London West End, 3rd May, 2015
A Princess is Born
Category: news
Q & A with Yong Lin Tan – Sony WPO Youth Photographer of the Year 2015
Photo by Andrew Suryono, from Facebook
I caught up with Yong Lin Tan by email and put the following questions to him, when he had arrived back in Malaysia, after a whirlwind trip to London for a weekend at the Sony World Photography Awards to receive his prize.
Q. At what age did you take up photography?
YLT. I paint since I was a young boy and I was thinking of trying photography as a different medium to create and express. I took up photography as a hobby at the age of 17 when my mother actually agreed to buy me my first SLR camera by signing the 3 years instalment plan for it, as we could not really afford it at that time.
Q. What were you photographing when you first started?
YLT. Basically, scenery of paddy fields in Alor Setar, because my grandparents house is there and every school holiday and Chinese New Year my mom would bring us to visit and have a short or long stay there, for sure.
Q. Do you have any mentor, established photographers whose works you follow?
YLT. I am a self learner, and I follow quite a wide range of works from different types of photography, whether established or just pure hobbyists.
Q. Who do you admire in your field of photography?
YLT. My photography subject’s lecturer when I was in my foundation study in Creative Multimedia – Che Ahmad Azhar, basically his dedication towards his street photography works – “Walk of Life” and the body of work itself, has inspired me.
Q. What is next for you, now that you have won your first major award?
YLT. I will keep shooting in Alor Setar and maybe some other parts of Malaysia, explored or unexplored. I wish to initiate more projects, photo essays and focus on the environmental issues in Malaysia, but it will consume a longer time and I need to do more in-depth research during my free time.
Q. Are you working on any long term projects?
YLT. Yes, documenting and capturing the environment and the unseen life in my mother’s hometown & grandparents home – Alor Setar.
Q. Would this award make you take a more serious attitude to your photography?
YLT. I am serious towards photography since the day I received my first camera. It is still unknown that whether one day photography will turn into my main career or profession but for now I will just ride the wind and do what I love.
Q. Do you believe photography can make the world a better place?
YLT. Definitely, not only photography I believe but any other medium in art such as painting or film which can be used to deliver a particular message and I wish I could prove it one day.
Q. How did you break the news of your award to your parents?
YLT. Haha .. I called and inform my mother first and she eventually passed the news on to my father, then my grandparents. They are not really that surprised at first because they thought it is just a small competition but when they realise it was the WPO and they will be flying me to London they are actually quite shocked and surprised, and worried as well, because I personally have not been to any airport and have never traveled so far before !
~ Steven Lee
Malaysian photographer wins Youth Photographer of the Year
Malaysian photographer wins Youth Photographer of the Year at 2015 Sony World Photography awards
By Zarina Holmes
The Sony 2015 World Photography Awards showcase is now open to public from 24th April until 10th May at the Somerset House, London. Three photographers from Malaysia are being honoured at the world’s biggest photography awards, which received a record-breaking 173,444 entries from 171 countries. The Malaysian winners 19-year old Yong Lin Tan from Penang won the 2015 Sony World Photography Awards’ Youth Photographer of the Year. In addition, Nick Ng Yeow Kee is the winner of the Low Light category and Mong-Young Sim secured the 3rd place in the Professional Still Life category.
Tan’s winning image, “Back alley”, was shot in a passageway in his grandmother’s house in Alor Setar, Kedah during Chinese New Year in 2014. It shows a back alley set against a spectacular backdrop of a star-studded evening sky. Tan commented:
“It feels incredible to know that the story of my mother’s hometown is able to be shared with a wider, international audience. I will continue to produce works and tell more stories form my country that deserve more attention and try to bring them to the international stage.”
Mong-Yong Sim was selected from over 87,000 entries to the Professional competition for a series called “Greenvironment”. His poetic image was awarded third place in the Still Life category.
Sim said: “From new life bursting out from the cracks on concrete walls to moulds that lay quietly against red bricks. You’ll be amazed how much “green” you have missed in your everyday life. If you pay more attention to your surroundings, you’ll notice the tubes underneath a pot of hanging plants actually makes a nice stand for it. You’ll also find that branches struggle to get away from the glossy window so that you’ll get to see them greeting you. Greenvironment wishes to send out a friendly reminder so that we all cherish the green around our environment.”
