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Italy was my ever first trip abroad when my parents Rosario (of Italian heritage) and Joe senior shepherded their scouse brood to Cattolica in Rimini on the Adriatic coast sometime in the 70s.
Being small I remember little of it, except for the checked flairs my brother and I rocked, how excited we all were to travel on a plane and how glamorous it felt to stay in a hotel.
Later, at 18 I hitched around Italy on my first grown up trip abroad (con Fitz e Chris). I got my passport nicked sleeping rough in a park in Bologna, got marooned on the motorway after a lift in a lamborghini ended abruptly, and got rescued by a lady shifting crates of peaches in a Piaggio van. She took us to her home in Florence, put us to work unloading the fruit and veg and sat us down with her family for Sunday lunch. Best meal I've ever eaten.
Much later, when I was old enough to know better, I once flew to Rome for a date (Je ne regrette rien).
Going to Italy is a special treat for photographers. The light is reliably excellent, the backdrops superb (both man-made and natural) and Italians have a bit of fire that makes them fascinating subjects. Plus, dinner is always good.
Italy is good for street and landscape - see London and Kent for my preferences on each. My Italy settings are mainly about places.
I have yet to visit an Italian town that was unphotogenic. Much ancient architecture is still standing and the new architecture that sprouts up beside it seems sympathetic.
Some of the big towns have a gritty, edgy glamour. You need your street sense in places like Rome, Naples and Genoa.
Meanwhile, small towns sitting on top of rolling hills or at the edge of the sea hang on to their beauty while elegantly falling apart. The locals don't seem to mind much, they just patch up as they go and say another Hail Mary.
I won't list good places to photograph as there are too many and the places I've visited barely scratch the surface. I will be adding place names to gallery images as I go if you are curious and I'm always keen to hear of new places to visit - so don't be shy with the recommends.
Wherever you go head for the markets, town squares, church yards, cathedrals, small village beaches for people spotting during the day (early/late) and look for hill-top church yards for golden hour vistas.
If you like any of the images in this gallery, send a message here. Limited edition fine art prints are available in sizes from A5 to A0.