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Slideshow: A bewildered roadrunner at the US—Mexico border took hom the grand prize in this year’s Bird Photographer of the Year competition

02 Sep

Bird Photographer of the Year 2021 winners

Winners of the 2021 Bird Photographer of the Year awards were announced today. Over 22,000 images were submitted from around the globe. Mexican photographer Alejandro Prieto took home the £5,000 grand prize for his image of a roadrunner standing next to the 3,000km-long US–Mexico border.

‘The border wall crosses deserts, mountains, and even mangroves. It is not just desert, and is in fact very biodiverse with more than 1,500 animal and plants species threatened by the wall,’ says Prieto. ‘I have watched many different animals reach the wall before turning around and heading back.’

The Bird Photographer of the Year awards also gives back. The organization donated £8,000 to Birds on the Brink. They fund grass-roots bird conservation projects around the world. All 2021 winners can be viewed on the competition’s main website.

Gold Award Winner and Bird Photographer of the Year: ‘Blocked’ by Alejandro Prieto (Mexico)

About this Image: The 3,000km-long US–Mexico border traverses and straddles some of the continent’s most biologically diverse regions. It is home to uniquely adapted mammals, reptiles, birds and plants, some of which are found nowhere else on the planet. Numerous species will be affected if the US government decides to build a wall along the border with Mexico. Border infrastructure not only physically blocks the movement of wildlife but it also destroys and fragments habitats.

Many desert animals are, to a degree, nomadic wanderers and a wall would sever habitat connectivity and prevent them moving freely from one place to another. In this photograph, a Greater Roadrunner approaches the border wall at Naco, Arizona, with what almost looks like a sense of bewilderment.

Gear and Specs: Nikon D850 with Nikkor 70–200mm f/2.8 lens. Focal length 112mm, 1/320 second, f/14, ISO 200.

Gold Award Winner, Best Portrait: ‘Underwater Portrait’ by Felipe Foncueva (Spain)

About this Image: This underwater image of a Brown Pelican was taken off the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, near the mouth of the T.rcoles River, where there are small fishing villages. Groups of pelicans await the return of fishermen and take advantage of the scraps they throw into the sea.

Looking at this image, I am struck by the similarity between the way the pouch beneath the pelican’s bill functions and the throat of a feeding baleen whale. At first glance you could be forgiven for thinking you are looking at a marine mammal rather than a bird!

Gear and Specs: Canon EOS 5D Mark IV with Canon 8–15mm f/4 Focal length 15mm; 1/10th, f/9, ISO 200.

Silver Award Winner, Best Portrait: ‘Sing Heartily’ by Maofeng Shen (China)

About this Image: June marks the start of the breeding season for Demoiselle Cranes on the vast grasslands of Keshiketeng in Inner Mongolia. It is a blessing to witness the arrival of these beautiful birds, and a privilege to have documented their nesting behaviour. In order to capture wonderful, intimate moments of breeding behaviour without causing disturbance, I did a lot of homework.

I drove more than 800km to the vast prairie of Keshiketeng two days before I planned to photograph and did my groundwork. I got up at 3am on 29 June 2018 and rushed to the location of the breeding cranes. In order not to disturb their peaceful life, I had previously set up my equipment in the long grass and lay down, disguised on the ground.

In the morning light, the figures of the Demoiselle Crane family of four gradually appeared out of the gloom. Just as they were leisurely foraging for food, suddenly the distant sound of shepherds herding sheep could be heard. It seemed as if the sound was enough to inspire the pair of adults to call, as they stood back to back. This evocative sound cut through the silent sky for a brief moment, then everything quietened down again. I enjoyed the company of the crane family for the next four hours.

Gear and Specs: Canon EOS-1D X Mark II with Canon 600mm f/4 lens, 1/640 second, f/6.3, ISO 400.

Bronze Award Winner, Best Portrait: ‘Night Hunter’ by Jonas Classon (Sweden)

About this Image: Poised for attack and staring intently, this Great Grey Owl has fixed its penetrating gaze on a vole in a Swedish forest. On the night of a full moon, I photographed the owl as it raised its deadly taloned foot, with my car headlights adding a little more illumination to the scene. When I looked at the photo afterwards it gave me goosebumps.

Gear and Specs: Canon EOS-1D X Mark II with Canon 200–400mm f/4 lens. Focal length 300mm, 1/160 second, f/4, ISO 3200.

Silver Award Winner, Birds in the Environment: ‘Claiming the Forest Floor’ by Joshua Galicki (United States)

About this Image: This image shows a male Ovenbird singing on top of a fallen log. The bird is staking its claim to a breeding territory shortly after arriving from a lengthy migration to the northeast United States from wintering grounds in Central America. Ovenbirds are quite small – 15cm or so in length – and unlike most other New World warblers, prefer to forage on the forest floor among the leaf litter. I have observed and studied North American songbirds for years and care deeply for all of my subjects.

This shot was taken with a non- intrusive remote set-up to capture the expanse of the Ovenbird’s environment. The camera and lens were camouflaged next to the bird’s favourite singing log and the shutter was remotely triggered. No bait or tape lure were used for this shot, nor was any stress placed on the bird. As a result, this is an image of an Ovenbird behaving naturally.

