Close Up: Photographer Felipe Dana

Felipe Dana discovered photography at age 15 when he started working as an assistant for event and commercial photographers. At the close of 2009, he decided to focus his career solely on photojournalism. Dana has focused his work on documenting the consequences of social changes in slums due to upcoming major sports events scheduled for 2014 and 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, where he currently lives and works as a staff photographer for The Associated Press. His work has received a number of awards in international contests including the World Press Photo, Pictures of the Year Latam (POY), China International Photo Competition (CHIPP), the Atlanta Photojournalism Contest.

A dove perches on the glass top coffin of Brazilian Cardinal Eugenio Sales, during his funeral in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Tuesday, July 10, 2012. Sales, Archbishop Emeritus of Rio de Janeiro, provided shelter to thousands of opponents of the military regime that once ruled Brazil and to political refugees fleeing the dictatorships of Argentina and Chile. Sales died in his home late Monday night of a heart attack. He was 91. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

An indigenous man wearing face paint and a headdress stands inside the abandoned old Indian museum in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Thursday, March 21, 2013. Brazilian Federal Court ruled that indigenous people who have been occupying the building since 2006 have to leave the area because it is next to the Maracana stadium, which will be the site of the final match of the 2014 World Cup soccer tournament and the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2016 Olympic games. Authorities say the compound must go as the area around the stadium is being transformed into a shopping and sports entertainment hub. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

In this photo taken on Nov. 25, 2011, Rosa Cardoso, 89, lies on the floor during the 'Exu' and 'Pomba Gira' ceremony at an Umbanda house of worship in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Intolerance and outright hostility against Umbanda, as well as against Brazil's other major African-descended religion Candomble, have recently returned to the spotlight as religious-freedom activists cry foul over the demolition of a house known as Umbanda's birthplace. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A man controls the ball with his foot while playing 'altinho' on the Ipanema beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, May 31, 2014. Altinho is a popular local game that is played with a soccer ball on the beach. The goal is not to let the ball drop, but passing to other players while keeping it airborne. The international soccer tournament is set to begin in just a few weeks, with Brazil and Croatia competing in the opening match on June 12. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

In this Saturday, May 31, 2014 photo taken through the transparent plastic of a decontamination tent, rescue workers carry a man playing the role of a victim during a simulation of an attack in the subway, as part of the 2014 World Cup preparations, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The international soccer tournament is set to begin in just a few weeks, with Brazil and Croatia competing in the opening match on June 12. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

An indigenous man sits as he participates in a protest at a building known as "Old Indian Museum," located near the Maracana stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, during the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, or Rio+20, Thursday June 21, 2012. Indigenous people who have built homes at the building will be relocated due to works on the stadium and the surrounding area as part of Brazil's preparations for the 2014 World Cup. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

An activist wearing a donkey mask stands next to police as they stand guard outside a military club during a protest in downtown Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Thursday March 29, 2012. A club of retired military officers held its annual celebration of Brazil's 1964 military coup as usual, but faced protestors as members arrived for the event. Unlike its Latin American neighbors, Brazil never had a formal investigation into its 20-year dictatorship. The sign reads in Portuguese " Father keep that one awayÖshut-up," a play on words from a song by famous singer Chico Buarque which was censored during the dictatorship. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A sloth peeks out from behind a door on a floating house in the 'Lago do Janauari' near Manaus, Brazil, Tuesday, May 20, 2014. Manaus is one of the host cities for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

In this May 8, 2014 photo, soccer fan Delneri Viana, 69, poses for a photo in his home, decorated with Botafogo colors in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Aside from the 83 and counting tattoos, the gray-haired man with a full, chalky mustache sports finger and toe nails painted in his teamís black and white colors. In fact, he never wears anything without the clubís emblem.(AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A woman holds up a black banner as people protest near the Kiss nightclub where a fire killed over 230 people in Santa Maria, Brazil, Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013. The Rio Grande do Sul state forensics department raised the death toll Tuesday from 231 to 234 to account for three victims who did not appear on the original list of the dead. Authorities say more than 120 people remain hospitalized for smoke inhalation and burns, with dozens of them in critical condition, after the Sunday nightclub fire. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Young residents play soccer at the Sao Carlos slum in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, May 12, 2014. As opening day for the World Cup approaches, people continue to stage protests, some about the billions of dollars spent on the World Cup at a time of social hardship, but soccer is still a unifying force. The international soccer tournament will be the first in the South American nation since 1950. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A visitor photographs a sculpture entitled 'Drift' by Australian artist Ron Mueck during the opening day of his exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Wednesday, March 19, 2014. The exhibition will run from today to June 1, 2014. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A woman sunbathes next to a demonstration organized by firefighters demanding a wage increase, on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday June 12, 2011. Organizers brought 439 red balloons representing the number of firemen who were arrested after days of protests ended with the occupation of the fire brigade headquarters last week. The firemen were eventually released. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

