All about photo.com: photo contests, photography exhibitions, galleries, photographers, books, schools and venues.
Win a Solo Exhibition this October, Open Theme. Juror Aline Smithson.
Win a Solo Exhibition this October, Open Theme. Juror Aline Smithson.
Giovanna Aryafara
Giovanna Aryafara
Giovanna Aryafara

Giovanna Aryafara

Country: Australia

I am a photographer deeply drawn to the authenticity of human connection and the beauty of cultural resilience. My work is rooted in natural light—I never use flash or artificial setups, as I believe less gear creates a more comfortable and organic experience for my subjects. This allows me to connect with them deeper, capturing their essence without intrusion.

Occasionally, when I have the time, I incorporate a black backdrop—particularly when camping—creating an intimate space to balance both environmental and portraiture elements. However, my process always begins the day before a shoot. I explore the area, searching for the best natural light (“chasing the light”) and ensuring the background complements the subject without distractions. Just as important is observing and connecting with the people, and understanding who is comfortable with my presence behind the lens.

My photography is defined by its relaxed, immersive style—capturing joy, beauty, and quiet moments of connection in a subject’s natural environment. Whether it’s the strength of Ethiopian tribes or the spiritual devotion in Bali, I strive to document cultural narratives with honesty and warmth.

I shoot primarily in Africa, particularly Ethiopia, but Bali is home. My husband is Balinese, and my connection to the island runs deep, especially in the villages where tradition, Hindu rituals, and daily resilience are ever-present. When I’m not travelling, I work from my Photography Gallery & Coffee House in Bali, where my small, dedicated team understands and shares my passion for storytelling through images.

For years, I exclusively used Canon gear, but three years ago, I transitioned to Sony Alpha R5 (two bodies), paired with my go-to lenses:
• Sony G Master 24-70mm
• Sony G Master 70-200mm
• Sony 50mm Prime
• Sony 16-35mm

However, I only carry what is necessary for each shoot, ensuring I remain as mobile and unobtrusive as possible.

The two series I have submitted—Ethiopia and Bali—reflect my deep appreciation for culture, beauty, and resilience. Whether in the remote Omo Valley or the heart of Bali’s spiritual traditions, my focus remains the same: to honour the people I photograph and to share their stories with the world.

About the Myanmar Collection
"Myanmar is one of my favourite places on Earth—it feels like time has stood still. The ancient pagodas, temples, and deep history make it so special, but Bagan is truly breathtaking. The monasteries, the monks, and their quiet way of life have always drawn me in. There’s something about the early morning light, the sound of chanting, and the simplicity of daily rituals that feels unchanged for centuries. Through my photographs, I want to capture that feeling—the beauty, the stillness, and the deep sense of tradition that makes Myanmar so unique."

Awarded Photographer of the Week - Week 09
 

Inspiring Portfolios

Call for Entries
AAP Magazine #52: Street
Publish your work in AAP Magazine and win $1,000 Cash Prizes
 
Stay up-to-date  with call for entries, deadlines and other news about exhibitions, galleries, publications, & special events.

