We’ve done a few interviews with young cycling photographers, but so far they’ve all been women! However, we have rectified that with this VeloEye, Davide Calabresi. Sean Weide of BMC suggested we talk to Davide as he’s a young, upcoming photographer who had been to both the Tour de Suisse and the Giro d’Italia earlier this year. Always grateful for a story tip, we took Sean’s advice and got in touch with him. And this is what he had to say for himself.

Kitty: So, Davide, tell us a little bit about yourself.

Davide: Hello! I’m a young photographer, 23, but not a newbie. I live between Milan and Varese in Italy, an area where cycling is deeply embedded in people’s hearts and where several very important races take place: Giro di Lombardia, Tre Valli Varesine, and every year the last stage of the Giro d’Italia is in Milan. And Ivan Basso lives just a few kilometers from my house! I study Industrial Design at Politecnico di Milano. After my degree I would like to have a career as a professional photographer but also to take a masters degree in Brand Communications. I would love to do what Tim de Waele does in cycling photography!

Kitty: What got you interested in photography? Have you always been taking pictures?

Davide: I don’t know how to explain my passion for photography, but certainly it started by looking at sports pictures in magazines like Sports Week, which is a supplement of Gazzetta dello Sport. Looking at those pictures made me want to take gorgeous pictures like that! I’ve been taking pictures since I got my first digital compact about six or seven years ago. Three years ago, I bought my first reflex and now I do shots almost every day. Over the last two years, I’ve had a lot of practice – I’ve attended many international events, like the Giro d’Italia and Tour de Suisse.

Kitty: How did you get interested in professional cycling? Who are your favourite cyclists and teams?

Davide: I got interested in pro cycling about four years ago, when by chance I was on holiday in the Pyrenees and the Tour de France went through the Col du Tourmalet. From then, I started to watch on TV the great classic races, but my tremendous passion for cycling was triggered by the great shots of the master photographers. Of course, the experience of being at the Giro and the Tour de Suisse this year just reinforced my interest in cycling.

I look up to Ryder Hesjedal for what he has shown at the Giro: from total stranger to great winner against all odds. He’s an all-round cyclist, he goes fast both on the flats and the hard mountains. However, Ivan Basso has always been one of my favourites, a great climber. Recently, I was very impressed by a young Slovakian cyclist, Peter Sagan, when I saw him at the Tour de Suisse.

Kitty: I think we all are pretty impressed by SuperSagan!

Kitty: You have a lot of different types of photography on your site – what made you want to photograph sport in particular?

Davide: I don’t only take sport pictures – I’m also particularly interested in night and nature photography. However, sports photography mostly fascinates me because you have to be able to seize the fleeting moment, you don’t have a second chance and there is a very high risk of error. In cycling, you only get one chance to click and if you miss it, maybe you have to throw out the whole day of work. While you click, you have the adrenaline at the top, yet you have to be quiet and focused on minimising the risk of error. There is need for a lot of alertness, experience and accuracy. This is not a type of photography for everybody, just the best. I do hope to be among them sooner or later.

Kitty: So why don’t you take us through some of your favourite shots, Davide!

Davide: This picture of Ryder Hesjedal was taken at this year’s Giro on stage 15, which started in Busto Arsizio. This was a week before the Giro ended, when he was still in the pink jersey. He lost it at the end of this stage, but won it back at the last stage in Milan.

Davide:I took this picture with a wide angle lens, just when Thomas de Gendt was coming round a narrow bend during the final time trial. The difficulty of a shot like this is that the cyclists pass by you very close and very fast! Maybe you have just half a second to click and, if you don’t miss it, the result is stunning!

Davide: The hero, Fabian Cancellara, on the podium at the Tour de Suisse after the first stage in Lugano, receiving his Best Swiss Rider jersey. Fabian is an icon in Switzerland (and not just there!). When he went onto the podium, there was a great standing ovation – like he was a movie star! It was thrilling.

Davide: I like this one of Peter Sagan at the Tour de Suisse time trial as it shows what an effort he had to make to win this stage.

Davide: I took this picture from the Italian National Championships, during the time trial, in June. I believe it shows the stress and concentration Matteo Montaguti had a few moments before he left the start-house.

Kitty: I think this is my favourite one, Davide. It’s an unusual, close composition and it’s just such a beautiful image.

Davide: This is a very patriotic shot where Dario Cataldo, the race winner, is singing the national anthem with his hand over his heart. It was a lovely moment.

Kitty: Finally, what cyclist would you most like to do a photoshoot with? What would be your dream photography assignment?

Davide: It would be great to do a photoshoot with Ivan Basso, or better, with the whole Liquigas team, a team of champions! Ivan is the person I see closest to me – in my area he is considered as a hero and he is very close to his fans. In my town, it’s usual to see him just cycling around like an ordinary person. This is part of the beauty of cycling – the riders are so close to the people.

My dream as a professional photographer would be to follow a team and get the best moments of the race from the motorbike saddle – what the great photographers like Tim de Waele, Liz Kreutz and Roberto Bettini do!

Kitty: Those are all such great pictures, Davide! I think you have a real future ahead of you in sports photography. Make sure you let us know what races you’re going to be at – we’d love to keep featuring your work on the site.

Davide: Thank you very much for the chance. I’m very pleased to share my pictures with you!

Follow Davide on Twitter and Instagram and visit his website www.dc-photos.it. And keep an eye on the blog as we’ll be featuring his work throughout the year.