“I love and hate projects like the convention,” says Benjamin Lowy, one of three photographers on assignment for TIME at this year’s Republican National Convention. “It’s non-stop. You barely sleep and the logistics are daunting. But it’s also a time to realize that no matter how much people say they hate the media, we are the ones informing Americans. Letting them know what’s happening here.”

Lowy started his career as a conflict photographer, covering the war in Iraq in the pages of TIME magazine. For the last three days, however, he’s been photographing a different kind of battle – one of minds and ambitions as the Republican party gathered in Cleveland to nominate Donald Trump for President. He’s witnessed the mix of emotions – from the protests outside the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland to the battle of wits on stage as Senator Ted Cruz refused to endorse Trump.

Ben Lowy for TIME; Gif by Kenneth Bachor for TIME

This year, the majority of Lowy’s work is published first on social media platforms like Instagram. But the New Jersey-based photographer is used to it. In recent years, Lowy has always tried to stay ahead of the game, pushing himself in new directions with creative uses of technology. He was one of the early adopters of smartphone photography – Hipstamatic even named a filter after him – and he’s already experimented with 360-video and virtual reality.

Yet, he’s wary of not diluting what really matters: the news. “I’m currently sending images from my cameras straight to my phone and transmitting them from the convention floor in front of delegates,” he says. And while innovation and using technologies is a big part of the business of journalism today, Lowy is still committed to thoughtful storytelling.

Keep following @TIMElightbox on Instagram for the latest photos filed by our photographers.

Ben Lowy is an award winning photojournalist and director. You can see more of his work here.

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