In an effort to convey an understanding of the current political situation in Iran, photographer and journalist Paolo Woods compiled these 123 images that he found on the internet, most of which were uploaded by citizen journalists. Since the contested elections last year, and continuing today, mainstream media has been severely hindered in its ability to photograph, film and report in Iran. Woods provides commentary on these photos and the situations he has encountered in Iran in recent times.

This work was projected at the Rencontres photo festival in Arles, France, last week. For me, it was by far one of the most relevant presentations there, since it explored the many ways photography is being used today to communicate worldwide in near-realtime by people using mobile phone cameras and sharing their images via sites like Flickr and Twitter.

The video is also available with French-language narration at rue.89.com.

You can learn more about Paolo Woods at his website: www.paolowoods.com
He recently published a book about Iran, which has its own cool, informative website: marchesurmesyeux.fr