Photographer Luís Godinho is the Edge of Humanity Magazine contributor of this documentary photography. From the ‘Travel‘ series. To see Luís’ body of work, click on any photograph.

Cows
Several shepherds lead huge herds of hundreds and hundreds of heads of cattle.
In India, although the cow is a sacred animal, and cow meat is practically not eaten, except in some southern areas, there are many giant herds with hundreds and hundreds of heads of cattle used for milk production. One of the beliefs of Hinduism is that the cow is sacred because if a mother does not have milk to feed her child, cow’s milk is the closest thing to human milk, thus mothers can feed their children, not only through milk , but also its derivatives.
Jaipur, India, 2015.

Claudia
This is Cláudia, she tried to commit suicide after a heartbreak in her life. She set fire to her house, but as fate would have it, a neighbor saved it. Nowadays she is a happy woman, she works daily at the local market selling fish. The curious part of this photograph is that she wore a necklace when she tried to commit suicide, a necklace that remains untill today around her neck, which contains a smile.
São Tomé and Príncipe, 2019.

Bogey
On the border between Thailand and Myannar several children in their traditional costumes walk on the street selling local products with their mothers. In this photo a girl was distracted picking a bogey off her nose.
Chiang Rai, Thailand 2014.

Window
For several weeks a group of volunteers went on a humanitarian mission rebuilding a small hospital center in the middle of the tribes in the heart of Senegal. During the rebuild every day the children would come close to the missionaries to play various games creating affective bonds. On the farewell day, this girl hung out of the bus window so that the volunteers wouldn’t leave.
Senegal, 2016.

Semoa
In São Tomé and Príncipe, the locals say it is a blessed land, as they have everything: fruit, vegetables, fish. Everything grows in abundance. They are a very happy people, where singing and dancing is part of the day to day. However one of the biggest social problems is alcoholism, especially in women. Here in this photo Semoa drinks her beer and smokes her cigarette.
Neve, São Tomé and Principe 2017.

Boat
The crossing from Bissau (capital of Guinea – Bissau) to Bolama island belonging to the Bijagós archipelago, is done using canoes, small wooden boats built by locals. These boats carry a little bit of everything: from people, motorbikes and animals, all together on the same vessel. Here this mother breastfeeds her son while the other daughter gazes intently at the sea.
Guinea-Bissau 2016.

School
Children in a small classroom at a school in Bolama. They enjoy the only light that enters the classroom, through some small holes in the wall.
Bolama, Guinea Bissau, 2016.

Fisherwomen
When the tide goes out, several women fishermen go to the sea with their baskets to collect algae and small bivalves.
Pemba, Cabo Delgado, Mozambique.

Harbor
This old port of an old Cocoa ane Coffee farm, nowadays serves as a playground for many children. Here in this photo Agostinho was watching the sea, sitting on top of his tire, which together with a small stick is one of his favorite games.
Fernão Dias, São Tomé and Principe, 2017.

Biography

Luís Godinho was born in Angra do Heroísmo, in 1983. With a degree in Engineering and Environmental Management from the University of Azores, he has a vast CV as a photographer with an emphasis on documentary photography and photojournalism. He became a professional photographer in 2017 and his work is internationally recognized by the editors of major photography websites and magazines, including: National Geographic, Leica Fotografie International, Lens Culture, 1x,. He also published in the main Portuguese media such as: Visão, Público, Volta ao mundo, etc. Winner and finalist of many international competitions, his photographs have also been published in several international photography books.

In 2017 Luís won First Prize at the Sony World Photography Awards.

Two times Golden Camera in the 2023 and 2024 in European Photographer of the year Competition, also winning Silver Camera in 2019/ 2021/ 2022 and won Bronze Camera in 2020 both in the reportage/photojournalism category, awards granted by the European Federation of Photographers. He currently lives on the Azores islands in Portugal and works as a freelance photographer all over the world.

All images and text © Luís Godinho