Localens Photography Competition: Amateur photographers at their best

The exhibit opened at the National College of Arts and will continue until June 13 .

LAHORE:

The Express Tribune’s second exhibition of the Localens Photography Competition opened at the Zahoorul Ikhlaq Gallery, National College of Arts, on Monday. The exhibit featured the work of 30 photographers who participated in the competition.

Speaking at the prize distribution ceremony before the exhibition, Express Group Corporate Communications Executive Abid Ali Shahid said, “Localens was launched to promote photojournalism in the country. It is a nationwide competition. We received 10,000 entries from all over Pakistan. The photographs were shortlisted by Jean-François Chénin, Izdeyar Setna and Max Becherer.

Shahid thanked the National College of Arts, Alliance Francaise, Nokia and the US State Department and the participants for making the project a success.

Alliance Francaise de Lahore Director Dominique Scobry said, “It is an immense pleasure to be here... this competition is important because it represents the abundance of talent in Pakistan.”

Scobry said it was refreshing to see that photography enthusiasts who weren’t professionally trained had excelled on their own...this is surely a huge achievement.

Amateur photographer Sikander Hayat Khan who won first prize told The Express Tribune that his picture titled Paddy Crops showed labourers from Hafizabad who struggled to dry the paddy harvest.

NCA Principal Murtaza Jafri said that this was a great initiative. He said events of the kind should be arranged to promote arts and culture. He said the National College of Arts would love to be part of such initiatives.

Commenting on the photographs, Jafri said that even though the photographers were amateurs, they had done a wonderful job. “Nobody can say by just looking at their photographs that they are not professionals.”

Visual Artist Safia Sher said the photographs reflected harsh realities of life in Pakistan.

National College of Arts Theatre Film and Television Department Head Majid Saeed Khan said the photographs were wonderful...such events could be a very good step in providing a launch pad for amateur photographers to try film making. “Many of them visited our department today and showed keen interest.”

The second prize went to Asfand Majeed whose picture was titled Roadside Barbeque.

The third prize went to Mehlum Sadriwala for her picture The Early Morning Walk.

The exhibition will continue till June 13.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 3^rd, 2014.