Gear and Specs: Canon EOS-1D X Mark III with Canon 24–70mm f/4 lens. Focal length 24mm, 1/500 second, f/8, ISO 6,400.

Bronze Award Winner, Birds in the Environment: ‘Yellow-billed Oxpecker with Cape Buffalo’ by Barbara Fleming (United States)

About this Image: Yellow-billed Oxpeckers chatter constantly as they fly in and out of a Cape Buffalo herd, landing wherever they can to rest and feed. They spend almost their entire lives around large mammals, to the point where even courtship and mating take place in their company. Oxpeckers feed on ticks and other insects, although they also have a predilection for the mammal blood.

In this image both oxpecker and buffalo were in motion, moving in different directions and at different distances from the lens. This added to the challenge of capturing this symbiotic pair, but enhanced the satisfaction at achieving my goal. The image was darkened in post-processing.

Gear and Specs: Nikon D4S with Nikkor 500mm f/4 lens and 1.4x teleconverter. Focal length 700mm, 1/1,600 second, f/8, ISO 1,600.

Gold Award Winner, Attention to Detail: ‘Disappearing’ by Rafael Armada (Spain)

About this Image: Reflections are one of the details I like most in nature because light undergoes incredible transformations when it interacts with water. In a way, it is nature playing with us, with our forms and with the forms that we see. In this photograph, the same water that creates the reflection strikes with force to destroy it, in a sense to overthrow the King. The King is still standing; he knows his reign is not over… not yet. But it will end the day that water no longer creates reflections in the sand.

Gear and Specs: Canon EOS-1D X Mark II with Canon EF 100–400mm f/4.5–5.6 II lens. Focal length 100mm, 1/30 second, f/14, ISO 100.

Silver Award Winner, Attention to Detail: ‘Growing Up’ by Raymond Hennessy (United States)

About this Image: Great Northern Divers (known as Common Loons in North America) and their chicks take to the water soon after the chicks hatch. The size difference between adult and youngster is evident in this image and shows just how much growing is left for this tiny chick: it is dwarfed by the large bill of the adult next to it. I took this photo as the pair floated incredibly close to my kayak in the soft afternoon light.

Gear and Specs: Nikon D4S with Nikkor 500mm f/4 lens. Focal length 500mm, 1/640 second, f/4, ISO 400.

Gold Award Winner, Bird Behavior: ‘Floral Bathtub’ by Mousam Ray (India)

About this Image: This image was taken at North Bengal Agricultural University in Cooch Behar, West Bengal. To set the scene, here in India autumn days (when the photo was taken) are typically hot and humid – sporadic rains interspersed with sweltering heat – while the nights are cold. I was keen to capture images of Crimson Sunbirds drinking nectar from banana flowers. Typically, these flowers point towards the ground, but in some ornamental species they point skywards and some of their outer petals open up like cups, holding water from rain or dew.

Late one evening, a female Crimson Sunbird suddenly arrived and started sipping nectar. Her thirst quenched, she then started bathing in the water stored in this banana flower petal. It’s quite common to find birds refreshing themselves in the evening, visiting puddles and pools, dipping their heads and wetting their wings and body. However, it was a unique experience to see this sunbird immersing herself upside down in water contained in an ornamental flower petal, like a lady in a bathtub. Her relaxed and indulgent manner, lit by the glow of sunset, was truly a sight to behold.

Gear and Specs: Nikon D500 with Nikkor 300mm f/4 and 1.4x teleconverter. Focal length 420mm, 1/4,000 second, f/7.1, ISO 1,600.

Silver Award Winner, Bird Behavior: ‘The Face of Death’ by Massimiliano Apollo (Italy)

About this Image: After many years of frequenting these rice fields in northern Italy, I finally managed to capture what is for me the perfect shot! In late summer, prior to migrating south, the region’s Purple Herons try to feed as much as possible and take advantage of the abundance of prey present in the rice fields.

I had long dreamt of a shot like this, one that would allow me to see the expressions of the two subjects – predator and prey. I can also say with some satisfaction that this shot is completely wild and no form of baiting was employed – just a lot of patience, perseverance and, why not, a little luck!

Gear and Specs: Sony A9 II with Canon 600mm f/4 lens and 1.4x teleconverter. Focal length 840mm, 1/2,000 second, f/6.3, ISO 3200.

Bronze Award Winner, Bird Behavior: ‘Entangled’ by Julie Halliday (Falkland Islands)

About this Image: In the past, the Imperial Shag went by the name of King Cormorant. This subantarctic and Antarctic species breeds in dense colonies, and on the Falkland Islands it favours gentle cliff-top slopes, often mixing with Southern Rockhopper Penguins and Black-browed Albatrosses.

Imperial Shags use various displays to reinforce pair-bonds, ranging from head-wagging, gargling and kinking their necks, to making throat-clicking noises and nibbling or biting the tips of the bill. This pair allowed a close approach, and as one came in to land, they went through a ritual courtship greeting.

Gear and Specs: Canon EOS 5D Mark III with Canon 70–200mm f/2.8 II lens and 2x teleconverter. Focal length 400mm; 1/1,600 second; f/5.6; ISO 250.

