Who I am
Mario Garrido Torres
Software engineer turned photographer. Sports photojournalism and travel with a cinematic eye, from Madrid.
The first camera
I got my first camera at nineteen or twenty, when the Canon 600D came out. With it I made my first YouTube videos and my first real photos. Before that, at five or six, I was already fiddling with my father's, but nothing worth telling.
Then work arrived and the camera stayed in a drawer. I switched to Sony, it came out on holiday now and then, and little else. What I never dropped were the tutorials.
The poison, again
Two and a half years ago, a former colleague handed me his camera one afternoon at Cerro del Tío Pío, in Madrid. The poison got back in, and this time it has not left.
The Appenninica
The first race I worked with a professional team was the Appenninica, a stage race in Italy, alongside FotoLAB and The Outdoor Lab. I saw how it works from the inside and got hooked on what surrounds the sport: the people, being deep in nature, and a bit of tension. For years my thing had been landscape, which I love, but it is quiet.
There I met Edu, from dronLimits, who opened the door to the XCM European Championship in Ramales with Klimatiza. And Ramales confirmed all of it.
The photo that ran in El País
12 July 2026, Ramales de la Victoria. David Valero wins the European Championship, El País needs a photo for the article, and mine is in the newsroom about forty minutes after the finish. Credited «Mario Garrido».
How I prepare a race
First, what I am asked for. Then always something extra: a shot I think will work for them, or playing at something different that might be cool. Then, where it happens: the shooting spots, how to reach each one, and the day before to see them with my own eyes. On race day, improvise, because there is always something that was not in the plan.
Engineer and photographer at once
More than twelve years of programming, today leading a team, and it seeps into the photos. I fly the drone with the rules read, not retold: RD 517/2024, AESA, ENAIRE. And the tools I am missing I program myself: to empty and select the cards as soon as I am back, to dictate without touching the cloud, to keep the computer always ready.
I do not pay for this with my salary. I pay with my holidays, which go on races and on trips with the camera.
Who for, where, and what not
Teams, race organisers, outdoor brands and media, in Spanish and in English. I have worked in Italy several times and in Cantabria; next is Tunisia. I am starting out, and I say it as it is.
Weddings, corporate events and video I do not do for now, though I do not rule them out. What I do: the race from the ground and from the air, the rider's portrait right after the finish line, and the photos in the newsroom while the news is still news.
The rest
I am from Madrid, the south side. I have lived in many places and now I am in the city. Bike, coffee and a server rack at home that interests nobody but me. Cameras, drones, lenses and backpacks, so many backpacks. I am a sucker for gear.
Where to find me
On Instagram I am @mario.garridotorres. For work, the address below; I answer myself.