Mention the word superhero, and the images that come to mind are of fictional characters like Spiderman, Wonder Woman, or Batman. However, photographer Josh Rossi has used his camera to show the world's real superheroes — young children who are battling severe diseases and disabilities.
The event leading to the creative project began in 2016, when Rossi fulfilled his then threeyearold daughter's dream of becoming Wonder Woman. Thanks to the handmade costume and Rossi's impressive Photoshop skills, the photoshoot instantly became a hit.
Since it was Wonder Woman that brought about the idea, Rossi decided to focus on the superheroes that will appear alongside her in the upcoming movie, Justice League. To make the photo shoot more meaningful to the kids, he matched each child with a superhero with whom they had the most in common.
The first member of the reallife "Justice League" was Kayden Kinckle. The fiveyearold uses prosthetics (假肢) to walk because both his legs had to be cut off due to a born disorder. To Rossi, Kayden's perfect superhero was Cyborg, who was a healthy boy before a terrible accident left him injured, forcing his father to keep him alive with robotic parts.
Teagan Pettit was born with only half a heart and has already gone through three openheart surgeries. According to Rossi, the nineyearold fits the bill for Superman because they both have a weak heart. The fictional superhero grows weak when near Kryptonite (氪), while Teagen's half heart is too weak to control his body temperature. The photographer says, "Superman and Teagan both have hearts of steel!"
