Another New York in the pictures of a photographer who served 10 years in prison

After 10 years spent in prison, 47-year-old American Donato Di Camillo finally had the opportunity to wander the world as a free man. New York has changed a lot since Donato last saw it, so inspired by what he saw, he took the camera in his hands and decided to capture this brave new world in his pictures.

Donato became interested in photography while he was serving time in prison. Then he spent hours looking at photographs in National Geographic and Time magazines, dreaming of one day starting to take his own pictures and learn the technical basics of the art of photography.

In 2011, Donato was released from prison. He was put on probation, according to which he had to spend another three years under house arrest. It was then that Donato was able to take up photography in full force. He watched a lot of educational materials on YouTube and carefully studied various photoblogs.

Unfortunately, according to the conditions of house arrest, he could not be removed from the house by more than 36 meters, so the main characters of Donato's first photos were beetles, plants and other flora and fauna.

Finally, in 2014, Donato was allowed to move freely around the country, and he immediately began taking his stunning pictures. His photographs show those who, like him, live at the very bottom of society and whom we habitually do not notice.

After spending so much time studying photography, Donato realized that he was perfectly prepared to become a street photographer. "The time spent in prison and under house arrest gave me the opportunity to explore the world beyond my skull," says Donato.

"I've read a lot about human behavior and psychology. I realized that I have a certain knowledge that can help me navigate among the diverse personalities of the world of New York streets. I also have the knowledge about the collective unconscious of the social bottom of New York that is needed in order to capture the very juice of New York streets in their personal expression," Donato said.