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Compelling Tales Captured on Camera

“It is taken at Nablus, one of the worst check points in Gaza. The boy, a Palestinian, was arrested by Israelis and the woman is his sister. She tried to help him, but instead she was arrested too,” Abed Omar Qusini, Palestinian photographer, told Khaleej Times.

The legendary photographer Robert Capa once said that “If your pictures aren’t good enough, you are not close enough”. He certainly got close enough and his picture won him the Bronze Eye Award in the Street Photography category of the EPC.

“I’m a Reuters photographer and we sit everyday on this border, sometimes up to three hours. It is difficult not to get involved. I am Palestinian before I am a photojournalist. I am suffering just like the people in my photographs,” he said. “Any photojournalist tries to bring out the truth in his images, but covering what Israelis are doing in Palestine, our pictures reveal more than the truth — you feel humanity in them, and sympathy for all these people suffering,” said Qusini.

The fourth annual EPC, organised by the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage, brought in top judges this year, including Steve McCurry, famous for his National Geographic pictures, who, in turn, attracted seriously talented photographers from around the world. After weeks of judging, on Monday night, the winners were finally announced, in a ceremony held at the Cultural Foundation.

Images of war, portraits of Indian fishermen, landscapes of European mountains, perfect snapshots of birds in action, acrobat bikers are some of the flavours of EPC exhibition.

silvia@khaleejtimes.com

and the winners are...

- main theme award: street photography

1. Bronze Eye (Dh10,000) goes to Abed Omar Qusini from Palestine for his photograph ‘01’

2. Silver Eye (Dh12,000) goes to Philip Cheung from Canada for his photograph ‘PC 001’

3. Golden Eye (Dh15,000) goes to Mohamed Ezzeddin from Egypt for his photograph ‘Alwan Sharei’

u Second: General Themes Awards

Nature Theme:

Golden Eye (Dh15,000) goes to Somnath Machoubdyay from India for his photograph ‘Damadoor Fishing’

- Portrait and People Theme:

Golden Eye (Dh15,000) goes to Marwa Adel Attia from Egypt for her photograph ‘Experiment’

- Journalism Photography:

Golden Eye (Dh15,000) goes to Marwa Adel Attia from Egypt for her photograph ‘Experiment’

- Sports and action:

Golden Eye (Dh,15,000) goes to Tan Choon Lai from Singapore for his photograph ‘Here we go’

- Third: Jury Committee Awards

Six awards, Dh 10,000 each, given by every Jury member for his/her.s choice of best work

1. Karen Davis Award goes to Olivio Argenti from Italy for his series photographs ‘Olympic Reselling’

2. Saeed Al Shamsi Award goes to Marjan Jerele from Slovenia for his photograph ‘Apple’

3 Abdul Rahman Al Henai Award goes to Teoh Siang Hooi from Malaysia for his photograph ‘Teras Field’

4. Husain Al Jabir Award goes to Abdullah Hamdan Al Manai from Qatar for his photograph ‘Lonely’

5. Herbert Gmeiner Award goes to Javid Tafazoli from Iran for his photograph ‘Just a Look’

6. Steve McCurry, Jury President Award goes to Alaa Eddin Badarna from Palestine for his photograph ‘Soldier & Boy’

-Fourth: UAE Photo Prize given for the best portfolio presented by UAE photographers in all themes:

Golden Eye (Dh15,000) goes to Tareq Ahmed Al Hemrani

Diamond Eye Award given from ADACH’s National Book Store, which includes printing and publishing a catalogue for the photographer and a photography exhibition for the winner, also with a prize value of Dh100,000 goes to Emarati Photographer Ahlam Al Ahmad

- Fifth Grand Prize: Diamond Eye Given to the best work in the Main Theme:

The prize is Dh40,000 and it goes to Sudipto Das from India for his photograph ‘Siesta’

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