THE PHOTOGRAPHER

Two subjects fuel my passion in photography: people and their cultures. That’s why portraiture and travel photography are my favorite genres—they bring together human connection and cultural discovery.

Photographing people while traveling opens doors. It creates real moments of contact, instead of just passing by. I enjoy the challenge of helping strangers feel at ease, inviting them to show who they are—or how they wish to be seen. I remember almost every moment behind my street portraits. Many of them appear in my book Strangers on the Street (see the book).

When we travel, it's often the differences that strike us first. Through my lens, I try to capture these differences not to judge them, but to understand and share them. There’s no right or wrong—just different ways of living. Photography is deeply subjective, often revealing as much about the photographer as the subject.

Beyond photography, I spent my career pursuing another passion: computational linguistics, the science of teaching computers to understand human language. You’ll find a separate space on this site dedicated to that part of my life.

What do photography and language have in common? Both are tools for communication, both help us connect with strangers—and both are powerful ways to tell a story.

Photographer Ralf Steinberger at the Dead Sea in Israel

Ralf at the Dead Sea in Israel.
Photo by Gabi Breitenbach

MORE info on the linguist

Exhibitions and Publications

Main exhibitions

Le Mani del Mestiere - Ritratti dei Negozianti di Sesto Calende. Bar Emiazico, Sesto Calende, Italy, 11.4.-21.5.2025.
Life Up Close. Joint Research Centre (JRC), Ispra, Italy, Jan 2025.
Honourable Mention at PISPA-2024: Paris International Street Photography Awards (flash photography).
Traum und Tristesse (mit Gemälden von Alex Brandmeyer, Skulpturen von Antje Schmuck und Fotos von mir und Gabriele Breitenbach). Rathaus Burghausen, Germany. 31.10.-25.11.25.
Andare alla deriva in terre lontane (Drifting into Foreign Lands). Mostra di sculture e fotografie. Ex-Colonia Elioterapica di Germignaga, Germignaga (VA), Italy, Aug+Sep 2023.
Die Welt ist bunt, und das ist gut so. Portraits und Reisefotografie. Galerie im Hinterhalt, Wolfratshausen, Germany, Nov+Dec 2019 (Website) (Video).
Fundstücke aus Italien (with photos by Gabi Breitenbach and sculptures by Antje Schmuck). Kunstturm am Schwankl Eck, Wolfratshausen, Germany, May+June 2021.
Menschen und ihre Kulturen. Stiftung Gute Tat, München, Germany. Sept 2020 – May 2021. Online-Talk on the theme on 24.11.2020 (75 minutes).
Street Portraits. Joint Research Centre (JRC), Ispra, Italy, Feb 2020.
Die Welt ist bunt, und das ist gut so. Portraits und Reisefotografie II. Amtsgericht Wolfratshausen, Germany, Jan-Sept 2020.
Impressions from Guatemala. With Gabi Breitenbach. Joint Research Centre (JRC), Ispra, Italy, June 2018.

Group exhibitions

Winner of the Competition: Bavaria Unseen. Shades of Blue and White. München, Germany, 20.1.-15.6.2024.
Winner of the competition: La Magia di uno Sguardo (The Magic of a Glance). Comune di Angera, Italy, March 2024.
Trieste Photo Days (11th edition), Urban Animals, Trieste airport, Italy, 2-31 August 2024.
Bilder, Briefe, Noten. Autorengalerie, München, Germany, 4-19 April 2024.
URBAN Photo Awards 2024, Selected Photographers, Historical Covered Marked "Camillo Jona", Trieste, Italy, 10.10.-23.11.2024.
FOOD. Oktoberfoto. Città della Fotografia, Varese, Italy, 28.9.- 31.10.2024.
Pace & Amore (Peace & Love). Castelletto Ticino, Italy, Aug 2024.
Oktoberfoto. Città della Fotografia, Varese, Italy, October 2023.
Visions on Water. Galleria Pro Sesto Calende, Italy, May 2022.
Painting and Photography. Galleria Pro Sesto Calende, Italy, June 2021 and Hotel Sirio, Dormelletto, Italy, June-Oct. 2022.
About Water. Hotel Sirio, Dormelletto, Italy, July to Oct 2022.
Forza e Fragilità - Natura a Scatti (Strength and Fragility of Nature), Hotel Europa, Ispra (VA), Italy, 3-19 March 2023.
Mostra Fotografia e Pittura Dedicata alla Donna per il Mese Internazionale della Donna. Hotel Sirio, Dormelletto (NO), Italy, 1-31 March 2023.
Acqua Intorno a Noi. Comune, Ranco (VA), Italy, 22-23 April 2023.
Emozioni. Galleria Pro Sesto Calende, Italy, Dec. 2022 - Jan 2023.
Ritratti. Castelletto Ticino, Italy, Aug 2023.
Piazze e Monumenti d’Italia. Castelletto Ticino, Italy, Aug 2022.
Fotogrammi. Castelletto Ticino, Italy Aug 2021.
Magic Nights. Ispra, Italy, June 2019.
Atomiade 2018 – Sports Photography. JRC-Ispra, Italy, July 2018.
Adult Grimaces and other portraits. Joint Research Centre (JRC), Ispra, Italy, Sept 2017.

Photography-related articles (Text and photos)

Photographing Religious Rites. EXPOSED Magazine #6, pp. 44-51. Dec 2020.
Impressions from Dilated Times – Covid-19 quarantine narrated by the JRC FotoCineClub. Joint work with 8 other photographers. EXPOSED Magazine #5, July 2020.
Editorial. EXPOSED Magazine #5, July 2020.
Clothes make the man – producing an actor’s portfolio. EXPOSED Magazine #3, pp. 22-27. Feb 2020.

Books including my photos (group work)

Vette e Sentieri. Racconti dalla Montagna. Associazione Culturale Europea & JRC Mountain Club (JAC). 2024
Esposizione – Foto-Racconti. Associazione Culturale Europea. 2022
10 autori in cerca di personaggio. Associazione Culturale Europea. 2022
Sindrome Sur – 22 crónicas meridionales. Von JJ Beeme. Fundación del Garabato. 2019
16th Atomiade – The Research Centre Games. JRC Ispra Varese. European Commission. 2018
Point Break. With ZooPark Publishing. 2021. (Zine)

You will find dozens of articles in magazines and blog entries where my photos have been used for illustrative purposes, by searching for images with the text Ralf Steinberger or phototravelography.

For my over 100 international scientific publications, see my dedicated computational linguistics webpage or my Google Scholar entry.