Documenting the 2016 Paralympics with cell phones
A Brazilian team of photographers put down their cameras to photograph the games from a different perspective.
From left, the Mobgraphia team covers the games; Wheelchair racing. Photo by Leonardo Eroico; João Maia photographs the closing ceremonies. Photos courtesy of Mobgraphia
On the sidelines of the Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, photographer Ana Carolina Fernandes admits she felt a bit jealous. She was there covering the games with her cell phone. From time to time she would glance at the huge telephoto lenses, much like the ones she often uses, and think of the details and moments she was missing. Then she went back to tapping her iPhone screen. She says it was not easy.
“Then I realized how fantastic it is to have challenges in life, and mine were so little compared to these absolutely sensational athletes and human beings,” Ana Carolina says.
Ana Carolina, an Everyday Latin America contributor, was part of a small team of photographers that documented the 2016 Paralympic Games with cell phones. The group was organized by Mobgraphia, a São Paulo-based mobile photography initiative. Apple sponosored the team by giving them equipment and a travel agency chipped in with airfare and accomodation.
Leonardo Eroico, Ricardo Rojas, João Maia, Ana Carolina Fernandes and Renato Gaiofato of the Mobgraphia team. Photo courtesy of Mobgraphia
“The idea was to tell stories of the athletes because not many were known,” project lead Ricardo Rojas of Mobgraphia says. “And to do so through social networks to show people who these athletes were and how they train.”
The team started documenting the Paralympians a year before the September games. One day while covering a pre-games circuit Ricardo noticed João Maia, a visually impaired photographer, working the event. Aftering seeing his photographs, Ricardo set out to recruit him.
When João photographs sports he relies on the sounds of the crowd, players and ball to guide the direction of his lens. As he puts it, he photographs what he feels, not what he sees. Thirteen years ago João began to lose his vision, and now he sees only shapes and colors. He started taking pictures as a teenager but didn’t study photography seriously until his vision began to fade.
A former athlete who loves to photograph sports, João applied for a credential earlier this year to cover the Paralympics Games in Rio de Janeiro. He was denied – and utterly disappointed. Being part of the Mobgraphia team was João’s ticket into the games.
“I lived with these athletes and trained with them,” João says. “I had a responsibility to represent them with sensitivity.”
Clockwise from top left, Ricardo Alves plays in Football 5-a-side. Photo by Ricardo Rojas; Swimmer Daniel Dias kisses his wife. Photo by Ana Carolina Fernandes; Sprinter Verônica Hipólito. Photo by Renato Gaiofato; Athletes warm up for Football 5-a-side. Photo by João Maia
Ricardo was thrilled to have João’s vision and inside perspective, but covering the games with the Mobgraphia team meant João would have to take pictures with a cell phone for the first time. Initially nervous, he now prefers shooting with a cell phone saying that the phone’s voice features have helped his photography a lot.
The team agrees that using cell phones gave them a closer look at the games. Rather than being frustrated by the limitations of using a cell phone in large arenas, they often focused on people rather than the sport itself.
“A cell phone isn’t intimidating, and you aren’t as distanced from the subject,” Ricardo says.
That didn’t stop their cell-phone toting team from getting a few uncomfortable looks on the sidelines, where they stood shoulder-to-shoulder with giant lenses and cameras. At one event, officials wouldn’t even let them in without “real cameras” — so they flashed a few cameras to enter and then took out their phones to cover the event.
The team was also able to inexpensively play with new techniques and cell phone accessories, including underwater photography using what Ana Carolina calls “a very simple bag.” Ana Carolina recently sold a photo from the bag experiment to a collector.
This photo that Ana Carolina Fernandes made using her cell phone was recently sold to a collector (L). Ana Carolina Fernandes and Renato Gaiofato with their waterproof cell phones (R). Photo courtesy of Ana Carolina Fernandes
Ricardo and his colleague Cadu Lemos have been promoting mobile photography through exhibits, festivals, contests, books, and workshops since 2012 when their brand Mobgraphia was born.
Cadu laughs at the opinion that smart phones are killing photography. In a country that struggles with inequality and closing the gap between the rich and poor, Cadu sees the cell phone as a great equalizer.
Cadu says Mobgraphia’s goal is to make photography more democratic, inclusive and fun. The initiative promotes both artistic and documentary photography, from São Paulo’s wealthy districts to its slums.
João unexpectedly became one of the Paralympic Games’ most loved celebrities this year. The BBC interviewed him, Getty photographed him and dozens of athletes requested to take photographs with him. AFP even bought one of his images.
In the coming weeks Cadu will sift through more than 20,000 images from the Paralympic Games. The team is planning a photo and video exhibit that will include braille subtitles and audio descriptions accompanying each photo, as well as 360-audio that was recorded at the games in September. If the exhibit is sold to a sponsor, the photographers will be paid. Cadu also hopes to publish a book.
Meanwhile João is dreaming of covering the 2020 Paralympics Games in Tokyo. He is the first (and only) visually-impaired photographer to cover the games. The decible value and speed of João’s voice increase with each story he shares about the experience. In his voice I hear pride, honor and disbelief.
“It shows inclusion can be a reality,” João says.
A Paralympian trains for a rowing event. Photo by Cadu Lemos
The Mobgraphia Paralympic team consisted of photographers João Maia, Vitão Wang, Ana Carolina Fernandes, Leonardo Eroico, Renato Gaiofato, Ricardo Rojas, liaison Rodrigo Rojas, and editor Cadu Lemos. To see more coverage, search #superação2016.