Daniele Cortinovis

Daniele Cortinovis is an Italian wedding photographer whose studio, Daniele Cortinovis Fotografia, is in Bonate Sopra in the province of Bergamo, which the page places about 30 km from Milan. His Lugano page, written in Italian, offers wedding photography and video "a Lugano e in tutta la Svizzera", in Lugano and across Switzerland, with a team of professionals behind him. For couples marrying in Ticino, he is a studio from the Bergamo area that travels to Switzerland, rather than a Lugano-based photographer.

The reportage approach

He introduces himself as a wedding photographer who loves discovering the traditions that weddings bring with them around the world, and says he tells the wedding day "in completo stile reportage", entirely as reportage, with photography that makes an impact. He writes that he lives on emotions.

The page is specific about what that means in practice:

• A team of two professional photographers follows the wedding from the bride's and groom's preparations to the evening dances.
• Throughout the day, the couple are asked never to look into the lens and simply to be themselves with their friends and family.
• There are no tedious poses or repeated requests for fake smiles, and he promises never to ask for staged shots such as holding the bouquet on the bed after dressing.
• A scene that has already started is never interrupted, because, he writes, stopping the couple would lose the moment.
• Couple portraits take at most 20 minutes. He calls this a very important point that his couples love, and promises a complete, striking couple session within those 20 minutes.

The editing, he says, gives bright colors and deep black and white.

Who is on the team

The studio describes itself as photographers, videomakers, graphic designers and directors, all specialized in weddings. Its philosophy, the page says, rests on attention, transparency and the quality of its wedding photos and cinematic videos.

Video and drones

A video team of videomakers, directors and drone operators makes cinematic, emotional wedding videos. Like the photographers, the video team stays from the preparations to the evening dances, and a director edits the footage into the final film. The page states that the team are licensed wedding drone operators with the insurance they need to fly anywhere in Switzerland. Couples planning drone shots at a particular venue will still want to confirm the details with the venue.

One option stands out: the team can make a video trailer on the wedding day itself and show it that evening, so that friends and family relive the day while it is still going on.

Albums

He offers wedding photography with or without an album, and never requires couples to buy one straight away: once they have the photos, an album can be made at any time. His albums come from Graphistudio, which he calls a world-leading company that has let him deliver real masterpieces, with fine materials, handmade construction, strong design and the highest print quality.

The layout can be personalized and changed from home, without visiting the studio. As with all his foreign clients, he writes, this can be done by video conference, and the finished album can be shipped to the couple's home in Lugano.

The two most requested models are:

• Young Book: a modern, elegant album in a book-style case, with nearly endless choices of materials for the case and the album. He adds that as a leading company, Graphistudio will always stand behind any printing defect.
• Go Book: a younger album designed to double as a decorative piece at home, with the couple's chosen photo printed on the cover and a case with a transparent lid. He says it has become the most requested album at his studio.

Both come in square, horizontal and vertical formats: 20×30, 25×35 and 30×40 for vertical and horizontal, and 25×25, 30×30 and 40×40 for square.

Price and contract

The page does not list prices, but it is clear on how pricing works. From the first contact, the studio gives the details of its photo and video services so couples can compare them against their needs. Couples are invited to share their ideas so that the right combination can be found together, and there are promotions and discounts during the year depending on the packages chosen. A transparent quote is provided, with the promise of no surprise extra charges for the whole photo and video service, and a contract in two copies sets out every point of the service; the page says it pays close attention to the consumer code in force (codice del consumatore).

Recognition

The page lists several claims: the studio says it is the most-reviewed wedding photographer on Google in the whole of Lombardy and third in northern Italy, holds Wedding Awards from a major wedding-planning portal, belongs to the international wedding photographers' association MY WED, and was selected by the Italian wedding photographers' association ANFM. The footer links to a Matrimonio.com profile.

Planning from a distance

For couples who live far from the studio, the page offers a video call with screen sharing, in which the team shows complete wedding reportages, albums and videos, and plans the wedding day in detail. The studio says it works this way with all its foreign clients. Appointments at the studio in Bonate Sopra (Via Carsana 41) are available from Monday to Saturday, including evenings. Contact is by mobile on 3421432506 or by email at danielecortinovisfotografia@gmail.com.

What the page does not settle

The page is in Italian and does not say whether the team works in English or German. It does not say how travel to a wedding in Switzerland is charged, or how long delivery of photos and video takes. The page names Lugano and "tutta la Svizzera" but shows no specific Swiss weddings in its text; the reportages sit behind a link.

Who it suits

Daniele Cortinovis suits couples marrying in Ticino, especially those with Italian-speaking families, who want strict reportage with very little posing, two photographers, video and drone coverage from one team, and a premium printed album. The same-day trailer is an unusual extra for a big celebration. The studio suits less well couples who want a photographer based in Switzerland, or who need prices and English-language service confirmed before the first call.