The Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum International Photography Award, HIPA, has announced that it concluded the June edition of the Instagram Photo Contest themed ‘Festivities’. Five winners were announced for the competition, which received submissions under the hashtag #HIPAContest_Festivities.
According to a press release issued by HIPA today, the contest winners hailed from; Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Indonesia, Philippines and India. June’s ‘People’s Choice Award’ winner will receive a brand new CANON EOS M50, courtesy of Canon Middle East.
Ali bin Thalith, HIPA Secretary-General, said, “Festivities are among the most prominent occasions of happiness and celebration in different communities. Each community has its own rituals, traditions and customs in expressing happiness and interaction, given the occasion. The role of the lens here goes beyond the visual representation of various celebrations and more towards building bridges between different communities and peoples by highlighting the similarities when it comes to experiencing and expressing joy. Whoever looks at the winning photos will see a festival of joy through colors, languages, styles and tones. All coming together to embody happiness as a common denominator among all people. Congratulations as always to our talented winners, and we look forward to even more of our community getting involved in next month’s competition.”
Winner of the ‘People’s Choice Award’ was Herman @herman_morrison from Indonesia and he said, “I took the photo in August 2014 during the Mount Hagen Cultural Exhibition in Papua New Guinea. I previously won many online competitions, but what distinguishes this win will help me build my confidence and show my profile as a photographer better in front of the photographers. I enjoy sharing knowledge and experience with others and consider this one of the most important methods of development.”
The Saudi winner, Fatimah Mohammed AL Sabeeha @f.alsabeeha said, “The photo was taken at Jabreen Castle, Sultanate of Oman in February 2019 during a photo trip with some friends. It is an Omani folk dance art called ‘Al-Razhah’ where men stand in cross lines and move back and forth jousting with swords and poems.
I previously won many competitions, including one of HIPA’s, and was invited to the closing ceremony of the eighth session of the award in Dubai Opera. Winning HIPA’s contests is a step I take towards the Grand Prize one day. I have had fame and presence in the international photography community and have strong motivations to constantly search for a new vision of this world through my lens and to enhance my presence as a professional Saudi photographer.”
