MARTA

“Herbst” is a series of portraits of different people, shot this Autumn in several spots of London with the Lomography Petzval lens.

Marta and I have been school mates in Sondrio, our hometown in the north of Italy, flat mates in Milan, and friends for more than half of our lives. Throughout all these years we shared countless experiences and helped each other going through the different stages of adolescence and early adulthood. She’s one of the few friends I can always rely on, no matter how far or busy we are.

Last November she came to London for the first time and spent a week with me and Isa. Totally the opposite of narcissist, quite insecure and not fully aware of her own beauty, it’s never simple to persuade her to pose in front of the camera. However, once she gives in, she sparkles. Apart from a few shots before moving to the Isle of Wight, the last time I asked Marta to model for me was back in May 2013, when me and Isa were still living in Berlin and she paid us a visit along with her sister Adele (https://andrejrusskovskij.com/?p=531). This time around, instead of rough and spooky abandoned places, we picked the romantic Columbia Road Flower Market and Angel canal.
The black and white pictures were taken on Marta’s last day, in a 20 minutes session before going to work, just around the corner from our place in Old Street. Probably because of the pressure I was putting on her, or because of the lack of time, she delivered one stunning shot after the other.

Nikon N55, Petzval 85, Agfa CT Precisa 100 (35) / Agfa Scala 200 (35, expired), London, 4-11/11/2015