More Great Photographers To Discover

Sean Gallagher
United Kingdom
1979
Sean Gallagher is a British photographer and filmmaker, who has been in Asia for over 15 years. Based out of Beijing, China, he specialises in covering issues surrounding the climate crisis and other global environmental issues for some of the world's leading news outlets. He creates innovative photographic, video and multimedia projects that highlight individual's stories from communities that are affected by issues such as climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution, desertification and deforestation. He is a 8-time recipient of the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting travel grant, his images are represented by the National Geographic Image Collection and he is a Fellow of the UK Royal Geographical Society. He graduated in Zoology from university in the United Kingdom and it is his background in science that has led to much of his work being focused on communicating environmental issues through visual storytelling. His selected awards include; Environmental Photographer of the Year - Changing Environments Prize (2019), Resilience Science Journalism Fellow - Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at City University New York (2019), Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute Science Journalism Fellow (2017), Environmental Film of the Year - Winner - 'The Toxic Price of Leather', Environmental Photographer of the Year Competition (2014), Published 'Meltdown', a multimedia eBook documenting China's environmental crises in the early 21st Century (2013). Photography and Climate Change Awareness
Lorenzo Meloni
Lorenzo Meloni (born 1983) is an Italian Photographer. He joined Magnum Photos as a nominee member in 2015. Meloni is known for his searing, artfully drawn photography covering conflicts in the Middle East. Though he is often working on the frontline—he has covered some of the most pivotal battles in the war against the Islamic State—he is also concerned with deeper themes, such as history and post-colonialism. In 2011, he finished his photography studies and immediately joined Contrasto, a major Italian photographic agency. He lived in Beirut from 2012 to 2014 and dedicated himself to long-term projects regarding the aftermath of the fall of Gaddafi in Libya, the conflict in Syria (specifically the area of Rojava) and its impact in Lebanon, between 2014 to 2016. His work currently focuses on the consequences of the Sykes-Picot agreement and the military and political intervention of the West in the Middle East. Meloni’s work has been exhibited in festivals worldwide including the Venice Biennale, Visa pour L’Image, Les Rencontres d’Arles, Boutographies and Fotoleggendo and has been featured in global publications including The Telegraph, TIME, Le Figaro, Vanity Fair, Internazionale, L’Espresso, La Repubblica.Source: Magnum Photos When proclaimed in June 2014 in Mosul, the Caliphate was then at the height of its power. The Jhiadists controlled a territory that was as big as the United Kingdom and were in charge of a significant arsenal captured from the Iraqis army, composed of volunteers coming from all over the world. Lorenzo Meloni has documented this conflict, getting the exclusive opportunity to cover the battles of Kobane, Palmyra, Sirte, Mosul and Ragga. Five major battles for the same war, a huge number of actors: locals, regional, international ones; a sole enemy: the Islamic State. Each of these five cities embodies a distinct symbolic aspect of this global war against the Islamic State. Kobane, a Kurdish-Syrian stronghold, pro-PKK, was the first great defeat for the Jihadists and the beginning of the intervention of the coalition led by the United States in Syria. The battle of Palmyra is representative of the destruction of archeological sites committed by the Islamic State. Meloni is one of the few photographers to travel there in April 2016 to record the liberation of the city by the Syrian regime and its alleys. Sirte, in Lybia, went from being Gadaffi’s birthplace to the African capital of the Islamic State. Mosul, the jewel in the crown of the Jihadists. The biggest urban battle after World War II and the capital of the Islamic State in Iraq. And ultimately Ragga, an important administrative headquarter and capital of the Islamic State in Syria, liberated by the Kurdish and Arab forces in Syria. Lorenzo Meloni, covering these five battles, offers a unique perspective of five echoes of the same war. He shows the fighting and the ruins, the fury and the silence. The silence of these places where war has estranged life.Source: IMP Festival
Carolyn Moore
United States
