MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The contest is being held by Rossiya Segodnya under the patronage of the RF Commission for UNESCO.
It includes 30 finalists from 13 countries, whose entries, in the jury’s opinion, combine deep insight into the theme chosen by each participant, high professionalism, elements of photojournalism and art photography, and original interpretation. The complete list of finalists is available here.
The shortlist was chosen from some 5,000 entries submitted from 54 countries. The jury, which is headed by Jason Eskenazi, a prominent American photographer, and includes leading Russian and international photo and art figures, considered the entries in four main categories: Top News, Current Issues, Sports and Everyday Life. The entries in each category were divided into two streams: series and single images. The voting was held in two-stages: private evaluation and open discussion. The jury then drew up a shortlist and voted for the winners.
Jason Eskenazi commented on the jury’s work:
"It’s actually very easy and enjoyable to work together, and we agree on most things. There’s a sort of very good selection of interesting photos coming in. We came across a few photos, I say, that were very empathetic towards individuals in the series. A part of the works we saw was the excellent stories that concentrate on one individual and had a beginning and an end. So, we are looking for those things and can recognize them immediately".
Regarding the Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest, Mr. Fadek said the jury’s work was well organized, efficient and effective.
"The quality of the work is the world class. We cannot tell from the captions if they are of Russian or international photographers, but that does not matter. The quality is as good as you would see from any other contest, such as World Press Photo or Pictures of the Year. So, it is a great honor to be a part of this new contest and to be a part of the jury process," he commented.
"Even now, without disclosing any details, I can say that the contest was very interesting, as there are a lot of extremely talented entries from all over the world. I believe the results of our contest are noteworthy. In my opinion, it’s kind of a breakthrough in photography," said Alexander Shtol, Director of Rossiya Segodnya’s Photo Information Directorate.
The Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest
The project, initiated by Rossiya Segodnya, is aimed at promoting photography, raising awareness about the purpose and challenges of photojournalism, and supporting young photographers. It will introduce members of the world photography community to new names, support high standards in photojournalism, and help establish quality criteria for documentary photography in Russia and abroad.
Young photographers between the ages of 18 and 33 are eligible to take part in the competition, which will support them to establish professional credentials and widen their professional network.
The Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest is being supported by the Xinhua News Agency, the Royal Photographic Society, the Indonesian Press Photo Agency Antara Foto, RT, RBTH (Russia Beyond the Headlines), The Moscow International Centre for Journalism (MICJ), Tutto Digitale Magazine, the Academy of Photography, Vesti.ru online newspaper, Foto&Video magazine, Geophoto.ru agency jourdom.ru portal, Fototehnika portal, Russian Photo, the Moscow Union of Journalists, photo-study.ru photography education web site, Russian Photo portal, School of Visual Arts, YOJO.ru web platform for young journalists and Foto.ru club.