Gold Award Winner, Birds in Flight: ‘Thirsty’ by Tzahi Finkelstein (Israel)

About this Image: Common Swifts live their lives on the wing and are a challenge to capture in flight. With a diet of flying insects, they need to drink from time to time, and even that behavior is performed on the wing. I had had this image – of a swift skimming over water – in my mind for a long time.

I finally found a suitable place to attempt it, and to get the photo I had to sit in water wearing a wetsuit, shrouded by a portable hide, every day for three weeks. Eventually, I got this photo on the final day – the day after the birds had all gone.

Gear and Specs: Nikon D500 with Nikkor 300mm f/4 PF lens. Focal length 300mm, 1/4,000 second, f/7.1, ISO 1,800.

Silver Award Winner, Birds in Flight: ‘The Art of Motion’ by Nicolas Reusens (Spain)

About this Image: This image is one of my favorite shots from my last trip to Ecuador. Using a complicated set-up, I was able to trigger two sets of flashes during a single exposure, using a shutter speed of 1/25 second. I then tried to introduce a sense of movement into the image by adding continuous lighting to the scene. After three days of photographic attempts to get a single picture with an intense atmosphere, this is what I achieved. I hope it was worth it!

Gear and Specs: Canon R6 with Laowa 100mm f/2.8 Macro lens. Focal length 100mm, 1/25 second, f/13, ISO 200.

Bronze Award Winner, Birds in Flight: ‘First Come, First Served’ by Hannes Lochner (South Africa)

About this Image: This image captures the moment when two Southern Yellow-billed Hornbills chase after the same insect in a mid-air competition. In hornbill society, there appears to be no such thing as a fair fight, and the slower of the two birds played dirty by grabbing the tail feathers of the other. In spite of this cheating, the attempt failed, so maybe there is some justice after all in the world of hornbills!

Gear and Specs: Nikon D850 with Nikkor 70–200mm f/2.8 lens. Focal length 120mm, 1/5,000 second, f/4, ISO 200.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Slideshow: World Press Photo names ‘Crying Girl on the Border’ its 2019 Photo of the Year

13 Apr

2019 World Press Photo of the Year Winners

Editors note: There are images in the above gallery that are considered graphic and explicit in nature. Keep this in mind while looking through the gallery.

World Press Photo has announced the winners for its 2019 Photo Contest and named John Moore’s ‘Crying Girl on the Border,’ seen in the next slide, as Photo of the Year and First Prize in the Spot News Single category.

‘The winning image shows Honduran toddler Yanela Sanchez crying as she and her mother, Sandra Sanchez, are taken into custody by US border officials in McAllen, Texas, USA, on 12 June 2018,’ says World Press Photo in its statement on the winning photo. ‘After this picture was published worldwide, US Customs and Border Protection confirmed that Yanela and her mother had not been among the thousands who had been separated by US officials. Nevertheless, public outcry over the controversial practice resulted in President Donald Trump reversing the policy on 20 June.’

John Moore has photographed in 65 countries on six continents and is a senior staff photographer and special correspondent for Getty Images. Whitney C. Johnson, vice president, Visuals and Immersive Experiences, at National Geographic and 2019 Photo Contest jury chair had the following to say about the winning photograph:

The details in the picture are interesting. From the gloves that the border patrol officer is wearing to the fact that the shoelaces have been removed.

The winning photographs fall under two headline awards: ‘World Press Photo of the Year’ and ‘World Press Photo Story of the Year,’ the latter of which showcases a series of images from a particular assignment or project from photojournalists around the world. There are eight additional categories, each of which has its own set of winners: Contemporary Issues, Environment, General News, Long Term Projects, Nature, Portraits, Sports and Spot News. Each of these categories have the sub-categories of single picture entries and story entries with the exception of Long Term Projects, which is a series.

We’ve rounded up the single picture first, second and third prize winners for each category in the gallery above. Along with the image will be a caption and accompanying backstory provided by the photographers and edited for clarity and brevity by World Press Photo.

2019 World Press Photo of the Year Winner

Crying Girl on the Border | © John Moore, Getty Images

Crying Girl on the Border | © John Moore, Getty Images

Caption: Honduran toddler Yanela Sanchez cries as she and her mother, Sandra Sanchez, are taken into custody by US border officials in McAllen, Texas, USA, on 12 June.

Story: Immigrant families had rafted across the Rio Grande from Mexico and were then detained by US authorities. Sandra Sanchez said that she and her daughter had been traveling for a month through Central America and Mexico before reaching the US to seek asylum. The Trump Administration had announced a ‘zero tolerance’ policy at the border under which immigrants caught entering the US could be criminally prosecuted. As a result, many apprehended parents were separated from their children, often sent to different detention facilities. After this picture was published worldwide, US Customs and Border Protection confirmed that Yanela and her mother had not been among the thousands who had been separated by US officials. Nevertheless, public outcry over the controversial practice resulted in President Donald Trump reversing the policy on 20 June.

2019 World Press Photo Contemporary Issues Single First Prize

The Cubanitas | © Diana Markosian, Magnum Photos

The Cubanitas | © Diana Markosian, Magnum Photos

Caption: Pura rides around her neighborhood in a pink 1950s convertible, as the community gathers to celebrate her fifteenth birthday, in Havana, Cuba.

