We attended the photography seminar by National Geographic Photojournalist, Joe Riis, and it was truly an inspiring session that we had with him.
We didn’t expected to be given free goodie-bags but Canon was really generous and the goodie-bags contained two photography magazines, a National Geographic pouch, and some other cool stuffs like a Camera Strap!
And there was a long line of people just queuing up to register themselves for the photography seminar with Joe Riis.
Some of the seminar participants checking out Joe Riis‘ photography works.
Before the seminar started, those in the theatre were so enthusiastic about the subject of photography that they started flipping through the photography magazines and were so engrossed in reading it.
During the photography seminar, Joe Riis shared his personal experiences of photographing the wildlife for National Geographic and he showed us the tons of brilliant photos that he took. By the way, Joe Riis is currently the youngest National Geographic Photographer onboard.
Joe Riis showed us a picture that he took when he was working on a project pertaining to the Gobi Bears. Apparently, these are what the Gobi Bears eat.
This was one of the photos that Joe Riis took when he conducted a photography workshop at the Singapore Zoo.
Joe Riis‘ passion to share his knowledge about the wildlife is clearly evident in the photos that he shot. This particular photo took him nearly two years to take.
To be honest, we were so awestruck by Joe Riis‘ passion for the wildlife [he’s a trained biologist and a core conservationist by the way] and he personally believes that photographs can give wild animals and places a voice in our culture. In fact, Joe shared about his project on the Pronghorn Migration and how as a result of his initiative, helped save the lives of the Pronghorn.
Guess what, after the photography seminar, 6 really lucky participants walked home with an autographed photo board of Joe Riis‘ works! Although we weren’t so lucky, we had the awesome opportunity to get up-close and personal with Joe Riis for 15 minutes!
Now, we have one really exciting piece of news for all you readers and we’re not sure if you know this but the National Geographic Channel and Canon have partnered to launch the EOS Young Photographer Awards.
The heart of this inaugural region-wide EOS Young Photographer Awards initiative between Canon and the National Geographic Channel is to inspire youths across Asia to take an active interest in the creative arts and also to know more about the science of photography.
The contest is open to all aspiring young shutterbugs between the ages of 13 and 25 in Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia, and all aspiring young shutterbugs are to submit their best photographs under the theme of “A Celebration of Colour.” The winner of the top three prizes will be determined by a panel of experts from both Canon and the National Geographic Channel.
In addition to the main contest, there will also be an award based on peer-judging and here’s how it goes.
From 9 April 2013 to 3 June 2013, there will be a special colour theme posted on www.celebrationofcolour.com every two weeks and contestants whom submit a creative photograph based on that colour will be eligible to win a prize which will be determined by the number of ‘likes’ garnered. At the close of the contest, the entry with the most ‘likes’ overall, regardless of colour, will win the Voter’s Choice Award.
In case you are wondering what the prizes are, they are as follows:
Grand Winner [Young Photographer’s Award]:
An all-expenses paid National Geographic Photography Workshop for one in the US, plus a Canon EOS 60D with EF-S18-55mm f3.5-5.6 IS II Lens
1st Runner Up [Young Photographer’s Award]:
Canon EOS 650D DSLR camera with an 18-55mm IS II lens
2nd Runner Up [Young Photographer’s Award]:
Canon EOS 1100D DSLR camera with an 18-55mm IS II lens
Voters’ Choice Award:
Canon EOS camera bag and a National Geographic Channel photo book
4X Bi-weekly Voters’ Choice Award (Colour Theme):
Canon EOS Thumb drive and a National Geographic backpack
We hope that through this Blog Post, you would come to know about this EOS Young Photographer Awards and submit your creative entries! The EOS Young Photographer Awards is open from 28 March to 3 June 2013 and you can upload your entries to www.celebrationofcolour.com
Now, if you are really interested in participating in the EOS Young Photographer Awards and you’re wondering how you can shoot an award-winning photograph, read on to find out more about the tip that we got from Joe Riis himself! In fact, from the interview with Joe Riis, we also found out that he is going to be one of the experts that would be on the judging panel for the EOS Young Photographer Awards.
Some general tips from Joe Riis about how you can shoot better photographs.
As mentioned, I was able to get up-close and personal with Joe Riis for a short casual chat with other Bloggers and here’s some additional tips for you if you’re planning to join the EOS Young Photographer Awards.
Here’s a photo of me asking Joe Riis a question
Me: If you are the judge for the EOS Young Photographer Awards, how would you decide if a photograph deserves a chance to win?
Joe Riis‘ answer to my question.
Another Blogger also asked Joe why he was so passionate about his work and check out Joe’s reply in the following video.
There you go! It was truly an insightful session that we had with Joe Riis and we certainly look forward to see the winning entries for the EOS Young Photographer Awards!
My greatest gift for the day; a photo with Joe Riis.
Happy Clicking Shutterbugs and Good Luck! 🙂
