“It’s the feeling of being there,” answers Alice Greenfield, when asked what’s the vital ingredient in her beautiful mix of street, lifestyle and travel photography. Glowing with a sort of dreamy nostalgia, her photos seem to evoke memories of places you may have never been. “To me, photography is a kind of time travel,” she continues, “so it’s my job to put the viewer in that moment, and there are lots of things that go into doing that.”

Memories are a story we tell ourselves and others, and with Alice being a consummate communicator, it’s no surprise that she trained as a cinematographer, a field where light, movement, colour and composition draw the viewer into whatever tale is being told. But her photos have an honesty, too, as seen in her recent trip to Italy’s sun-drenched Amalfi coast.

“Whether I’m at home or abroad, it’s really the essence of a place I’m looking for,” she explains, “and to make an honest portfolio of my experience. I do consider myself a storyteller, but it’s always with a very human view I take. I want people to sense there’s a person behind the camera and a lot of that comes from me being a very sentimental type. I journal a lot, gathering my life through words and pictures. In fact, you could call my portfolio a journal of beautiful places.”

To create the ‘pages’ of that journal, Alice employs a mix of waiting, careful framing and opportunism in her photography. “When I trained, we used film,” she says, “so I inherited the idea of being selective and intentional. I take care to get things right in camera, so I guess you could say my editing begins long before I trip the shutter.”

A large part of that care is about colour. “I think colour is incredibly important,” she says, “both in capture and grading, and I always try to have a palette in my images that feels nostalgic. Because I know the colours that’ll work I can be selective. So if the scene has a bright green car which I don’t want, I’ll reframe. Or I’ll wait for the perfect red vespa because I don’t want a white one… Essentially, I’m editing colours live, which is more satisfying than doing it later.”

Having the right camera kit is also vital for her street photography, Alice says. “I chose Sony Alpha cameras because they’re so great at the hybrid approach I need for my work, but I also know I get a different feel and results depending on what sort of body I take out with me. For street and travel, I want a small camera, and the Sony Alpha 7C II that I used along with my Alpha 7 IV on the Amalfi trip was perfect for that.”

“As capable and advanced as the Alpha 7C II is, a big part of its appeal is how it makes me feel,” she continues. “I like that it has a high-quality electronic viewfinder, proper ergonomics and feels robust, like a proper tool. It has the same great AF performance and speed of Sony’s larger cameras, and its images have the depth, sharpness, and colour I want, but the main thing is that it’s so reminiscent of a film camera that it makes me relaxed.”

“That has an effect on my photography and other people, too,” she continues. “I want to be subtle and safe, and the Alpha 7C II helps me be more anonymous. Most of the time I work fly-on-the-wall style, but there are times I’ll ask for a portrait, and you always get a better portrait with a small camera.”

Twinning the Alpha 7C II with the FE 40mm f/2.5 G was the perfect pairing for Alice. “When I’m doing street photography, I don’t like the fuss of changing lenses and a prime really concentrates my focus, so I’m thinking less about ‘what if’ I zoomed in or out, and more on being in the moment. 40mm gives a very human view, too. It’s a real ‘being there’ lens.”

But the most dynamic examples of being there might just be Alice’s waterline pictures around Positano, made with a waterproof housing. “Underwater housings aren’t much fun to travel with,” she says, “but they’re worth it for trips like that. Being able to use my Alpha 7 IV in the water to get diving and swimming images is another way to give that sense of connection. You can almost feel the freshness of the water and the heat of the sun, and it’s what Italians spend most of their time doing in the summer anyway!”

While we enjoy her views of the Italian coast, Alice is already onto her next project, Alpha cameras and lenses at her side. “I’m convinced that the Alpha range has something for every situation,” she finishes, “and that makes them the perfect travel companions.”