Tan was flown to London and presented his award and the latest Sony digital imaging equipment at a gala ceremony attended by industry leaders.
Nick Ng Yeow Kee was made the winner of the Low Light category for his image of a Kolkata’s public wash house, which was taken during a morning walk.
He said: “The only source of light was from the opening of the courtyard above, and although people washing up is something we all do every day, scenes like this are not what we normally see. I found out later from my guide that these people are actually local migrants from the outskirts of India, and abandoned shophouses like these are sometimes converted into a public wash place.”
Other notable work American photographer John Moore is named the 2015 Sony World Photography Awards’ L’Iris d’Or/ Professional Photographer of the Year with his hard-hitting series “Ebola Crisis Overwhelms Liberian Capital”. His portrayal of heartbreaking and brutal reality of the Ebola outbreak was chosen over thirteen other entries. Moore is a Senior Staff Photographer and Special Correspondent for Getty Images, and his winning photographs have been universally credited for the early exposure of the scale of the Ebola epidemic in Monrovia, the capital of Liberia.
He said:“I collect this award tonight in recognition of all the photographers working in difficult and dangerous places right now, and tomorrow. I am very grateful to the Liberians who allowed me to photograph them on their most difficult days. I will always be grateful.”
Winner of the Portraiture category, Rubén Salgado Escudero, produced a series of captivating work depicting the effort to bring electricity to the people of Myanmar using solar power. Swedish photographer, Johan Bavman, showcased a reportage titled “Swedish Dads” which shows a rarely seen face of fatherhood in the modern society. The Landscape category winner, Simon Norfolk, produced a powerful series titled “When I am Laid in Earth” as a comment on man-made global warming. Norfolk drew fire lines in front of rapidly disappearing Lewis Glacier at Mount Kenya, presenting a jarring but evocative environmental portrait.
Not to be missed
The 2015 Sony World Photography Awards is a must see-show, especially for the fans of Magnum photographer Elliott Erwitt. He was presented The Outstanding Contribution to Photography for a six-decade career in advertising and documentary photography. His known for his candid black and white shots depicting important moments in history and ordinary life.
The overall exhibited entries are impressive, although the use of HDR and additional photo editing softwares are quite prevalent in some of the photographs. While the use of imaging technology is welcomed in photography, it is quite evident that the filtered visual narrative from social media such as Instagram is starting to influence the mainstream. The environmental issue is a persistent theme throughout the Sony 2015 World Photography Awards showcase this year. Inspired by Panos Pictures agency, Sony’s Global Imaging Ambassadors (SGIA) brought the #FutureofCities exhibition. The show is running concurrently alongside the main showcase at the Somerset House until 10th May. It is estimated that by 2050, 75% of the world’s population will live in cities. The collection of social documentary work captured by photographers from all the world pointed to conclusion – that urbanisation is rapidly accelerating, bringing the physical and environmental challenges that need to be tackled by city planners and national governments.
SONY WPO – MALAYSIAN BAGS TOP YOUTH PRIZE 2015 – SYABAS!!
I am so pleased and thrilled to formally announce another embargoed news!
19 year old Yong Lin Tan from Penang, has beaten the other finalists, and has been awarded Youth Photographer of the Year for his stunning image Back Alley, (same image he won the environment category for).
Here is a link to his winning image: http://bit.ly/1aPENlt
Tan was flown to London to attend the awards, and received his prizes amongst a gathered posse of world journalists at Somerset House in London this morning.
Mong-Young Sim, also from Malaysia, was also awarded 3rd place winner in the professional Still Life Category.
Here is a quick link to his winning series, Greenvironment: http://bit.ly/1Oc0gaJ
Syabas! Syabas!
OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT BY SONY WPO
Malaysian photographer wins Youth Photographer of the Year
at 2015 Sony World Photography awards, the world’s largest photography competition
Fellow Malaysian awarded 3rd place in Professional Still Life category
L’Iris d’Or/Professional Photographer of the Year plus other Professional category winners and overall Open and Student winners also announced – see all at http://www.worldphoto.org
Images available at press.worldphoto.org or Image.net
23 April: The Honorary Jury of the world’s largest photography competition today names 19 year old Malaysian Yong Lin Tan as the 2015 Sony World Photography Awards’ Youth Photographer of the Year. In addition, Mong-Young Sim is awarded 3rd place in the Professional Still Life category.Yong Lin Tan, from Penang Island, was selected as the overall Youth winner from the three Youth category winners who were revealed in March. The Youth competition is open to all photographers aged 19 and under and is judged on a single shot.
