Stefano Maruzzo. The Venetian Villas viewed from above

The Vicenza-based photographer and cameraman, Stefano Maruzzo has two loves - flying and photography. A combination that enables him to take unique aerial shots of the famous Venetian Villas. Slow photographs; photographs to soak up at your leisure.


Aerial photography is taking off on the internet right now, filling the web with pictures taken using drones, and attempting - with more or less success - to be original, when in actual fact the only unusual thing about them is a place we don't know photographed from a perfectly vertical position. 
In this context, the work of Stefano Maruzzo, professional photographer and cameraman based in Vicenza stands out because of his truly different approach. He doesn't send remote-controlled drones to do his work for him, he does it himself with his powered paraglider. This aircraft enables him to keep his hands free to take his photos because he can let go of the controls for a few minutes, line up the best frame and then click. 
As Stefano Maruzzo explains, this is a really singular approach to photography, because using the paraglider means you need both great technical skill as a photographer and, more importantly, you have to know how to fly one. Not only that but this aircraft provides no protection against bad weather. And we're absolutely certain that this is why when you look at Maruzzo's photos you feel as if you can catch the fragrance of flowers, and the cold as the sun drops behind the horizon when the sunset leaves its long shadows over the Italian-style gardens.
Maruzzo's photos show the Venetian Villas from unusual perspectives so clearly, managing to take in their landscape settings as a whole, as well as how much they are completed by the artificial and natural landscapes around them.
Indeed, this photographer steers clear of the classic vertical view of drones, because behind the lens of his camera, with his finger ready to click, is the trained eye of the photographer himself, and of all his experience as a real connoisseur of the territory he is gliding over. Stefano Maruzzo began taking aerial pictures when analogue photography was still around, so he knows how important it is to seize the moment, given that the same light and atmospheric conditions are highly unlikely to return.
This makes his photos very personal, intimate, worthy of attentive study, where the beauty isn't a cosmetic ingredient to add afterwards but is engendered by the authenticity of the moment when you are close up and personal with nature.

@chrisbuerklein

Photographer: Stefano Maruzzo
Location: Veneto, Triveneto – Italy
Paesaggi di Villa. Architetture e giardini nel Veneto.
https://www.facebook.com/VilleegiardinidelVeneto/