The prestigious annual World Press Photo Exhibition makes its return to Auckland from July 1.
Hero image: © Caretta Caretta Trapped, Francis Pérez
© An Assassination in Turkey, Burhan Ozbilici,The Associated Press.
The prestigious annual World Press Photo Exhibition, exhibiting winning images from around the globe, is heading to Auckland’s Smith and Caughey’s, on Queen Street from Saturday July 1 to Sunday July 30.
The World Press Photo Contest honours press photographers who show great skill and creativity in capturing an event or issue of great journalistic importance from the past year.
This year’s contest drew entries from around the world with 5,034 photographers from 125 countries submitting 80,408 images.
The jury gave prizes in eight categories to 45 photographers. The prize-winning photographs are assembled into an exhibition that travels to 45 countries and is seen by more than 4 million people each year.
This year’s World Press Photo of the Year went to An Assassination in Turkey by Burhan Ozbilici for The Associated Press. It depicts off-duty Turkish police officer Mevlüt Mert Altıntaş shouting after shooting Russian ambassador Andrey Karlov, at an art gallery in Ankara, on December 19.
Russian ambassador Andrey Karlov was assassinated by an off-duty Turkish police officer, Mevlüt Mert Altıntaş, while he was speaking at an art gallery in Ankara, Turkey, on 19 December. Altintas shouted “Allahu akbar” (God is great) and later said in Turkish: “Don’t forget Aleppo. Don’t forget Syria.” He was killed in a shootout after Turkish Special Forces arrived at the gallery. See more information here .
© Caretta Caretta Trapped, Francis Pérez
Spanish photographer Francis Pérez won first prize in the Nature category for his shot, Caretta Caretta Trapped, depicting a a loggerhead sea turtle entangled in abandoned fishing gear, off the coast of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the northeast Atlantic Ocean.
The loggerhead is classed as a ‘vulnerable’ species globally by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, but the northeast Atlantic subpopulation is listed as ‘endangered’, as result of being entrapped in nets intended for other species and gear left abandoned by fishing boats. Human consumption of their meat and eggs is also endangering the species, along with coastal development affecting their habitat. See more from the Nature singles category here .
Rotary Club of Auckland are proudly bringing this respected exhibition to Auckland, with all profits going towards their supported charities. www.aucklandrotary.org.nz
Rotary Club of Auckland presents World Press Photo Exhibition, 1 – 30 July 2017, Auckland.
