According to Akinbiyi, who was a member of the international jury which judged submissions for last year's World Press Photo contest, it is important for African press photographers to participate in international contests like those organized by the World Press Photo, whose primary goal is to create international support and attention for professional press photographers.
The contest, which is the world's largest annual press photography contest, is open to all professional press photographers and photojournalists from anywhere in the world, and calls for the submission of relevant news photos depicting issues, situations or events of journalistic importance.
Over the past several years the event has drawn an increasing number of participants from across the globe, and this year, World Press Photo hopes to attract more submissions from press photographers in countries that are often underrepresented.
World Press Photo is currently accepting submissions for the 2010 World Press Photo Contest, a widely heralded annual event that is expected to draw submissions from photographers worldwide of news-related events from the previous year.
The award for “World Press Photo of the Year” is regarded as the world's most prestigious international award for photojournalism, and carries a cash prize of EUR 10,000. In addition, prize-winning photographs will be included in World Press Photo's annual yearbook, which is published annually in six languages, and will also be displayed in a travelling exhibition to some 45 different countries, which draws an estimated two million visitors each year.
Submissions may be in the form of single pictures or stories/portfolios in ten of the following categories: General News, Spot News, People in the News, Sports Action, Sports Feature, Contemporary Issues, Daily Life, Portraits, Arts and Entertainment and Nature.
Entries to the contest may be submitted from 1 December 2009 until 14 January 2010, and all entries must be submitted online via World Press Photo's entry website. Winners will be announced in the second week of February.
For more details and information, go to the World Press Photo website at www.worldpressphoto.org/contest, or submit inquiries directly to .
Akinbode Akinbiyi: Unique is her/his being African and thus bringing into the subject matter, whether on the continent or abroad, her/his African grounded perspective. Often the photojournalist is not fully aware of this fundamental bias, especially these days where equipment and the ways of using such equipment are internationally homogenised. This homogeneity is very much western, Far East Asian. The cameras are often Canons or Nikons, and the laptops are Apple or Sony. Despite this, the African photojournalist still imbibes his vision in the basic grounding in which he grew up.
It must be stressed, however, that Africa is a continent and not one country, so that the visions from there are very many and multifaceted.
Akinbode Akinbiyi: I come from an artistic background, and thus tend to view images from this perspective. Long-term investigative work done on the continent really impresses me, work that strives to dig deep beyond the surface values of newsworthy and/or sensationalist. Some examples are the recent work done in South Africa on the city of Johannesburg, by Guy Tillim and Andrew Tshabangu. Also, work done in the problem-plagued country of the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the sensitive work done on prostitutes in Addis Abebe, by Michael Tsegaye.
What is the state of photojournalism in Nigeria?
Akinbode Akinbiyi: Healthy in the sense that there is a relatively free press, and practically all the newspapers use photographs. There is also a burgeoning celebrity magazine market with ample use of personality shots. Remuneration however, leaves much to be desired.
A few of the photographers either work or string for international agencies, and one in particular, George Osodi, is a recognised master in this field.
Akinbode Akinbiyi: Edit, edit, edit. It cannot be said enough. Edit your work rigorously. The strongest, most expressive images of what you wish to say should be selected and set in a significant sequence. Also, carefully choose the category into which you submit your images. Not all newsworthy images are spot news. Sometimes they would play better in another category, for example, general news or art.
Strong images are not necessarily those images you see or feel as strong, but those that stand the test of long hours of direct, unequivocal gazing. This has become a big problem for the current digitally based generation, used to seeing their images on their small laptop screens.
Printouts put up on the walls of their rooms and office spaces allow the images to live and spread out, and most importantly of all, to talk back to them. That way, images that were initially often overlooked suddenly gain in visual value, and become the leading lights in a subtle sequence of ten images that really say something.
Look at your images for hours, days, on the wall. They ultimately show you the way forward.
Article published courtesy of RAP21.org
