As the official photographer to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Ademola Olaniran has spent years documenting some of the state’s most defining moments, quietly building one of the most extensive visual archives of an administration in recent history. His photographs have captured everything from policy announcements and infrastructure milestones to fleeting, unscripted moments that rarely make headlines but often reveal the human side of public office.
His latest project, Against All Odds, transforms that archive into a striking coffee-table book, offering a visual narrative of Governor Sanwo-Olu’s years in office through the eyes of the man who stood behind the lens. More than a collection of photographs, it is a carefully curated record of leadership, resilience and the evolving story of Lagos.
Long before this, however, Olaniran’s own story took an unexpected turn. Trained in Human Physiology and with a career in banking already underway, he made the uncommon decision to pursue photography full-time, a choice that has since earned him recognition as one of Nigeria’s leading documentary photographers.
In this conversation with Yinka Olatunbosun, he reflects on the journey that led him behind the camera, the responsibility of documenting history in real time, the making of Against All Odds, and what it takes to create images that endure long after the moment has passed.
You began your professional life in banking before eventually finding your calling behind the camera. Looking back, what convinced you that photography wasn’t simply a passion but the work you were meant to do?
It actually started way before that. First, I started out as a Medical student, but I discontinued in my 2nd year. Transitioning from Banking to professional photography was instinctive. One day at the office, I suddenly realised that my future wasn’t in banking, where the essence of
my being was being judged by some targeted performance metrics. Growing up as a child, I had a natural flair for the arts, painting and creative imaging. While pondering my fate in the banking sector, I got a camera, which I basically played with and experimented with, taking pictures, trying angles and exposure, dreaming of my shots being on the front pages of National Geographic magazine and so on. Soon, I started photographing events of my colleagues at the office, and gradually I discovered that it was not just photography that set my heart on fire, it was the rare ability of creating lively images from fleeting moments around me that many would almost never anticipate or recognise. This gift of art was now a purpose for which the camera, and, most importantly, my mind’s eye, became tools. Instinctively, upon my resignation from banking, my ED, Kudi Badmus got me connected, and I got the rare opportunity of being mentored by one of the legends of photography in Nigeria – Mr Dayo Adedayo. In 2011 my photograph “Atupa mi” won the prize for best still life photography at the Nigeria Photography Awards NIPHA. From then on, the rest they say is history.
As Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s official photographer, you’ve had a front-row seat to some of Lagos’ most defining moments over the past several years. Has the job changed the way you see leadership or public service?
Yes. For me, I strongly believe that the responsibility of photographers covering politics and government has deepened, the responsibility of bridging the trust deficit between Leaders and followers rests heavily on our shoulders. Leaders want citizens to see what they have been doing, and also, citizens want answers to their many questions. As storytellers, we owe it to them to provide dispassionate, evidence-based answers to these questions. As for leadership, I have always believed that it is critical to be objective and strategic in decision-making, at both the personal and corporate levels. Sometimes, in emergencies,
tough decisions have to be made in the moment for the greater good, and that’s where the vulnerability of a leader gets tried & tested. On public service, especially in the age of artificial intelligence, social media
and the rise of fake news, misinformation & disinformation, I have learnt that the perspectives of the populace can be shaped in time by the narratives that echoes through the media. Leadership must be
intentional about owning the right narrative about events and the critical moments that influence people’s lives.
Your coffee-table book, Against All Odds, tells the story of Governor Sanwo-Olu’s administration almost entirely through photographs. When you first conceived the project, what story did you feel had not yet been told?
It was the story of the resilience of a people and their leader in the face of adversity. Yes, the book, SANWO-OLU: Against All Odds, is about the major challenges and milestones during the administration of
Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s first term in office, but it is also about the breakthrough spirit of Lagosians and how the city rebounds stronger after various shockwaves. For me, this was a rare privilege, and thankfully I became a fly on the wall during these times – a leverage I had to capture significant moments that would be a great part of the history of Lagos in no distant time.
Selecting images for a book like Against All Odds must have meant leaving out hundreds of memorable photographs. What guided your choices, and were there any images that were particularly difficult to exclude?