Story: A girl’s quinceañera (fifteenth birthday) is a Latino coming-of-age tradition marking transition into womanhood. It is a gender-specific rite of passage, traditionally showcasing a girl’s purity and readiness for marriage. Families go to great expense, often celebrating with a lavish party. The girl dresses as a princess, living out a fantasy and perceived idea of femininity. In Cuba, the tradition has transformed into a performance involving photo and video shoots, often documented in a photobook. Pura’s quinceañera had a special poignancy, as some years earlier, having been diagnosed with a brain tumor, she was told she would not live beyond the age of 13.

2019 World Press Photo Contemporary Issues Single Second Prize

Male Rape | © Mary F. Calvert

Male Rape | © Mary F. Calvert

Caption: Former US marine Ethan Hanson bathes at home in Austin, Minnesota, USA, after a sexual trauma experienced during his military service left him unable to take showers.

Story: During a boot camp, Ethan and fellow recruits were ordered to walk naked through a communal shower while pressed together. Ethan reported the incident, but was harassed by the other men for doing so. Nightmares and panic attacks later forced him to resign. Recent Defense Department figures show sexual assault in the military to be on the increase. Servicemen are less likely than women to report sexual trauma, fearing retaliation or stigma.

2019 World Press Photo Contemporary Issues Single Third Prize

Afghan Refugees Waiting to Cross the Iranian Border | © Enayat Asadi

Afghan Refugees Waiting to Cross the Iranian Border | © Enayat Asadi

Caption: An Afghan refugee comforts his companion while waiting for transport across the eastern border of Iran, on 27 July.

Story: UNHCR reports that Iran has almost one million registered refugees, the vast majority from Afghanistan. In addition, more than 1.5 million undocumented Afghans are estimated to be present in the country. Many people fleeing violence, insecurity and poverty in Afghanistan find no alternative but to use illegal traffickers, along routes where they are exposed to robbery, kidnapping and death. Their aim is to pass through Iran and Turkey or Greece to seek a better life elsewhere, but trafficked refugees are highly vulnerable to forced labor, debt bondage, forced marriage, or work in the sex trade.

2019 World Press Photo Environment Single First Prize

Akashinga – the Brave Ones | © Brent Stirton, Getty Images

Akashinga – the Brave Ones | © Brent Stirton, Getty Images

Caption: Petronella Chigumbura (30), a member of an all-female anti-poaching unit called Akashinga, participates in stealth and concealment training in the Phundundu Wildlife Park, Zimbabwe.

Story: Akashinga (‘The Brave Ones’) is a ranger force established as an alternative conservation model. It aims to work with, rather than against local populations, for the long-term benefits of their communities and the environment. Akashinga comprises women from disadvantaged backgrounds, empowering them, offering jobs, and helping local people to benefit directly from the preservation of wildlife. Other strategies—such as using fees from trophy hunting to fund conservation—have been criticized for imposing solutions from the outside and excluding the needs of local people.

2019 World Press Photo Environment Single Second Prize

Evacuated | © Wally Skalij, Los Angeles Times

Evacuated | © Wally Skalij, Los Angeles Times

Caption: Evacuated horses stand tied to a pole, as smoke from a wildfire billows above them, on Zuma Beach, in Malibu, California, USA, on 10 November.

Story: The 2018 wildfire season in California was the deadliest and most destructive on record, burning an area of more than 676,000 hectares. While scientists pointed to the vegetation-drying effects of climate change as a cause, US President Donald Trump blamed forest management.

2019 World Press Photo Environment Single Third Prize

Living Among What’s Left Behind | © Mário Cruz

Living Among What’s Left Behind | © Mário Cruz

Caption: A child who collects recyclable material lies on a mattress surrounded by garbage floating on the Pasig River, in Manila, Philippines.

Story: The Pasig River was declared biologically dead in the 1990s, due to a combination of industrial pollution and waste being dumped by nearby communities living without adequate sanitation infrastructure. A 2017 report by Nature Communications cites the Pasig as one of 20 most polluted rivers in the world, with up to 63,700 tons of plastic deposited into the ocean each year. Considerable efforts are being made to clean up the Pasig, which were recognized by an international prize in 2018, but in some parts of the river the waste is still so dense that it is possible to walk on top of the garbage.

2019 World Press Photo General News Single First Prize

The Disappearance of Jamal Kashoggi | © Chris McGrath, Getty Images

The Disappearance of Jamal Kashoggi | © Chris McGrath, Getty Images

Caption: An unidentified man tries to hold back the press on 15 October, as Saudi investigators arrive at the Saudi Arabian Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, amid a growing international backlash to the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Story: A critic of the Saudi regime, Khashoggi had been missing since entering the consulate on 2 October to obtain documents. After weeks of rumor and false information, Riyadh announced that Khashoggi had been killed accidentally during an altercation. Turkish authorities and the CIA claimed he had been murdered by Saudi intelligence operatives, working under high Saudi authority.

