Author: Mohammed Al-SulamiThu, 2018-04-12 00:04ID: 1523469905633759900
Jeddah: Young Saudi photographer Hesham Al-Humaid has beaten fellow contestants from across the region to win the coveted “I am a Nat Geo Photographer” accolade in a final show of talent and dedication to the art, National Geographic Abu Dhabi announced Wednesday.
Clearing the board over the four episodes, Al-Humaid, a health management technician, beat fellow contestants, Emirati explorer Obaid Al-Budoor, Lebanese artist Cynthia Ghoussoub and Egyptian photographer Amina Sabry in the latest series.
Al-Humaid said: “This was a tough competition. Each one of us approached the challenges in our own creative ways. Waiting for the results was nerve-racking but I appreciated all the feedback I received from the judges and from my fellow contestants that helped me improve with each new challenge. This has been an incredible experience.”
Hosted by media personality, Saudi national Tarek Edrees, the competition drew millions of viewers from across the Arab world who closely followed the story of the four young talents, week after week. With Dubai as their backdrop, the photographers needed to tell a captivating story, curated in five to eight photos, which captured the challenge and was of best value for the industry targeted — from fashion to graffiti painting to martial arts, thus earning the points to take them to the top of the leaderboard.
The series final episode was the deciding factor in which contestants were challenged to create a photo essay using the combination of techniques used in previous episodes including light, lens, movement, emotion and portrait photography.
Contestants benefited tremendously from Nikons partnership in the series, which gave them access to expert technical mentoring at the prestigious Nikon school in the UAE, as well as the opportunity to use the most advanced photography equipment and technology.
Sanjay Raina, general manager Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan, National Geographic Channel Networks, said: “The success of I am a National Geographic Photographer reflects the appeal of photography to the region. Executing the show in a reality-TV format enabled us to reach youth in one of their preferred formats, while providing them with access to our brand of edutainment, entertainment that has an educational value.”
In partnership with Nikon, Al-Humaids prize includes an all-expenses-paid, life-changing National Geographic photography expedition to Tanzania worth more than $10,000, Nikon camera equipment worth $7,500, and his photograph published in the National Geographic Al-Arabia magazine, which means his first published photography credit on the international stage.
Main category: Saudi Arabia
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