With over 20 years of experience in digital imaging, retouching and image manipulation, Gilles Bonugli Kali is a skilled photographer, focusing on Travel, Real Estate, Portraits and Fashion.
For Gilles photography is an exploration, a quest to tell a story through imagery that is both beautiful and emotionally stirring. In light of this, he strives to capture the relationship between visual imagery and the subconscious. His work consists of surrealistic digital compositions that are tied to the human psyche and provoke the viewers to question themselves and the things they see. This effect is also useful in a commercial setting, as the images Gilles creates are not only visually striking, but elicit an emotional reaction, which consequently strengthens the impact of the image and subsequently, the brand, in the viewer’s subconscious.
Five Questions to Gilles Bonugli Kali
How would you describe your photography to someone who has never seen it?
That’s a tricky one! For the selection presented here I would say that my photography can be described as digital surrealism. The common point is that I always try to put my viewer in reminiscence of their dreams. Dreams are a very important part of my compositions and I like the viewer to be temporarily lost in what seems to be a dream in reality, or a tangible piece of reality in a wider dream.
What makes a great photograph?
You can consider a “great photograph” images with different characteristics. It also depends on the field you are in. A war zone photographer may take a different approach to achieve a great photograph, rather than an insect macro photographer for example.
What’s your main source of inspiration when you’re behind the camera?
What inspires me the most when I shoot someone or something is the light. The other phrase I say most oftenly after “Diversity Makes Sense” is “Light is Key”. I even use this motto when I am not shooting. Light allows you to see colors and shapes of the world around you, and, most importantly for us photographers, this light (the sun) is moving. You then have many opportunities to create different images of the same subject if you choose the right time. This is true of course for natural light, but if I shoot with artificial light I use the same approach.
Last but not least, Yoshi – my wonderful wife – is probably the best inspiration I had in the last years. We just got married at Burning Man and her creations pushed me to go further in my own creative process.
How is the photography industry changing in the digital era?
There are two sides. One is the positive side where photography has become more and more friendly and affordable for everyone. Computer software and cameras are more powerful, simple to learn and efficient. Photography has become the main passion for a lot of people. Social networks push people to post more pictures about their everyday life. To sum this up in one sentence: nowadays everyone is a photographer. On the other hand, the counterpart is that “photographer” as a profession has lost value. Clients and people in general don’t understand why they have to pay so much money for photography services anymore. Most of the time they find it too expensive. Experienced pro photographers, unless they are in the international top scene, are struggling more and more everyday to keep their business alive.
Have you heard of Blockchain and if so, what are your views on it?
Of course! I bought my first bitcoin in 2014, but have been interested in new generation blockchains since the end of 2016. If you are asking in general, I truly think blockchain can help to get rid of third party entities that usually take the most money without actually providing the value. In short term, I like to think that smart contracts can help bring the value back to their original creators. This concept is not only applicable in the art field but in many other too.
