'To be in Brunei best prize ever'
Capturing the moments: Local and foreign photographers taking shots of events during the ceremonial parade yesterday. Picture: Rudolf Portillo
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
AN INTERNATIONAL photojournalist currently in the country for The Brunei Times' Photography Competition said yesterday that being in the Sultanate on such a day is the best prize he could have ever won from the contest.
"Coming here is already the winning prize for me," said Yasser al-Zayyat, a Jordanian photographer working with the Kuwait Times.
Yasser, who is on his first visit to the country, is among the 21 experienced photojournalists invited by the paper to capture the festivities surrounding His Majesty's 62nd birthday celebrations yesterday.
Whilst most of the international photojournalists have never set foot on the Sultanate before, some sang praises for Brunei's cleanliness, the friendliness of its people and the lack of traffic jams.
Md Meheraj Raj, a senior Bangladeshi photojournalist working with The Daily Amader Shomoy, said the Sultanate is a "different country, but the people are good". Its also very clean, and very peaceful," said Raj, who has been a photojournalist for 22 years.
Hailing from Jakarta, Yogi Ardhi Cahyadi, a senior photographer with Indonesian-daily Republika pointed out the lack of traffic jams on Brunei's roads, saying it is pale in comparison to the traffic-ridden streets of the Indonesian capital. "The air is clean, there is no smog," he said.
The contest was initiated to showcase the monarch's 62nd birthday celebrations to the world and capture the country's cultural heritage, people, their respect towards the environment and the steps being taken to conserve it's rich natural resources. The photojournalists are expected to publish their photo essays in their respective newspapers or magazines by September 15, 2008, where publications submitted before the date would make them eligible for the top three prizes: US$3,000, US$2,000, and US$1,000.
However, for Md Sanaul Haque, another Bangladeshi photographer working with New Age, The Daily Newspaper, said winning is not his objective. "I don't really have to win. I want to have fun," said Sanaul. The Brunei Times
"Coming here is already the winning prize for me," said Yasser al-Zayyat, a Jordanian photographer working with the Kuwait Times.
Yasser, who is on his first visit to the country, is among the 21 experienced photojournalists invited by the paper to capture the festivities surrounding His Majesty's 62nd birthday celebrations yesterday.
Whilst most of the international photojournalists have never set foot on the Sultanate before, some sang praises for Brunei's cleanliness, the friendliness of its people and the lack of traffic jams.
Md Meheraj Raj, a senior Bangladeshi photojournalist working with The Daily Amader Shomoy, said the Sultanate is a "different country, but the people are good". Its also very clean, and very peaceful," said Raj, who has been a photojournalist for 22 years.
Hailing from Jakarta, Yogi Ardhi Cahyadi, a senior photographer with Indonesian-daily Republika pointed out the lack of traffic jams on Brunei's roads, saying it is pale in comparison to the traffic-ridden streets of the Indonesian capital. "The air is clean, there is no smog," he said.
The contest was initiated to showcase the monarch's 62nd birthday celebrations to the world and capture the country's cultural heritage, people, their respect towards the environment and the steps being taken to conserve it's rich natural resources. The photojournalists are expected to publish their photo essays in their respective newspapers or magazines by September 15, 2008, where publications submitted before the date would make them eligible for the top three prizes: US$3,000, US$2,000, and US$1,000.
However, for Md Sanaul Haque, another Bangladeshi photographer working with New Age, The Daily Newspaper, said winning is not his objective. "I don't really have to win. I want to have fun," said Sanaul. The Brunei Times
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