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The Florence Session n.2: Light, Music, and Film in a Renaissance Palace

(Film Photography in a Renaissance Palace with Aurora and Alice )

Date: January 20, 2025

There was a different kind of silence that morning.
A softer, more deliberate quiet, as if the palace already remembered us from the first session. Light entered the main hall with a ceremonial slowness, sliding across the frescoes with a confidence that only Florence can teach. But this time, it wasn’t just me and the space — it was me, Aurora, and Alice. Two Tuscan models, two contrasting energies, two parallel narratives forming a single, fluid story.

We had decided to return to the same Renaissance palace overlooking the city because certain places don’t reveal everything at once. They open slowly, like a book with pages you have to revisit to fully understand. The rooms, the long corridors, the ornamented walls — everything felt more familiar, more willing to let itself be studied. And with my rolls of film ready, I sensed that the building was prepared to offer something entirely new.
Take a look to the first shooting session here.

1966 Rolleiflex 2.8F - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm f 1:2.8 - Kodak Portra 400 film Processed in C41 standard
Scan from neg - © Niccolò Barone - All rights reserved

Aurora and Alice: Two Presences, One Atmosphere

I already knew Aurora. She carries an effortless elegance, a way of moving that feels instinctive rather than posed. Her quiet grace makes the camera breathe. Alice, on the other hand, was new to my lens: sharp gaze, strong presence, a beauty that is both tender and resolute. When they met, I immediately understood they would complement each other — two different lines intersecting with harmony.

Film photography demands this kind of harmony.
It refuses haste.
It punishes distraction.
With two models, the balance becomes even finer: observing, waiting, choosing the right moment when their energies align.

Both of them understood the tempo instantly. They entered the set with the same respect I feel when I load a roll into a vintage camera: slowly, attentively, fully present.

1966 Rolleiflex 2.8F - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm f 1:2.8 - Kodak Tmax 400 film Processed in Xtol (1:1 @ 24°) standard
Scan from neg - © Niccolò Barone - All rights reserved

The Light of the Palace: A Silent Third Character

The palace itself insisted on being part of the story.
The tall windows, half-closed curtains, dust drifting lazily in the air — all of it shaped the atmosphere. But what truly defines this location is the light.

A light that changes every thirty minutes.
A light that demands decisions.
A light that makes every frame unrepeatable.

For this session, I brought only two cameras — but two that define my way of shooting:

Pentax 67II + 105mm f/2.4
Rolleiflex 2.8F + Planar 80mm

Each of them contributes a distinct voice:

The Pentax 67 gives that cinematic vertical presence, full of depth and subtle compression.
The Rolleiflex, with its waist-level view and square format, creates an intimate, floating quietness — perfect for delicate gestures.

For film stocks, I selected:

Kodak Portra 400
Kodak Tmax 400
Cinestill 800T for the colder, tungsten-tinted rooms

The palace’s light was constantly shifting, but never losing its poetry. You don’t create atmosphere in a place like this — you listen to it.

1966 Rolleiflex 2.8F - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm f 1:2.8 - Kodak Portra 400 film Processed in C41 standard
Scan from neg - © Niccolò Barone - All rights reserved

A Spontaneous Choreography

Aurora began first, in the long hall with hand-painted walls. Her natural symmetry worked beautifully with the 6×6 frame. The Rolleiflex feels almost alive in locations like that: its quiet shutter, its rhythm, the way it forces you to slow down and really see.

Alice’s intensity, instead, called for the Pentax 67II.
I placed her near the inner windows, where the light carved deeper lines and sculpted shadows. The 105mm allowed her presence to breathe — bold, strong, yet incredibly human.

When I finally asked them to pose together, something clicked. No instructions were needed. Their contrasts aligned organically: Aurora’s softness, Alice’s strength, both suspended inside the same beam of light.

I shot deliberately, frame by frame, respecting the gravity of each gesture. Every click felt like a small ceremony.

1966 Rolleiflex 2.8F - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm f 1:2.8 - Kodak Tmax 400 film Processed in Xtol (1:1 @ 24°) standard
Scan from neg - © Niccolò Barone - All rights reserved

The Moment When Time Slows Down

Even without the 4×5, the session had its own moments of profound stillness.
There was a scene — one I remember vividly — where Aurora and Alice sat near a tall Renaissance window, their silhouettes softened by a veil of afternoon light. I approached slowly with the Pentax 67II, not wanting to disturb the fragile balance in the room.

They were silent.
Breathing together.
Completely present.

I raised the camera, focused manually, and waited for that instant when their postures aligned without intention. The shutter released almost by itself.

Film photography has this gift:
it turns tiny, accidental gestures into something timeless.

Why Film Still Matters in Fashion

Every session like this reminds me why I continue to work with film — especially in fashion and glamour.

Film alters the pace.
Pace alters the gaze.
The gaze alters the story.

With limited frames, you choose differently.
With slower cameras, you connect more deeply.
With natural light, you stop controlling and start observing.

Aurora and Alice understood this intuitively.
And the palace — with its centuries of faded voices — amplified it.

A Project That Grows One Session at a Time

This second Florence Session wasn’t simply a continuation — it was a new chapter in a project that still feels open.
A project about:

femininity in its quietest moments
the relationship between body and light
the honesty of film photography
the beauty of slowness
the elegance of human presence inside architectural history

When we walked out of the palace, the light was already shifting again.
I knew I would return.
Some locations don’t just host a story — they become part of it.

Fotografo moda Carpi
Fotografo boudoir Carpi
Fotografo moda Modena
Fotografo boudoir Modena
Fotografo moda Correggio
Fotografo boudoir Correggio
Fotografo moda Parma
Fotografo boudoir Parma
Fotografo moda Reggio Emilia
Fotografo boudoir Reggio Emilia

Fotografo moda Bologna
Fotografo boudoir Bologna
Fotografo moda Ravenna
Fotografo boudoir Ravenna
Fotografo moda Firenze
Fotografo boudoir Firenze
Fotografo moda Pisa
Fotografo boudoir Pisa
Fotografo glamour Modena
Fine art photographer
analog Photographer
Fotografo nudo Modena

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