Carolyn Moore is a fourth generation Californian, raised in a family of artists and outdoor enthusiasts. Her love of nature is evident in her artwork having spent much of her formative years hiking, swimming, backpacking and enjoying the vast diversity in nature. Equally adept at both music and art, her formal education fell to music. Degrees were completed at University of California Berkeley, University of Oslo and Conservatory of Music, Norway. After a fulfilling and successful career of performance and teaching of flute, percussion and special needs music, her focus since 2005 has turned to visual expression through photography. Artistic inspiration came early in life when presented with paint brushes and a brownie box camera by her artist father at the age of 7. Mostly self taught, Carolyn has experimented with many photographic techniques - everything from digital, to film based using plastic or pinhole cameras and handmade or lensless processes. Since 2007 Carolyn has received multiple photographic honors and awards and has been juried into several exhibits at the Soho Photo Gallery, New York. Carolyn has been published in Color Magazine and has participated in multiple solo and collective exhibits both in the United States and Europe. She is currently a member of the Center for Photographic Art and proudly serves as Steering Committee Chair for Image Makers Photographers of Monterey. My Heart Exposed Photography to me, represents a composite of my personal feelings, emotions, values and experiences expressed on a canvas. It is as if the artwork is an open window where artist and viewer peer one to the other in a silent exchange. Images from “My Heart Exposed”, Volume 1, are created in a process that includes entering a meditative state where feelings, intuition and curiosity drive choices made in an experimental photographic process. This process lends an element of unpredictability, and as a result parameters are set for embracing surprises and allowing the image to evolve. The decisions I make are influenced by my innermost feelings and thus, each image presents a visually poetic reflection of my unique story. My personal story is made all the more poignant by the recent loss of family and intense emotional turmoil of the past year. This chaotic and complicated year of love, loss and strife made maintaining a sense of self a major challenge. I am often reminded of time spent in nature with lost family members, and I cherish the thought of loved one’s hands guiding me in a shared love of nature and an expression that uses plants as an artistic voice. I invite viewers to draw on their own experiences and allow their hearts to embark on a journey of reflection and discovery within each image. “My Heart Exposed”, Volume 1 are sunshine exposed Lumens with hand painted cyanotype on expired photographic paper. While developing this technique, I have experimented with different types of photographic paper, timing of exposure and elements that change the chemical reaction between plants and paper. Images evolve and change during the development process and I present captures of those stages in unaltered true color. While some images are fixed and will remain stable, others will continue to evolve and eventually dissipate altogether.
Gabrielle Duplantier
Gabrielle Duplantier studied painting and art history at the university of Bordeaux in France. Photography was a hobby on the side. After her university studies, she decided to dedicate herself to photography and she went to Paris where she worked as an assistant for several photographers. In 2002, she felt the need to come back home. Inspired by the rich and enigmatic Basque country, she started a series of photographs where landscapes, animals or humans are revealed as impressionist visions, this body of work contains some of her best images. She pursues her work on portraits of women, one of her favorite subjects, and on Portugal where she travels regularly. Gabrielle’s photographic world seems voluntarily detached from all temporal or social reality. So her subjects or not really thematic, she is seeking beautiful images that exist outside of any context, on their own. She has already published 3 books, works with press, edition, she collabore with musicians, writers. Her work is also regularly exhibited. In 2012, Gabrielle Duplantier appears in MONO, edited by Gomma books, monography of the best contemporary black and white photographers along with artists such as Michael Ackerman, Trent Parke, Anders Petersen, or Roger Ballen... FNAC's Collection and privates Collections. Finalist Grand Concours Agfa 2003. Coup de Cœur Bourse du Talent Portrait, Photographie.com 2005. Finalist Parole photographique, Actuphoto 2008. Published in Photos Nouvelles, Shots Magazine, Gente di fotografia, Le Festin, Pays basque magazine, Geokompakt, Philosophy magazine... Discover Gabrielle Duplantier's Interview
Martin Munkácsi
Hungary
1896 | † 1963