2019 World Press Photo General News Single Second Prize

Still Life Volcano | © Daniele Volpe

Still Life Volcano | © Daniele Volpe

Caption: The living-room of an abandoned home in San Miguel Los Lotes, Guatemala, lies covered in ash after the eruption of Volcán de Fuego on 3 June 2018.

Story: Fuego, around 40 km southwest of the capital Guatemala City, is one of Latin America’s most active volcanoes, and has been erupting periodically since 2002. It is monitored by volcanologists, but this eruption came without warning. People living around the volcano, many at Sunday lunch, were surprised by the suddenness of the event, as Fuego spewed red-hot lava, ash, poisonous gases and flaming debris onto villages below. The eruption was one of the deadliest in Guatemala for over a century. Guatemala’s National Institute of Forensic Sciences reported the recovery of 318 bodies, over a third of them unidentified.

2019 World Press Photo General News Single Third Prize

Unilateral | © Brendan Smialowski, Agence France-Presse

Unilateral | © Brendan Smialowski, Agence France-Presse

Caption: US President Donald Trump leads France’s President Emmanuel Macron by the hand while walking to the Oval Office of the White House, in Washington DC, on 24 April 2018.

Story: President Macron’s three-day visit to the United States was the first official state visit of the Trump administration. Unexpectedly, the two presidents’ body language went beyond the norm for such visits, bordering on the intimate. The leaders also praised each other effusively. The 2015 international nuclear agreement with Iran was one of the main topics under discussion. Macron aimed to persuade Trump to adhere to the deal, which limited Iran’s nuclear program in return for a lifting of sanctions, but failed. On 8 May 2018, President Trump withdrew from the agreement, breaking with European allies. The relationship between the two leaders appears to have soured, with Trump later attacking Macron on Twitter.

2019 World Press Photo Nature Single First Prize

Survival Instinct | © Bence Máté

Survival Instinct | © Bence Máté

Caption: Frogs with their legs severed and surrounded by frogspawn struggle to the surface, after being thrown back into the water in Covasna, Eastern Carpathians, Romania, in April 2018.

Story: Frogs legs are frequently harvested for food in the spring, when males and females gather to mate and spawn. Legs are sometimes severed while the animal is still living. Each year, about US$ 40 million worth are sold annually, with countries across the world participating in the trade.

2019 World Press Photo Nature Single Second Prize

Flamingo Socks | © Jasper Doest

Flamingo Socks | © Jasper Doest

Caption: A Caribbean flamingo inspects the improvised socks created to help heal its severe foot lesions, at the Fundashon Dier en Onderwijs Cariben, Curaçao.

Story: The bird was brought by plane from neighboring island Bonaire, after spending a few weeks in a local rehabilitation facility. Such lesions are common among captive flamingos, as they have very sensitive feet and are used to walking on soft ground. After a few weeks of care the bird was transported back to Bonaire There are around 3,000 breeding pairs of Caribbean flamingos on Bonaire, and a further 200 to 300 birds on Curaçao.

2019 World Press Photo Nature Single Third Prize

Glass Butterfly | © Angel Fitor

Glass Butterfly | © Angel Fitor

Caption: A winged comb jelly, Leucothea multicornis, its wings widely opened, propels itself through waters off Alicante, Spain.

Story: Leucothea multicornis, like other comb jellies, is a voracious predator, capturing its prey using sticky cells rather than by stinging. Little is currently known about the biology of comb jellies. Because the creatures are so fragile and fold their wings in reaction to the slightest vibration, they are extremely difficult to study and to photograph.

2019 World Press Photo Portrait Single First Prize

Dakar Fashion | © Finbarr O’Reilly

Dakar Fashion | © Finbarr O’Reilly

Caption: Diarra Ndiaye, Ndeye Fatou Mbaye and Mariz Sakho model outfits by designer Adama Paris, in the Medina neighborhood of the Senegalese capital, Dakar, as curious residents look on.

Story: Dakar is a growing hub of Franco-African fashion, and is home to Fashion Africa TV, the first station entirely dedicated to fashion on the continent. The annual Dakar Fashion Week includes an extravagant street show that is open to all and attended by thousands from all corners of the capital. Adama Paris (who has a namesake brand) is a driving force behind the fashion week, and much else on the design scene.

2019 World Press Photo Portrait Single Second Prize

Black Birds | © Heba Khamis

Black Birds | © Heba Khamis

Caption: Jochen (71) and Mohamed (21; not his real name) sit in the Tiergarten, Berlin. Jochen fell in love after meeting Mohamed, then a sex worker in the park. They have been dating for 19 months.

Story: Prostitution between consenting adults is legal in Germany, and German aid charities have reported a marked increase in the number of young migrants turning to sex work. While they wait for their documents, refugees are not allowed to work legally or attend school. The German government prioritizes assistance to refugees from countries with an ongoing war; those seeking asylum from countries without war are placed in a second category, where papers take longer to complete. This lack of employment opportunity creates a severe lack of choice for many, with some young men becoming sex workers, sometimes to fund a heroin addiction. The Tiergarten, a large park in central Berlin, is a popular meeting spot for male sex workers and older clients. Mohamed now works in a gay bar, and is quitting heroin.

