"Quinta do Cabrinha" neighborhood in Lisbon

Some photographs from "Quinta do Cabrinha" neighborhood in Lisbon, the photos were taken in July last year but I had them waiting in my archive to be revised and published. I often want to take off to another country in the search of stories in neighborhoods and going today trough my archive I realize that Portugal also have this places to go and search for stories. This particular one is not one of the most problematic and it is very colorful.
I will for sure during this year visit some of the problematic neighborhoods and search for photojournalism stories.

©Miguel A. Lopes
©Miguel A. Lopes
©Miguel A. Lopes
©Miguel A. Lopes
©Miguel A. Lopes
©Miguel A. Lopes
©Miguel A. Lopes

Archive

During these days I have been going through all my archive of 2007, organizing, cleaning and recovering some photographs and in July last year during a meeting of the Portuguese Presidency of the European Union in Guimaraes, there was a major protest, that gather more than ten thousand protesters from all over the country, against the politic decisions on implementing the Flexi-Security working system in Portugal.
I was shooting the meeting and I was not schedule to shoot this event but because I didn’t have anything to shoot until late, I went outside of the facilities and took my camera and voice recorder.
I remember that it was one of the hottest days of this summer, people were making a lot of noise but with order, the police mount a security perimeter around the facilities and no disorders were register. I melt in to the crowd and start shooting and at the same time recording the sounds with my voice recorder hanged on my neck.
I mount this sound slides at that time but I didn’t know how to put it online, so it was waiting in my archive “collecting some dust”. I just learn it last week!!!
I know it is not an hot or fresh news but I want to show it. Enjoy it HERE

©Miguel A.Lopes

Gypsy Kids

Last week I went through my archive and recover this photographs from Gypsy Kids. I made this portraits during a reportage about the Nomadic gypsies living in Portugal. These kids live in very poor conditions, they live in tents made with just some wood sticks and some plastic covers and with no floor, no water, or electricity. They also didn't have any conditions in terms of hygienic. They don't go to school due to their constant mobility. Usually these kids and the families don't stay in the same place for more than 3 days because of national laws and to local people that normally don't like to have them as neighbors.
They stay all day playing around the camping, helping the family with all kind of duties and playing with the horses that apparently are the only source of money of these family.
They stayed all day, making lots of noise and wanting me to photograph them but soon as I point the camera to them something strange happen, they become silent, something deep come from inside of these kids. It was the first time I felt I was steeling a soul, maybe the soul of these kids....

©Miguel A. Lopes
©Miguel A. Lopes
©Miguel A. Lopes
©Miguel A. Lopes
©Miguel A. Lopes

Explosion of Colors / Happy New Year

I started the New Year 2008 by photographing the fireworks in Madeira Island.
The fireworks started at midnight, with the sound of the horns from the 13 Cruise ships stopped in the pear.
It was 15 minutes of fireworks, with thousands of explosions of colors. I was positioned in the top of a building with a fantastic view over Funchal bay. The fireworks came from all over the city and hills creating an amazing show of light, color and sound.
I wish everyone a Happy New Year with success, happiness and health.
Enjoy the images, you can view more of this collection of photos here

©Miguel A. Lopes
©Miguel A. Lopes
©Miguel A. Lopes