Martin Munkácsi (born Mermelstein Márton; Kolozsvár, Hungary, May 18, 1896; died July 13, 1963, New York, NY) was a Hungarian photographer who worked in Germany (1928–34) and the United States, where he was based in New York City. Munkácsi was a newspaper writer and photographer in Hungary, specializing in sports. At the time, sports action photography could only be done in bright light outdoors. Munkácsi's innovation was to make sports photographs as meticulously composed action photographs, which required both artistic and technical skill. Munkácsi's legendary big break was to happen upon a fatal brawl, which he photographed. Those photos affected the outcome of the trial of the accused killer, and gave Munkácsi considerable notoriety. That notoriety helped him get a job in Berlin in 1928, for the Berliner Illustrirte Zeitung, where his first published photo was a race car splashing its way through a puddle. He also worked for the fashion magazine Die Dame. More than just sports and fashion, he photographed Berliners, rich and poor, in all their activities. He traveled to Turkey, Sicily, Egypt, London, New York, and famously Liberia, for photo spreads in the Berliner Illustrirte Zeitung. The speed of the modern age and the excitement of new photographic viewpoints enthralled him, especially flying. There are aerial photographs; there are air-to-air photographs of a flying school for women; there are photographs from a Zeppelin, including the ones on his trip to Brazil, where he crosses over a boat whose passengers wave to the airship above. On March 21, 1933, he photographed the fateful Day of Potsdam, when the aged President Paul von Hindenburg handed Germany over to Adolf Hitler. On assignment for the Berliner Illustrirte Zeitung, he photographed Hitler's inner circle, although he was a Jewish foreigner. In 1934, the Nazis nationalized the Berliner Illustrirte Zeitung, fired its Jewish editor-in-chief, Kurt Korff, and replaced its innovative photography with pictures of German troops. Munkácsi left for New York, where he signed on, for a substantial $100,000, with Harper's Bazaar, a top fashion magazine. In a change from usual practice, he often left the studio to shoot outdoors, on the beach, on farms and fields, at an airport. He produced one of the first articles in a popular magazine to be illustrated with nude photographs. His portraits include Katharine Hepburn, Leslie Howard, Jean Harlow, Joan Crawford, Jane Russell, Louis Armstrong, and the definitive dance photograph of Fred Astaire. Munkácsi died in poverty and controversy. Several universities and museums declined to accept his archives, and they were scattered around the world. Berlin's Ullstein Archives and Hamburg's F. C. Gundlach collection are home to two of the largest collections of Munkácsi's work.Source: Wikipedia
Sally Mann
United States
1951
Sally Mann was born in Lexington, Virginia in 1951. She has always remained close to her roots. She has photographed in the American South since the 1970s, producing series on portraiture, architecture, landscape and still life. She is perhaps best known for her intimate portraits of her family, her young children and her husband, and for her evocative and resonant landscape work in the American South. Her work has attracted controversy at times, but it has always been influential, and since her the time of her first solo exhibition, at the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington D.C., in 1977, she has attracted a wide audience. Sally Mann explored various genres as she was maturing in the 1970s: she produced landscapes and architectural photography, and she blended still life with elements of portraiture. But she truly found her metier with her second publication, a study of girlhood entitled At Twelve: Portraits of Young Women (1988). Between 1984 and 1994, she worked on the series, Immediate Family (1992), which focuses on her three children, who were then all aged under ten. While the series touches on ordinary moments in their daily lives—playing, sleeping, eating—it also speaks to larger themes such as death and cultural perceptions of sexuality. In her most recent series, Proud Flesh, taken over a six year interval, Mann turns the camera onto her husband, Larry. The resultant photographs are candid and frank portraits of a man at his most vulnerable moments. Mann has produced two major series of landscapes: Deep South (Bullfinch Press, 2005) and Mother Land. In What Remains (Bullfinch Press, 2003), she assembled a five-part study of mortality, one which ranges from pictures of the decomposing body of her beloved greyhound, to the site where an armed fugitive committed suicide on her property in the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia. She has often experimented with color photography, but she has remained most interested in black and white, especially photography's antique technology. She has long used an 8x10 bellows camera, and has explored platinum and bromoil printing processes. In the mid 1990s she began using the wet plate collodion process to produce pictures which almost seem like hybrids of photography, painting, and sculpture. Sally Mann lives and works in Lexington, Virginia. A Guggenheim fellow, and a three-times recipient of the National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, Mann was named "America's Best Photographer" by TIME Magazine in 2001. She has been the subject of two documentaries: Blood Ties (1994), which was nominated for an Academy Award, and What Remains (2007) which premiered at Sundance and was nominated for an Emmy for Best Documentary in 2008. She has been