2019 World Press Photo Portrait Single Third Prize

When I Was Ill | © Alyona Kochetkova

When I Was Ill | © Alyona Kochetkova

Caption: Alyona Kochetkova sits at home, unable to face borscht (beet soup), her favorite food, during treatment for cancer.

Story: Alyona shot this self-portrait following surgery and chemotherapy, when, although she knew the vital importance of food, she struggled to eat. Taking photos was not only a way of sharing a difficult and personal story in the hope that it might support others with a cancer diagnosis, it was also a means of accepting her ordeal by doing what she loved.

2019 World Press Photo Sports Single First Prize

Boxing in Katanga | © John T. Pedersen

Boxing in Katanga | © John T. Pedersen

Caption: Boxer Morin Ajambo (30) trains in Katanga, a large slum settlement in Kampala, Uganda, on 24 March.

Story: More than 20,000 people live in Katanga, crowded together and often in extreme poverty. The boxing club receives no outside funding. From these disadvantaged beginnings, Ajambo, a mother of seven, went on to box in the Ugandan women’s team. Men’s boxing has a long history in Uganda, bur women boxers are often frustrated by the few opportunities to compete at an international level.

2019 World Press Photo Sports Single Second Prize

Sunlight Serve | © David Gray, Reuters

Sunlight Serve | © David Gray, Reuters

Caption: Naomi Osaka serves during her match against Simona Halep from Romania during the Australian Open tennis tournament, at Margaret Court Arena, Melbourne, Australia, on 22 January.

Story: Osaka, who was born to a Japanese mother and Haitian father is now based in Florida, USA, went on to win the tournament. In September, she won the US Open women’s singles, defeating Serena Williams. Over the course of 2018, Osaka rose from number 72 in world rankings to number one.

2019 World Press Photo Sports Single Third Prize

Shields Strikes Back | © Terrell Groggins

Shields Strikes Back | © Terrell Groggins

Caption: Olympic champion Claressa Shields (right) meets Hanna Gabriels in a boxing match at the Masonic Temple in Detroit, Michigan, USA, on 22 June.

Story: Shields suffered a second-round knock down by Gabriels—the first in her career—but went on to win the match by unanimous decision. Shields is the first American woman to win an Olympic gold medal in boxing, and the first (male or female) to win a gold back-to-back in successive Olympic Games. She has had only one loss in her career, against British World Champion Savannah Marshal, in 2012.

2019 World Press Photo Spot News Single First Prize

Crying Girl on the Border | © John Moore, Getty Images

Crying Girl on the Border | © John Moore, Getty Images

Caption: Honduran toddler Yanela Sanchez cries as she and her mother, Sandra Sanchez, are taken into custody by US border officials in McAllen, Texas, USA, on 12 June.

Story: Immigrant families had rafted across the Rio Grande from Mexico and were then detained by US authorities. Sandra Sanchez said that she and her daughter had been traveling for a month through Central America and Mexico before reaching the US to seek asylum. The Trump Administration had announced a ‘zero tolerance’ policy at the border under which immigrants caught entering the US could be criminally prosecuted. As a result, many apprehended parents were separated from their children, often sent to different detention facilities. After this picture was published worldwide, US Customs and Border Protection confirmed that Yanela and her mother had not been among the thousands who had been separated by US officials. Nevertheless, public outcry over the controversial practice resulted in President Donald Trump reversing the policy on 20 June.

2019 World Press Photo Spot News Single Second Prize

Warning: the above image is graphic in nature. Click here to see the original photo. The Death of Michael Nadayo | © Ezra Acayan

Warning: the above image is graphic in nature. Click here to see the original photo. The Death of Michael Nadayo | © Ezra Acayan

The Death of Michael Nadayo | © Ezra Acayan

Caption: The body of Michael Nadayao lies in the street after he was shot dead by unidentified men in front of mourners at a wake, in Quezon City, Philippines, on 31 August 2018.

Story: President Rodrigo Duterte began a concerted anti-drug offensive soon after taking office in June 2016, repeatedly ordering increased attacks against suspects. Amnesty International reports that this led to human rights violations, including extrajudicial killings by both civilians and police. A spokesman for the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency said the campaign had led to 5,050 deaths by December 2018, with Human Rights Watch citing over 12,000. In June, 38 UN member states called on President Duterte to end the killings and probe the causes of the drug war.

2019 World Press Photo Spot News Single Third Prize

Climbing the Border Fence | © Pedro Pardo, Agence France-Presse

Climbing the Border Fence | © Pedro Pardo, Agence France-Presse

Caption: Central American migrants climb the border fence between Mexico and the United States, near El Chaparral border crossing, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico, on 25 November 2018.

Story: Refugees who were part of a caravan that originated in Honduras in October 2018, began arriving at the border in November 2018 to find a backlog of some 3,000 people waiting to be processed into the United States, and a potential delay of months. This led to rising tensions, and to people breaking away from the caravan to attempt their own entry.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Picnic at the Border: Artist JR Hosts Bi-National Meal at a Giant Table

12 Oct

[ By SA Rogers in Art & Street Art & Graffiti. ]


At one small point on the United States-Mexico border, where two towns named Tecate are separated by a fence, residents of both countries sat down to the same picnic at a gigantic table printed with ‘The Eyes of the Dreamer.’ This new event, held on October 8th, comes just weeks after the artist rolled out a massive 65-foot-tall photographic installation of a toddler peering over the fence from the Mexico side.

