LFI | Federico Borella

Photo: © Michaela Balboni

After graduating in Classic Literature and Mesoamerican Archaeology from the University of Bologna, Borella earned a Master’s in Photography and Journalism at the John Kaverdash Academy in Milan. He concentrates on social and ecological issues and has been published in The New York Times, Time, Newsweek and National Geographic, among others. His reportage on people and elephants in Sri Lanka was named “Picture of the Year” in 2024.

Website: http://www.federicoborella.com/ https://www.instagram.com/federicoborella07

Photo: © Michaela Balboni

Publications

Magazines

LFI 02.2026

Ragnar Axelsson, Federico Borella, Anja Niemi, Thomas Victor, Thomas Hoepker, Leica Noctilux-M 35 f/1.2 Asph

STORIES | March 20, 2026

Sculptural Landscape

The hay meadows of north-eastern Romania are among the last places in Europe where hay is still scythed by hand, and piled into tall stacks using traditional techniques. In their series, the photographers capture the artistry and beauty of this tradition.

PortfolioLeica SLConceptual

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STORIES | February 20, 2026

Between two Homelands

Federico Borella

Koryo-Saram are the descendants of a Korean minority once banned by Stalin. They search for their identity in K-pop. The Italian photographer accompanied some of them in Uzbekistan.

Print StoriesLeica SLPortraiture

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STORIES | March 27, 2019

Johatsu

Federico Borella

Federico Borella talks about his photo series Johatsu, which is set in Tokyo at night, and based on the well-known contemporary issue of “evaporated people” driven underground by the stigma of debt, job loss, divorce, or even just failing an exam. In his project, he uses suggestive imagery to illustrate this problem in Japanese society.

One Photo

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