newsletter readers.
It makes their responses genuine and personal.
I hope you enjoyed today's Sunday Edition.
Until next time,
Tomasz