About the Image

This editorial fashion image was shot for "Cowgirl", an American Magazine inside an old building in Milan, Italy. The building is part of an abandoned farm that my assistant spotted while we were driving to Linate Airport in Milan, Italy. So, I decided to go and look. After a short detour, we found ourselves in front of what was clearly no longer a functioning farm. We spent about ten minutes wandering the grounds before returning to our car, which was parked outside the locked gate. More about this well below.

This image combines fashion with the raw environment. The model, who to me was very confident, stands in the middle of the abandoned structure wearing a red western-inspired fringe jacket, denim jeans, and embroidered cowboy boots. The styling leans heavily into Americana, but the setting and lighting pushes it a bit more cinematic. The dark interior of the building contrasts against the bright wardrobe.

For the composition, I left a large amount of negative space on the right and a bit more around the model to give the magazine designer the option of having a 2 page spread, and gave them a lot of room to move the image to the left or right. And they could crop the image to run it vertically. The modern cameras we use have a high pixel count so cropping is not a problem.

See the BTS photo below.

Feel free to share, this is the shortcut link: stpvd.com/26/11

There is zero artificial intelligence used in this image. I used the old fashion AI... Actual Intelligence.

Emotions: Confidence, independence, isolation, quiet strength, reflection, nostalgia, mystery, attitude, calmness, self assurance, grit, elegance, tension, solitude, authenticity.

The Rest of the Story

The farm: Before we left to go to the airport, an elderly gentleman approached us, curious about our presence. We explained we were photographers, drawn by the atmosphere of the place and its potential as a location. He told us a family member visits the farm daily around 5 p.m. to feed the pigeons and cats. I told Emiliano that if she did not feed the cats, there would not be any pigeons! Grateful for the tip, we thanked him and continued on our way to Linate airport.

After tracking down the family, we were given permission to photograph there by the niece of the late owner, Angelo Galbiati, who was born in 1906. He had named the property “Acquabella Farm” because of his admiration for Americans, which added an unexpected layer of history to the shoot.

Side note: "Farm" is not an Italian word, the translation for the word "farm" to Italian is azienda agricola, and the word for word translation is: company agricultural or business agricultural. Acquabella translates to: beautiful water.

I’ve been visiting this location and shooting for many years, and it’s been fascinating - and a little bittersweet - to witness how much it has changed over the past decade. Nature has gradually taken over, with wild vegetation creeping in, and sadly, some of the buildings have collapsed.

Three days later, after wrapping our shoot, we returned. This time, we met Elena - the woman who cares for the property. She greeted us warmly and generously invited us to visit anytime we liked. It was Angelo, her late uncle, who owned the farm and she had many fond memories of being on the farm as a child.

There's a quiet sadness in knowing that this beloved place may not be around much longer. Whether it eventually collapses under the weight of time or is cleared to make way for new developments... warehouses or apartment blocks, its future feels uncertain.

Over time, many of its unique details have disappeared, including the hand bent and-hammered steel window frames in the barn, likely stolen. I miss those frames as they were extraordinary. Their absence brings with it a deep sense of nostalgia and a longing for what once was.

For Photographers

The Gear:
Canon camera set to 1/160 second shutter speed, 640 ISO and a Canon 24-70 set to 25mm using f4.

The Light:
The main light is ambient with a Lumedyne strobe head inside a LightwareDirect 30"x30" softbox to help open the shadows on her face.

The reason I use this softbox is it folds down and rolls up so small I can put it into my rollon bag. This is the link to LightwareDirect and if you do buy this, I strongly suggest you also buy the FourSquare Handle Assembly. This will make it much more user friendly.

Also note the entire FourSquare system is all about using shoe mounted strobes, like Speedlights. It is a very cool system.

This was shot middle of the day and was under a roof in one of the farm's buildings. The strobe was a Lumedyne 200ws pack set to about 25ws. I raised the softbox higher than you see in the BTS photo below.

We are based in Atlanta, Georgia, Los Angeles, California, both in the USA, & Milan, Italy, and serve the nation and travel worldwide for projects, both video and stills. On average we travel 175 days a year from all over the USA, to Singapore to Japan, Europe and the Middle East. We are normally in Europe 2 or 3 times a year, mostly Italy and Germany, shooting for clients there.

If you would like to use this image, or any of my images for mock or comp use, please just ask. There is never a charge for this service. Educational use is permitted without charge, unless published, but please ask first. All commercial use is available only with a limited copyright release prior to use from the copyright holder, Steve Thornton. Thanks for looking!