At the age of five, João expressed his innate interest in creating when he asked his parents for a camera for Christmas. Upon receiving a box like toy camera, he kindly thanked them but gave it back, pointing out that it did not have a flash and wanted a real one.

Though he expressed this interest in having a ‘real’ camera at the age of five, João’s artistic explorations began with painting and fine arts which led him to study at Ar.co Institute of Art and Visual Communication in Lisbon, Portugal.

João ran and co-owned a production house, Milkman Studio, in Lisbon for seven years from 2002, which catered to the the needs of both large and small clients from the advertising, fashion and music sectors.

His work has also extended into video, both as director and director of photography and has worked on numerous music videos and television commercials in both Europe, the USA and Africa.

One of the highlights of Carlos’s photographic career came in 2010 when he won the Hasselblad Masters Award, a prestigious recognition in the industry, honoring the best in both established and rising photographic talent.

João’s client list includes advertising agencies, magazines, fashion apparel, and beauty companies such as Nike, Avon, Pfizer, Staples, HP, Vodaphone, Barclays Bank, Ogilvy, Mccan Erickson, Universal Music, Emi Records, Wella Hair, Schwarzkopf Hair, Thevi Cosmetics, Merhon Make up, Infiniti, Sandisk.

Most recently, João’s work has appeared in numerous publications and magazines namely Elle, Forbes, UP TAP INFILGHT MAGAZINE. Kurv, Chaos Magazine, Eclectic Magazine, Dilema, Wallpaper, Nstyle Magazine, Umbigo Magazine, Numero Magazine, Blink Magzine, W25 Magazine, and Iconography Magazine.

João’s work has been featured in several magazines and TV Programs worldwide such as BCC UK, Portugueses sem Fronteiras, Direct Arts Magazine, FotoVideo, Victor by Hasselblad Magazine, Photoshop Australia magazine, O mundo da Fotografia Digital, DP Arte Fotografica, PH Magazine, Composition Magazine Israel,British Journal of Photography and Professional Photographer Magazine, Plum TV Miami, Caracol TV Columbia, RTP international and RTP 2.

In João’s continuing role as a guest speaker, he has been invited to speak at many prestigious events over the last decade including the Hasselblad stage, Sandisk stage and Koylab at Photokina in Germany, Hasselblad Studio opening in London, Hasselblad, FOCUS events in Columbia and Brazil, BES Art and Finance, Petcha Kutcha Lisbon and IADE Creative University He has been a speaker for Sandisk at MWC 2014 \ 2015 \2013, Computex 2013 Sandisk Taipei. He has spoken at Salon da Foto Paris and at the World Photographers Cup in France WPPA Asia 2014.

Awards
2015 QEP European Qualified Photographer Fashion
2014 Awarded the medal off cultural merit by the City of Caldas da Rainha
World Photographers Cup Team Portugal 2ed Place
2013 World Photographers Cup Team Portugal 3rd Place
2011 Communication Arts Award of Excellence - Art Director
2010 Hasselblad Masters Award

2005 / 2003 VII Bienal de Fotografia da Moita / VII Photography Biannual Award of Moita – Honorable Mention, Moita, Portugal

2001 XI Bienal Internacional de Arte de Vila Nova de Cerveira, Portugal

Brand Ambassador
Sandisk Extreme Team, Westcott Top Pro, 3 Legged Thing, Prom Team, Koy Lab Ambasador, G-Team member and Fuji X Photographer

Solo Exhibitions
2013 I am bunny at the Black sheep gallery Lisbon
2011 “Love Tragadies" Castelo São Jorge, Lisbon / “A Maior Exposição Fotográfica do Mundo" /
American Circus in Britain," Espaço Santa Casa
1998 “Earth e Terra" Museum Vasco P. da Conceição Maria Barreira, Bombarral(PT)

Group Exhibitions
2011 “Hasselblad Masters" Galeria da Boavista Lisbon
2010 “International Biannual of Art & Industrial Design" of Marinha Grande / “Hasselblad Masters" Visual Gallery at Photokina / “Hasselblad Masters"" the Print Space London / “Foco"" Casa Sinfin Gallery, Colombia / “Hasselblad Masters" vaults at Kunstkasteel (Art Castle) Woerden Kasteel, Woerden-Centrum, The Netherlands / “Made In Cuba" Jadite Gallery NYC / “Hasselblad Masters"

2009 "Hasselblad Masters" The Demask Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark / "Hasselblad Finalists", Hong Kong / Milk Gallery at Milk Studios NYC 

1999 Galeria Sec. XVII, Leiria / Galeria Respublica, Santarém / Akhenaton Gallery – Lisbon

1998 V Prémio de Pintura Almada Negreiros, in collaboration with the Fundacion cultural Mapfre Vida, Palácio dos Pestanas,Porto / :Y, Grego Gallery,Lisbon

1998 Arte Rouca Gallery, Marinha Grande(PT)

1995 Lagos Biannual – Bienal de Lagos, for Institute Portuguese of Museums

1994 Um Olhar sobre a gravura Japonesa, for the Oriente Foundation at Museu de José Malhoa

Collections Representations
Museu Vasco P. da Conceição Maria Barreira, Camara Municipal do Bombarral(PT) / Banco Espirito Santo / Camara Municipal de Óbidos / Private collectors world wide

Client List
Nike, Pfizer, Sandisk, HP Printing, Universal Music, Emi Records, MTV, Banif Bank, Barclays Bank, Ogilvy Barcelona, FactoHair, Wella Hair, Schwarzkopf Hair, Thevi Cosmetics, Throttleman, Flip Apparel, Le Plume, Elite Models, DXL Models, L’Agence Models, Avon, Vodaphone, Mitchell Gold+Bob Williams, Global Models, The Artist Group, Cabo TV: Mozambique and Angola, MoviePlay, Jessica Rose, Flip Apparel NYC, Staples, Nstyle, Wallpaper, Kurv, Dilema, Eclectic Magazine, Disfunkshion, Apollo, Umbigo, Numero, Six degrees magazine, DP Arte Fotografica, W25, Emerge magazine, Blink, Dif, Connecticut Home & Gardens, Modern Homes, Architect, Iconography Magazine, Series, Mccan Erickson, Brandia Central, Webdote, Corbin PR.