The T.H.E.M.E.S Agenda was a guide. The book had to cover the Governor’s candidacy, the primaries, and his victory at the polls. Thankfully, I led the photography documentation of his pre-election campaign, so there was some consistency in the content and style of the event imagery as it transitioned into the Governor’s inauguration and first term in office. In each theme – Traffic Management & Transportation, Health & Environment, Education & Technology, Making Lagos a 21st
Century Economy, Entertainment & Tourism, Security & Governance – images that depicted more of the essence of the agenda were selected. I worked with a very experienced and effective team comprising of some of my colleagues on the media team Mr Atobatele, Gawat, Wale and also Dr Toni Olatunji and Mr Kolade both seasoned writers and curators. We all did the difficult job of sifting through a whole lot of great photographs that had to be cut down to make the final selection.
The shockwave images were critical – COVID-19, the Abule Ado Explosion, the EndSARS protest, and the Ikoyi building collapse. They couldn’t be excluded despite their innate potential to relive traumatic memories in those who witnessed and experienced the painful events.
Many people see the finished photographs but never the work behind them. What did producing Against All Odds teach you about visual storytelling that years of daily photography hadn’t?
The work behind the scenes of Against All Odds has taught me about the power of a matrix team, of which I was privileged to curate one. In visual storytelling (especially when it has political undertones), the ability to harness the perspectives of every member of the matrix team is essential to creating a balance for readers and reviewers. It took us two years of hard work and sleepless nights to get here, and I must thank the team for a great job done.
After spending years documenting Governor Sanwo-Olu’s administration, what is one side of him that the public rarely gets to see, but your camera has witnessed repeatedly?
His authenticity in moments of vulnerability during times of volatile and complex uncertainty. Some may call him “Superman” but we all know that kryptonite do exist. My lens sometimes beholds the face of a man in a pensive mood. Why? Cos, the next best decision for the moment might just be stillness.
Governments are constantly scrutinised, particularly in the age of social media. How has instant public reaction changed the way official moments are documented and communicated?
We are in the age of speed, AI and fake news. There is some form of autonomy in social media which allows individuals, groups or organisations to post their content about a public outcome, political
moment or significant event on the internet. However, the State Government’s narrative on such occurrences remains legitimate regardless of prevailing opinions on social media. In light of these, we have upped the ante in our speed of communication post events as the voice that seems to echo mostly are usually those that make the first impression on the perspective of social media users and influencers.
You’ve built one of the country’s most recognisable documentary photography portfolios. Looking back through your archive, is there one image that still feels especially significant to you—not because of who is in it, but because of what it represents?
The shot of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu shirtless recieving an injection shot. All I see is THE VULNERABILITY OF POWER. This image I consider my favourite from the book “SANWO-OLU Against All Odds”
Some images tell a single story, others tell a thousand more, but this is one of those that tell a million more. This is what it looks like when power strips itself of its armour and just for a second, it bravely dares to acknowledge its own vulnerability. Behind every heavy curtain of authority, a frail humanity is hidden. And once in a while, even the regality of power allows us to behold it as he is… here, Mr Gov got COVID-19, and, like every human, his body gave in.
Like every single one of us… power is tested by fragility, it winces in pain, it submits itself to the whims of a physicians needle… it feels, it forbears, and most beautifully, it lets its guard down and let’s us all in. As flies on the wall in such distinguished rooms, our lenses find their home in the very soul of the space, melting seamlessly into the scenery until they are all but forgotten. It is in this quiet anonymity that principals are liberated from the impulse to perform, leaving only stories so raw and unguarded that truth needs no censorship. After all, the fly needs no permission to perch upon the King’s table.
I strongly believe that the artist does not create only for the riveting moments of governance… The true artist? He also lives for the fleeting yet eloquent moments like this, when even kings are unafraid to share the deepest, truest parts of themselves with a people bound to see them only as a distant picture of greatness.
You’ve credited photographers such as Dayo Adedayo, Donald Barber, TY Bello, and Kelechi Amadi-Obi as important influences. What’s one lesson from a mentor that continues to shape the way you approach your work?
Being relentless in what sets your heart on fire – that is how I choose to summarise Passion, which is the common denominator amongst them all.
Away from official assignments, who is Ademola Olaniran? How would you describe your personal style, your interests outside photography and the things that help you switch off after documenting the lives of others?
I am a lover of music, a collector of art, and vintage items. I am intentional about mentorship as I have been a huge beneficiary of it. I love watching football. I support Arsenal and was very glad to see the boys do a good job of lifting the 2025/26 English Premier League title. Best of all, I like to spend time seeing museum exhibitions with my wife, Liz.