the subject of major exhibitions at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia, and the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. Her photographs can be found in many public and private collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art; the Museum of Modern Art; and the Whitney Museum of American Art.Source: Gagosian Gallery Mann, born and raised in Virginia, is the daughter of Robert Munger and Elizabeth Munger. In Mann's introduction for her book Immediate Family, she "expresses stronger memories for the black woman, Virginia Carter, who oversaw her upbringing than for her own mother". Elizabeth Munger was not a big part of Mann's life, and Elizabeth said "Sally may look like me, but inside she's her father's child." Virginia (Gee-Gee) Carter, born in 1894, raised Mann and her two brothers and was an admirable woman." Left with six children and a public education system for which she paid taxes but which forbade classes for black children beyond the seventh grade, Gee-Gee managed somehow to send each of them to out-of-state boarding schools and, ultimately, to college." Virginia Carter died in 1994. In 1969 Sally met Larry Mann, and in 1970 they married. Larry Mann is an attorney and, before practicing law, he was a blacksmith. Larry was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy around 1996. They live together in their home which they built on Sally's family's farm in Lexington, Virginia. They have three children together: Emmett (born 1979), who took his own life in 2016, after a life-threatening car collision and a subsequent battle with schizophrenia, and who for a time served in the Peace Corps; Jessie (born 1981), who herself is an artist; and Virginia (born 1985), a lawyer. She is passionate about endurance horse racing. In 2006, her Arabian horse ruptured an aneurysm while she was riding him. In the horse's death throes, Mann was thrown to the ground, the horse rolled over her, and the impact broke her back. It took her two years to recover from the accident and during this time, she made a series of ambrotype self-portraits. These self-portraits were on view for the first time in November 2010 at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts as a part of Sally Mann: the Flesh and the Spirit. Source: Wikipedia
William Ropp
France
1960
William Ropp is a contemporary photographer and photo-artist, best known for his series of portraits. Lives and works in France. William Ropp is often called not just a photographer but a photo-artist, and his style of photography is spoken of as unique, inimitable, and recognizable. For the impression they produce, his works are compared to those by painters: individuals depicted in them are as if looking at the viewer – not vice versa. Ropp is known as the Shadow Sculptor. Portraits by him — it is his work with the human body and portrait photography he is famous for — are indeed so dimensional and expressive that they look like they are sculpted from shadow and light. William Ropp began his career in the theatre three decades ago. There is something theatrical about his pictures today as well: each of them is like a speechless monologue by the character depicted in it, a play with one actor, which is encased into one instant caught by the photographer. William Ropp made his first series of black-and-white photographs in 1988: those were images of human figures reflected in distorting mirrors. Ropp continued working with the human body in the studio, experimenting with lighting and photographic technology. In the early 90’s, he found the style that would make him famous. Ropp would plunge figures of models, which, as it is, perplexed the viewer with the complexity of their intricate postures, into darkness and “paint” their body outlines with a bright beam of light. He would increase the exposure time to 10 minutes to make the image a bit blurred but would focus one’s attention on the main thing: the eyes, the facial expression, the shoulder line, or the arm’s expressive curve. In the mid-2000’s, Ropp, the already famous Shadow Sculptor, undertook a number of trips, each of which resulted in a series of portraits of people – Africans and Gypsies, inhabitants of Mexico and Russia, adults and kids. In 2010, he started working in color, portrait photography remaining the primary one in his work. Ropp is the author of several books on the art of photography; his exhibitions and workshops for photographers are staged all over the world. Works by William Ropp form part of the collections of the Musée de l’Elysée (Lausanne, Switzerland), the Museum of Fine Art (Houston, USA), the Maison Européenne pour la Photographie (Paris, France), the Museet for Fotokunst (Odense, Denmark), the New York Public Library (the Spencer Collection, New York, USA), and other public and private collections. Galleries throckmorton-nyc.com www.thephotogallery.se www.originalsong.cn www.holdenluntz.com www.galerie-stp.de jiromiuragallery.com louisegallery.be
Advertisement
AAP Magazine #52 Street
Win a Solo Exhibition this October
AAP Magazine #52: Street