In this May 9, 2014 photo, former drug user Renato Souza, 44, smiles for the camera at the God's Love rehabilitation center in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

In this May 9, 2014 photo, a former drug user reads the bible at the God's Love rehabilitation center in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Pastor Celio Ricardo offers them a roof in a makeshift shelter in a nearby neighborhood, a simple structure next to his humble Love of God evangelical church. There, young men sleep side-by-side on plain raw-wood beds. Clean shirts hang from roof beams, meager belongings gathered tidily on battered dressers. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

In this May 24, 2014, photo, a man reacts after being hit by the ball during a soccer game in the Tatuyo indigenous community near Manaus, Brazil. Manaus is one of the host cities for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

In this April 12, 2014 photo, a drug addict rests against a wall in an area known as 'crackland' at the "pacified" Jacarezinho slum in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. After midnight, grime-covered addicts lie on the sidewalks of the Jacarezinho slum. Theyíre focused on little more than the next fix, on finding a lighter to put flame to pipe. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A dog named Caique wears a hat and shirt on Arpoador beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2014. Caique's owners said they like to dress Caique up for dog parades and that they enjoy pedestrians taking his picture during his daily walks. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A man covered in mud holds up his mud covered dog as another reveler takes a picture during the "Bloco da Lama" or "Mud Block" carnival parade in Parati, Brazil, Saturday Feb. 18, 2012. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

In this image made with a multiple exposure, Yun Sung-bin of South Korea speeds down the track during the men's skeleton final competition at the 2014 Winter Olympics, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014, in Krasnaya Polyana, Russia. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Fans watch the 'Tribute to Cazuza' show during the Rock in Rio music festival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Friday, Sept. 13, 2013. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel from Germany sits inside his car during a free practice at the Interlagos race track in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Friday, Nov. 22, 2013. The Brazilian Formula One Grand Prix will take place on Sunday. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

An indigenous boy plays near the Rio Negro river during sunset in the Tatuyo indigenous community, near Manaus, Brazil, Monday, May 19, 2014. Manaus is one of the host cities for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A man runs on Botafogo beach near a huge sculpture made from plastic bottles, backdropped by a silhouette of Sugarloaf mountain in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in the early morning hours of Wednesday, June 20, 2012. The city is host to the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, or Rio+20, which runs through June 22. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Boys gather for a pickup game of soccer at the Sao Carlos slum in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Friday, March 7, 2014. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Riot police walk next to a mural of the mascot for the 2014 World Cup soccer tournament, called Fuleco, near the Maracana stadium, after evicting Indians from the nearby old Indian Museum in Rio de Janeiro, Friday, March 22, 2013. Police in riot gear invaded an old Indian museum complex Friday and pulled out a few dozen indigenous people who for months resisted eviction from the building, which will be razed as part of World Cup preparations next to the legendary Maracana football stadium. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A young vendor holds a couple fish to his face as he jokingly poses for a photo at the Panair fish market in Manaus, Brazil, Saturday, May 24, 2014. Manaus is one of the host cities for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

For this photo captured using a long exposure, a group of friends asked the photographer to take their picture as they used flashlights to paint with light, a heart symbol and the word 'Rio' while standing at the apex of Morro Dois Irmaos or Two Brothers Mountain at dawn, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, May 17, 2014. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

---

To see more images by photographer Felipe Dana, click here.

Spotlight is the blog of AP Images, the world’s largest collection of historical and contemporary photos. AP Images provides instant access to AP’s iconic photos and adds new content every minute of every day from every corner of the world, making it an essential source of photos and graphics for professional image buyers and commercial customers.  Whether your needs are for editorial, commercial, or personal use, AP Images has the content and the expert sales team to fulfill your image requirements. Visit apimages.com to learn more.

Written content on this site is not created by the editorial department of AP, unless otherwise noted. 

AP Images on Twitter | AP Images on Facebook | AP Images on Google+