This picture is the output of my continuous search for a new photographic angle – it happened at a shooting with FMX rider Vanni Oddera.
I was close to the ramp in front of a puddle of mud and during the jump I saw Vanni’s image reflected on the water. I tried to find the right angle to show the whole trick, the rider actually being in shot.
I had to address a problem of water ripples when the rider was motoring up the ramp. Choosing the right moment was crucial to the photo. The result is a real ‘rock solid’ trick.
Riccardo Monti

About the shot

Biography
I'm 23 years old and my hometown is Como, Italy. I have been a self-taught freelance sports photographer for six years. My passion for pictures began during my early teens when I used my father’s Olympus OM2 for the first time.
At the end of my school studies I followed freestyle motocross thanks to film friends, travelling around the world to USA, Japan, South Africa and throughout Europe. I got to know the sport very well, the people in it, and I got to co-operate with many different magazines. Then I began to diversify by shooting BMX, wakeboarding, skateboarding, jet skiing and snowboarding in many different countries. Now I’m collaborating with brands such as ESPN, etnies and FIAT.
I’m always looking to find a unique shot, configuring it in my mind to achieve exclusive, never- seen-before pictures for advertising or magazines. To me a picture is always a portrait that expresses my sensations.