( CNN ) When Thomas Cristofoletti walked into the Hyperstar supermarket in Shiraz , Iran , he was stopped at the door . He had his camera over his shoulder , and the international-style grocery store was built inside a large mall with a strict policy against photography . `` They almost would n't even let me bring the camera inside , '' Cristofoletti recalled . He was able to bring his camera inside , however , and when he saw a woman shopping in a colorful , patterned headscarf he made a surreptitious click of the shutter . `` I was able to take that one without looking , '' he said of an image he made for his series exploring Western-style consumerism in Iran . A former advertising director in Italy and Spain , Cristofoletti left the profession behind four years ago and moved to Cambodia to pursue photography . He founded RUOM , a collective of journalists who specialize in social reportage in Southeast Asia . Last year , Cristofoletti got the opportunity to visit friends working as graphic designers in Iran and he jumped on the chance to see what daily life is like there . `` I 've always been interested in closed countries , '' he said . `` I got this great opportunity to be there with locals . You are able to see things in a very different way . '' During Cristofoletti 's monthlong stay in Iran , he began to notice the differences in the way Iranians live their public and private lives . He realized that daily life in Iran contradicted the way Iran is typically portrayed . `` The perception we have ( about Iran ) is not real , '' he said . `` My idea was to try to see with my eyes what is the reality of Iran . '' Cristofoletti chose to show this new reality by documenting the increasing presence of Western-style consumerism in a country steeped in tradition . His photos juxtapose typical Iranian markets with modern , brightly lit shopping malls . `` Even if traditional grand bazaars continue to be the favorite places to shop for regular Iranians , they now face competition from huge shopping malls , which were erected in the outskirts of major cities across the country , '' Cristofoletti said . The malls feature supermarkets , international brands and vibrant video game arcades as a kind of alternative entertainment . `` I was really surprised to see these kind of modern stores and malls , '' he said . `` Shopping has become a near-obsessive ritual for young people . '' Cristofoletti notes that for women especially , some aspects of Western culture are particularly alluring . He found that because Iranian women are prohibited from showing any part of their body except for the face , they have taken to buying high-end beauty products and undergoing plastic surgery to make their features look more European or American . It is through these measures , Cristofoletti said , that women are able to `` rebel '' against government-imposed restrictions . Cristofoletti was aware of certain constraints to life in Iran , and he consulted with a journalist there before his trip who advised him that it was safer to go as just a tourist rather than as a journalist . Social media . Follow @ CNNPhotos on Twitter to join the conversation about photography . `` He said it could cause a problem for the person ( in Iran ) that is helping you , '' Cristofoletti said . Consumerism was a feasible subject because it was right in front of him . `` It just popped into my mind when I started seeing it , '' he said . `` It was a natural process . I spent a lot of time in the malls and just acted like a normal tourist . ( The authorities ) do n't see you as a problem . '' Cristofoletti wants his project to change the way people around the world think about Iran . `` It 's no different from our country , '' he said . `` There is this will of the people to be free . They want to express themselves . `` You just need to find the right angle , '' he added , `` and see everything in perspective . '' Thomas Cristofoletti is an Italian photojournalist and videographer based in Phnom Penh , Cambodia . You can follow him on Facebook and Twitter .
Thomas Cristofoletti traveled to Iran earlier this year and stayed for a month . He thought daily life in Iran contradicted the way the country is normally portrayed . ` I was shocked by how much more open people were about their sexuality than they are here in America,' he said.