Filipino winners in IPA photo contest bared
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO— The International Photography Awards (IPA) yesterday announced the winners in its 2017 regional competitions covering China, Russia, Philippines, and Spain.
In the Philippines, stories about poverty, religion and war on drugs topped the winning list among the 5,000 entries which came from Filipino photographers from all four corners of the world.
IPA Philippines named Ezra Acayan as Photographer of the Year awardee for his entry “Blood in the Streets”; Rolando Mesuga, Discovery of the Year awardee for his entry “Translacion”; and Jed Regala, Deeper Perspective Photographer of the Year awardee for his entry, “Hunger”.
IPA Philippines chairman Ruston Banal said that with the high visual impact of images the winners have, they have a big chance to get the top prize in New York.
An international jury of renowned photography experts has selected these outstanding category winners.
The three top prizes— Photographer of the Year, Discovery of the Year, and Deeper Perspective Photographer of the Year— from each region will be submitted as finalists for the top IPA prize to be presented at the Lucie Awards on October 29, 2017 at Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall in New York.
Hossein Farmani, Founder of the International Photography Awards and Lucie Foundation, commented: “The soul and purpose of IPA is to discover and promote great photography all around the world, and these regional competitions serve this purpose beautifully by highlighting talented photographers and their work in their local area, giving them a platform to show their art and to tell their stories. We applaud them, and we are proud to present them to the World.”
Hannah Lillethun, IPA Program Director, added: “I’m always inspired to view the tremendous images submitted to these competitions, and to read the stories behind each one. It is an honor to view the works of so many talented photographers. We are so pleased to be able to bring the IPA to the regional stage and we look forward to more amazing images each year. I always think it can’t get any better, and it always does!”
The IPA conducts annual competitions for professional, non-professional, and student photographers on a global scale, creating one of the most ambitious and comprehensive competitions in the photography world today.
IPA is a sister-effort of the Lucie Foundation, a non-profit, charitable foundation whose mission is to honor master photographers, discover and cultivate emerging talent and promote the appreciation of photography worldwide. The annual programming of Lucie Foundation is funded largely though the International Photography Awards, including the signature event, the Lucie Awards.