“GIANT PICNIC at the border today in Tecate … people eating the same food, sharing the same water, enjoying the same music (half of the band on each side) around the eye of a dreamer … we forgot the wall for a minute …” says JR in a Facebook post.

Picnic-goers sat down to the same meal at one big table for the single-day installation, which was apparently pulled off with the help of a sympathetic border guard. A band played, with some of its members sitting on the U.S. side and others on the Mexico side.

JR is well known for these black-and-white photographic installations, which are put up all over the world, often without official permission. The subjects of his portraits are usually everyday people who live in the area. The TED Prize winner says he aims to use art to “turn the world inside out.”

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[ By SA Rogers in Art & Street Art & Graffiti. ]

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A Toddler Peers Over the US-Mexico Border Fence for JR’s Latest Installation

12 Sep

[ By SA Rogers in Drawing & Digital. ]

Set on scaffolding just across the rust-red fence marking the border between Tecate, California and Mexico, street artist JR’s latest installation is a towering statement on immigration issues in the United States. A one-year-old boy named Kikito peers over to the other side with all the innocence and naiveté of childhood, just days after the current U.S. administration announced its intention to end the DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) immigration program.

The site-specific work is precisely angled to create the illusion that the child is grasping the top of the fence, looking out onto the Californian terrain. Like most of JR’s works, the 70-foot-tall image is rendered in black and white; the child is from the local community on the Mexican side of the border. Curated by Pedro Alonzo, the work asks onlookers to consider the fate of the 800,000 ‘Dreamers’ whose parents wished them a better future.

“Some people dream about fantasy worlds, I dream about walls,” JR told The New York Times in a phone interview. “I wonder, is this kid worrying about what will happen? What does he think? At one year old, you don’t see the frontier or which side is better… people will always migrate. When we built walls, people built tunnels. When we closed places, they went by water. The history of humanity is the story of people migrating.”

“For this little kid, there are no walls and borders.”

The installation will remain in place through October 2nd, and you can pinpoint its exact location at JR’s website.

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Pretty in Pink: Trump’s Border Wall as Envisioned by Mexican Architects

22 Oct

[ By SA Rogers in Architecture & Cities & Urbanism. ]

trump-border-wall-6

Donald Trump has promised that if he becomes President of the United States, he’ll build a “beautiful and impenetrable” wall and force Mexico to pay for it – so a group of Mexican architects have taken on the task of designing it for him, too. The firm Estudio 3.14 has envisioned the “gorgeous perversity” of the proposal in a vibrant shade of neon pink, a solid architectural ribbon running from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico and packed full of prisons.

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“I will build a great wall – and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me – and I’ll build them very inexpensively,” Trump said during his candidacy announcement speech in June 2015. “I will build a great, great wall on our southern border, and I will make Mexico pay for that wall. Mark my words.”

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Estudio 3.14 presents a series of renderings of the structure in the various types of border landscapes one finds along that 1,954-mile stretch. The wall is painted pink in honor of Pritzker Prize-winning Mexican architect Luis Barragán. To understand exactly what the architects are getting at with this project, it’s best to hear it described in their own words.

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“Based on Trump’s statements, the economic, ecological and financial aspects have been called into question. However, he continues with his verbal plan. As architects and designers, we have the capacity to imagine and interpret what Trump is saying, and we are convinced that if we can make people see it, they can assess his words and the perversity in his proposal.”

“Because the wall has to be beautiful, it has been inspired in by Luis Barragán’s pink walls that are emblematic of Mexico. It also takes advantage of the tradition in architecture of megalomaniac wall building. Moreover, the wall is not only a wall – as you can see in the hill landscape cross-section it is a prison where 11 million undocumented people will be processed, classified, indoctrinated, and/or deported.”

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“The relation between the discipline of architecture and political perversity and/or megalomania has already been seen through previous characters such as Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini, who relied on the imaginative architects of their words and the creators, who materialized their macabre ideas. The proposal is made from the disciplinary field that has worked, since the existence of humanity, for the status quo and benefits from this tradition.”

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Binational Megacity: Master Plan Designed to Span US-Mexico Border

18 Sep

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Cities & Urbanism. ]

border city plan

Border City is being designed as a bridge between nations, a novel approach to creating international unity at a time when some politicians call for building walls. Proposed by architect Fernando Romero of the firm FR-EE at the London Design Biennale, this visionary project is to be developed along a region of border covering parts of Texas, New Mexico and Chihuahua.

futuristic border city

The plan is centered around an extant border crossing and aligned with other crossings in the area as well. It may sound far-fetched, but Romero is already negotiating with private land owners in the region as well as developers and investors. He hopes to make the city a reality within a decade.

border city design

Romero believes our existing concept of borders is “primitive” and sees and urgent need to move past binary understandings of such divides. Already, many global centers of economic activity are centered not around cities but rather clusters of metropolitan areas, often along national borders.

