Uganda’s best photographers recognised

The 5^th Uganda Press Photo Awards were held on November 10, recognising talented Ugandan photographers. The awards are organised by the Foreign Correspondents Association of Uganda which brings together journalists based in Uganda and reporting for international media.

The awards are divided into seven categories including creative, daily life, nature, portrait, news, sport and story. During the award ceremony held at the Uganda Museum, Mr Frederic Noy, the judges’ representative noted that there was an increase in the number of photographers who submitted entries and that the quality of the photography improves every year. The winners’ exhibition has been displayed at the Uganda Museum and open to the public for viewing until December 10.

Below are the winning photos and Mr Noy’s thoughts on why the photos won first place in their respective categories.

Overall winner and 1st place in Portrait Category  Winning photo by Muyingo Siraj Caption: Zephaniah, a 12 year old boy from Butaleja District in Eastern Uganda, shelters himself from drizzle as he keeps birds away from his family’s rice field. “Muyingo Siraj’s portrait is a photo amongst the awarded ones that clearly goes beyond the border of its category. This portrait is more than a portrait depicting someone, but has one foot in telling a story, one in creativity thanks to the lighting and one in daily life as it resounds with rural life in Uganda.”

Creative Category Winning photo by Oscar Ntege

Caption: Women are symbols of fertility – they nurture the “seeds” of life.

“Oscar Ntege managed to symbolise an idea into a photography through a creative process served by indisputable technical skills. He went beyond the simple representation of a subject to express and formalise a concept (woman as fertility symbol). This is what creativity is about.”

Nature Category

Winning photo by Peter Tera

Caption: Spider as predator, insect as prey.

“Peter Tera gathered in one photo fantastic lighting, an original moment, a mastered composition to highlight a rare, unexpected and meaningful situation as far as nature photography is concerned. In this category, mainly photos about mammals are submitted. Peter Tera sent an original proposition, technically perfect.”

Daily Life Category

Winning photo by Mohsen Taha

Caption:  Ghost Town in Jinja

“It is more than the technical and the composition aspects that we find in all the Daily Life awarded photos. There is something more in Mohsen Taha’s photo; the empathy to the subject and his concern for a situation that should not exist, a situation that he questions. Questioning is a major role of Photojournalism.”

News Category

Winning photo by Jjumba Martin

Caption: A man helped by a police officer after being shot with a teargas canister during a demonstration in Wandegeya, Kampala.

“We got many news photos about the presidential election but this one by Jjumba Martin was the only one that shows an unexpected moment. A moment that goes against the trend of what news agencies would expect in as far as documenting police action during election time is concerned. This prize rewards a photographer whose mind is free and available enough to capture against the odds.”

Sports Category 

Winning photo by John Batanudde

Caption: Motorcross Rider Paddy Blick Jr loses control of his bike during the 2nd round of the National Motocross event in Busika.

“In comparison to other categories, sport photos, especially motor sport, is difficult to shoot at the decisive moment, at the climax of an action, it is hard to trigger at the moment when the action is at maximum tension. This capacity is an important skill to succeed in sport photography. Without a doubt, John Batanudde did it pretty well.”

Story Category

Winning photo by Daily Monitor’s Abubaker Lubowa

Caption: Presidential Campaign: Political opposition leader Kizza Besigye’s convoy blocked on his way to a rally.

“A story is not a random series of photos but has to follow the dramaturgy of an event and show it under different angles, distances and not focused only on one moment. That is what Abubaker Lubowa did in a brilliant way and under difficult  circumstances.”