::: Star Insight :::

Honourable Mention

It's Not a Rainy Day; It's Our Morning

Kabir Hossain is a Senior Photo Journalist in the leading Bengali Daily Newspaper Prothom Alo and also heads the Feature Department, Photography of the same print media. He has been a professional photographer since 2000. Hossain has won many accolades since 2003, and this photograph was exhibited in the 10th Documentary Photo Festival in Miya Zaki, Japan.

Hossain says that there are no other competitions that take up such a platform in this country to promote the celebration of Bangladesh. Winning a spot in this competition is definitely honourable for any photographer, he added by saying that the subject matter itself is unique, and has been even more so this year.

Silver off the River

Mohammed Rimon

Mohammed Rimon could not be reached for an interview, on account of being away for the country at the moment. Below is a short description of the photograph instead:

It may as well be a bundle of stench
Scary scales and slippery, able to cut open a wound

In hands not trained well enough,
But we see it differently a means of our livelihood.
May not be gold in ingots or bars,
Yet, still, it is rich enough for us to call it washed silver.

With care we salt and dry them, on the same banks they fared from,
And with care we stock them
Our bundles of joy.

The Jump

Indranil Kishor

Indranil Kishor has been a photographer for nearly 14 years. This particular photograph has received recognition in the People and Planet Photography Contest 2011 as well.

The snapshot was taken from the banks of the river Padma near Mawa, Dhaka. Kishor was inspired to see children climbing the destitute coconut tree by the mighty river's bank, how they were using it to jump into the river frequently, and how this whole act portrayed the relationship of these children to that of the river. It is exactly this aspect that captured his attention and captivated him to take the photo.

Return

Mohammad Faqrul Islam

“A photographer discovers something or the other from anything that a normal person would just glance upon”, says Mohammad Faqrul Islam. “It was evening already when I was at the river bank. I noticed a mass of people returning home. A couple of people were sitting in the small hut while the evening approached with the clouds swarming in over it. It was as if the sun was peeking through the dense clouds, while a flock of birds were soaring underneath back to their nests. Hence the name: Return.”

Islam has been behind the lens for nearly 7 years now, and has entered in the Celebrating Life Photography competition for 3 years in a row.

Tides in Sands of Time

Md. Amirul Islam Zulias

Md. Amirul Islam Zulias has been affiliated in the field of photography for 18 years. He entered the Celebrating Life Competition for the first time this year and is very joyous in achieving a spot in the winners' circle with his first attempt.

Zulias snapped the portrait during the month of Ramadan this year while on visit to St. Martin's Island. He says that quite a bit of his thirst due to fasting was immediately taken away when he was successful in capturing this beautiful shot. He believes that our Shonar Bangla will one day definitely be as beautiful as the photographs taken and submitted in the competition.

Flight

Md. Akhlas Uddin

Md. Akhlas Uddin ranks this picture amongst his absolute favourites because not is it only rare to see so many birds take flight at the same time, but even more so to capture the perfect moment at the exact instance.

Akhlas picked up the camera nearly 16 years ago and has won many accolades, both in the national and international arenas, since more than a decade now.

Akhlas is proud to have been recognized, and says that the Celebrating Life initiative is a great one that not only provides motivation to photographers, lyricists and film makers, but also has been successful in giving them a much needed platform to explore their talents.

The River Cart

Mohammed Rakibul Hasan

Mohammed Rakibul Hasan has been exhibited internationally, won around 70 accolades in various National and International competitions, and has been a photographer since 2002. Based in Dhaka, Hasan represents the Australian 'Falcon Photo Agency' as a photojournalist. He is currently pursuing a Post Graduate Diploma in Photojournalism under scholarship program at Asian Center for Journalism at Ateneo De Manila University, Philippines.

Hasan's main focus was to show the extent of river pollution in the Buriganga. He says, though the picture came out tranquil and has positive flare, the colour of the polluted river must not be over looked even then. “The image can be considered as an example of 'beauty over the beast' by anyone”, he added.

Ebb-tide

Kaoser Ahmed Rakyn

Kaoser Ahmed Rakyn has been entering Photography Contests for 2 years now, out of the 5 that he has been a photographer for. Rakyn says winning an Honourable Mention Award in this year's Celebrating Life Photography Competition has been one of his best achievements.

He was inspired the moment he laid his eyes on the scene. Rakyn says he tried to capture the beauty of a dry river bed during ebb-tide, and how a tree is able to stand strong even during the floods. He thought of the setting as something worth sending into the contest, as it coincided with the theme: “Celebrating the Gifts of Nature and Rivers of Bangladesh”.

At The Heart Of Nature

Ismail Ferdous

Ismail Ferdous started photography at the age of 19, and has been at it for three years. He says photography is a means of expressing himself, besides being an unheard voice of humanity. This is the second time he has entered for the Celebrating Life Photography Contest, the first being in 2008.

This particular photograph was one of his earliest snapshots taken from a common village pond. Ferdous is particularly proud of this photo, as it captured nature and elements of village life in Bangladesh and helps remind him of his childhood.

He says more initiatives such as 'Celebrating Life' should be introduced in the country to inspire and motivate creative people in all sectors.