Latest Interviews

Exclusive Interview with Sander Vos
Sander Vos is a fine art photographer based in London whose work seamlessly blends elements of Surrealism with portraiture. Drawing inspiration from his background in design, Vos embraces light and contrast to sculpt striking, graphic compositions. His photographs invite the viewer into a world where revelation and concealment coexist, leaving space for imagination and interpretation.
Exclusive Interview with Tomasz Trzebiatowski Editor-in-chief FRAMES Magazine
Founded in 2020 by photographer, publisher, and classical pianist Tomasz Trzebiatowski, FRAMES Magazine has quickly established itself as a thoughtful space for photography lovers who believe that powerful images deserve to live on paper. Known for its beautifully printed quarterly issues and dynamic international community, FRAMES bridges the gap between tradition and innovation in the photographic world. As editor-in-chief, Trzebiatowski has created not only a publication but a platform that celebrates diverse genres, nurtures dialogue, and champions the tactile experience of print in a digital age. In this interview, he reflects on the journey from founding FRAMES to building a global membership, the challenges of independent publishing, and the future of photography in both print and digital forms.
Exclusive Interview with Manuel Besse
French photographer Manuel Besse is known for his compelling black-and-white imagery, which blends portraiture, documentary, and poetic narrative into a singular visual voice. With a career spanning several decades and continents—from the gold mines of Serra Pelada to the Arctic Circle—his work reflects a deep commitment to authenticity, human connection, and the preservation of cultural and natural landscapes. His series Macadam, winner of AAP Magazine #41 B&W, offers a contemplative look at fleeting urban encounters, rendered in his signature monochrome style. We asked him a few questions about his life and work.
Exclusive Interview with Matthew Portch
UK-born photographer Matthew Portch brings a quietly cinematic eye to the overlooked landscapes of suburban and rural America. Now based in Arizona, his photographic journey reflects a long-standing fascination with the cultural imprint of mid-century America—filtered through a distinctly outsider’s perspective. His series Lost America, selected for the September 2024 Solo Exhibition, captures an eerie stillness in the built environments of the American West, where nostalgia, silence, and isolation converge.
Exclusive Interview with Chris Yan
Chris Yan is a Beijing-based photographer and Creative Director whose work focuses on street and documentary photography. His series Beijing Story, which earned him a solo exhibition in October 2024, offers a nuanced look at daily life in the city. In this interview, he discusses his photographic approach, creative influences, and the ideas behind the project.
Exclusive Interview with Meg McKenzie Ryan
California-based photographer Meg McKenzie Ryan has followed an unconventional and deeply personal path into the world of photography. From chance beginnings in Hong Kong to a life shaped by travel, education, and immersion in vastly different cultures, her work reflects a deep curiosity about the world—and the people who inhabit it. Her solo project, The Lives of Others, awarded the March 2024 Solo Exhibition, is rooted in a documentary approach that feels both intimate and unflinching.
Exclusive Interview with Evan Murphy
At just 25, Evan Murphy’s work immediately stood out for its depth and maturity. A self-taught photographer originally from Las Vegas and now based in New York City, Evan blends raw emotion with a strong visual voice shaped by years of creative exploration. His series I.D. earned him a solo exhibition in July 2024, marking an impressive early milestone in a career that promises to go far.
Exclusive Interview with Lydia Panas
Lydia Panas, winner of AAP Magazine #38: Women, is an American photographer, known for her powerful and introspective portraiture. With a background in visual arts and philosophy, she uses photography to explore identity, vulnerability, and human connection—often drawing from personal experience to create images that are both intimate and thought-provoking. Her work has been widely exhibited and published, and is part of numerous permanent collections. We asked her a few questions about her life and work.
Exclusive Interview with Hana Hana Peskova
Hana Peskova is a passionate self-taught photographer whose journey began at Škola kreativní fotografie in Prague. In 2021, she was awarded the prestigious EFIAP distinction by the Fédération Internationale de l'Art Photographique, recognizing her artistic excellence. Based in Český Krumlov, Czech Republic, she explores the world through street and documentary photography, capturing the beauty of fleeting moments and untold stories. Drawn to forgotten places and lives lived on the margins, her work reflects both emotional depth and creative vision. In April 2024, she won a solo exhibition with her powerful series Child Labour, further cementing her commitment to socially engaged photography.
Call for Entries
Win A Solo Exhibition in October
Get International Exposure and Connect with Industry Insiders