border city map

“This is a long-term vision, a vision that is not about building walls but about thinking more ambitiously about the mutual relationship [between two countries] and about what borders really mean between countries” said the architect. It is also a reflection of current reality, where there already “exists a very strong mutual dependency of economies and trades.”

border city installation

The urban plan consists of interconnected hexagonal-shaped grids, each with their own center and linked to existing transportation corridors and border crossings. If his proposal is fully realized, the city could even become a special economic zone (see also: Hong Kong and Andorra) that would enjoy semi-independent governance.

border city room

Even without that kind of designation and semi-autonomy, however, there would still be big benefits to residents and businesses in terms of easy access between countries due to optimized transit and city planning. Many “twinned” border cities along the Rio Grande have already benefited from close ties despite extant borders, despite the lack of centralized and ground-up plans to optimize connectivity.

border city utopia

“What you’re seeing here is the first binational city to be designed from zero between the United States and Mexico,” said Romero. “This is one of the most active borders in the world in terms of commerce and traffic of goods but also in terms of human activity and employment.”

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Bold Border Checkpoint: Cantilevered Curves Welcome Visitors

15 Oct

[ By Steph in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]

sarpi checkpoint main

Passing over the border between Turkey and Georgia isn’t an experience you’re soon to forget thanks to the surreal, undulating concrete customs checkpoint structure looming over the Black Sea. A major stop for business travelers, yet located in the sleepy village of Sarpi, the building offered a chance for the client – Georgia’s Ministry of Finance – to make a lasting impression on visitors, representing the new, modern incarnation of the formerly Soviet-run country.

Sarpi checkpoint 1

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sarpi checkpoint 3

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The main volume of the building is low and long, lean as a ship, as if it’s making its way through the streets to launch itself into the water. From one end of this structure rises a strange tower with multiple cantilevered levels overlooking the coastline. It’s topped with a viewing platform, and in addition to the customs facilities, houses a cafeteria, staff rooms and a conference room.

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sarpi checkpoint 3

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Berlin-based architect J. Mayer H. wanted to represent “the progressive upsurge of the country” in visual form, departing from the usual architectural style of the region. While the highly unorthodox shape of the building fits in well with the rest of the architect’s oeuvre, including the Georgia rest stop pictured below, it’s also somehow fitting for a region still filled with bizarre Soviet monuments.

j mayer h rest stop 2

j mayer h rest stop

With its sculptural profile, the structure almost seems more like an oversized piece of public art than a functional building, reminiscent of the incredible futuristic concrete monuments built by the Soviets that can still be found in Yugoslavia today. In this sense, the Sarpi checkpoint almost seems retrofuturistic. Some people say it looks like an abstracted profile of Snoopy.

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Outcast Checkpoints: 8 Abandoned Border Crossings of Europe

05 Dec

[ By WebUrbanist in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

crossroad border abandoned places

Nearly two decades ago even short trips across Europe could involve multiple stations, guards, lines and stamps, but the open-border policies in effect today have transformed many of these once-busy hubs into miniature ghost towns.

deserted fancy border cross

Photographer Ignacio Evangelista has been traveling European highways and documenting the leftovers of stations found at national borders along the way, often found in various states of abandonment and disrepair.

deserted german border crossing

Without the choke points created by checkpoints, much of the commerce (including illicit activities like gambling and prostitution) surrounding these boundaries has dissipated.

deserted czech republic border

Still, instead of wiping the slates clean, most countries seem to have left the infrastructure that was there largely intact, ranging from painted road signs telling people to stop to small empty toll booths on rural roads and entire immigration-related structures alongside major freeways.

deserted street stop sign

Of his work on this series, the photographer writes: “Border crossings have a function of geographical boundaries, but also an coercitive role, since they prevent the free passage of people between one and another state. So, they are places that, along with a cartographic dimension, are provided with historical, economic and political reminiscences.”

deserted immigration booth stop

Over time, however, “these old border crossing points are slowly disappearing; some are renovated and reconverted to new uses, some are destroyed for vandals, and some other just fall down due to the passing of time. So, after some few years there will be no possibility to look at this strong signs and symbols of the recent European history.”

deserted border marked creepy

“When I am at the border point, I am confronted with all kinds of signs and barriers which at some point have regulated movements, itineraries, and behaviors,” Evangelista told CityLab. “Now they appear absurd and out of context.”

deserted border covered rroad

CityLab puts the transition and photo series in cultural and political context: “Despite the irrationality sometimes associated with national borders, the Schengen Treaty is as much an anomaly as it is an achievement. Many nations within the Schengen Area—Austria, Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, Spain, France, and others—once represented a web of ambitious empires. The sudden abandonment of border crossings displayed in Evangelista’s work, therefore, offers a reminder that Europe is in fact enjoying an historic era of peace.”

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Microsoft Publisher 2010 – Draw Attention; Border Text with a Graphic

11 Sep

Add BorderArt to a text box to draw attention to important information or just to spice up a publication.

Looking to focus the reader’s eyes on a particular block of text in a Microsoft Publisher 2010 document? Instead of applying normal dotted or solid line borders, why not surround text with apples, confetti, pumpkins, trees, or a design of your own choosing?

Read more at MalekTips.
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