Tan won for an image titled “Back alley”. The photograph was taken during Chinese New Year in 2014 and was shot in a passageway in his grandmother’s house in Alor Setar, Kedah.
Talking about his win Tan comments: “I am very thankful and appreciate this recognition; all my hard work and dedication over the years of my photographic journey have paid off. The journey is never easy but I believe that winning this award gives me more opportunities to share my works, especially those of my country – Malaysia – and my mom’s hometown – Alor Setar – to the world. It feels incredible to know that the story of my mother’s hometown is able to be shared with a wider, international audience. I will continue to produce works and tell more stories form my country that deserve more attention and try to bring them to the international stage.”
Tan was flown to London and presented his award and the latest Sony digital imaging equipment at a gala ceremony attended by industry leaders.
Fellow Malaysian Mong-Yong Sim was selected from over 87,000 entries to the Professional competition for a series called “Greenvironment”. It was awarded third place in the Still Life category.
Describing the series Sim comments: “From new life bursting out from the cracks on concrete walls to moulds that lay quietly against red bricks. You’ll be amazed how much “green” you have missed in your everyday life. If you pay more attention to your surroundings, you’ll notice the tubes underneath a pot of hanging plants actually makes a nice stand for it. You’ll also find that branches struggle to get away from the glossy window so that you’ll get to see them greeting you. Greenvironment wishes to send out a friendly reminder so that we all cherish the green around our environment.”
The work of both Malaysian photographers will be shown at the 2015 Sony World Photography Awards exhibition at Somerset House, London and will be published in the 2015 edition of the Sony World Photography Awards book.
Now in its eighth year, the Sony World Photography Awards annually presents the world’s best contemporary photography across a range of genres and is the world’s largest photography competition. Free to enter and open to photographers of all abilities, it is an authoritative voice in the photographic world and attracts both emerging talent and established artists.
The awards’ international judging juries are comprised of esteemed industry experts and the competition offers incredible exposure, credibility and recognition not only to its winners, but also those on its shortlist. The 2015 awards attracted recording breaking entries, with 173,444 images submitted from 171 countries, confirming its position as the world’s biggest photography competition.
Here are all the winners of the 2015 Sony World Photography Awards announced on 23 April :
Open Photographer of the Year – Armin Appel, Germany
Youth Photographer of the Year – Yong Lin Tan, Malaysia
Student Focus Photographer of the Year – Svetlana Blagodareva, Saint Petersburg State Polytechnic University, Russia
Outstanding Contribution to Photography – Elliott Erwitt
Professional competition category winners
- Architecture- Cosmin Bumbuț, Romania
- Arts & Culture- Aristide Economopoulos, United States
- Campaign- Sebastian Gil Miranda, France (lives in Argentina)
- Conceptual- Rahul Talukder, Bangladesh
- Contemporary Issues – Scott Typaldos, Switzerland
- Current Affairs- John Moore, United States
- Landscape- Simon Norfolk, United Kingdom
- Lifestyle – Li Fan, China
- People- Giovanni Troilo, Italy
- Portraiture- Ruben Salgado Escudero, Spain (lives in Myanmar)
- Sport – Riccardo Bononi, Italy
- Still Life- Donald Weber, Canada
- Travel – Bernhard Lang, Germany
Leviathan 2 – Death in the Med
Nice Pontoon, France
Over 800 migrants, men, women and children, from North Africa – Libya, Syria and Eritrea, drowned yesterday in the southern Mediterranean Sea, whilst attempting an illegal night crossing, near Libya’s coast and also, another boat sunk in southern Greece. According to reports, there are an estimated 1,000,000 migrants amassed in Libyan ports waiting to take these perilous journeys to cross over to Europe. These people pay thousands of dollars each to human traffickers to get onboard unseaworthy boats, with little or no food, medicine and technical skills, hoping they will be be picked up by Italian coastguards. They are desperate to escape persecution, civil war, famine and disease, but exploited by ruthless gangs to come to Europe, where, supposedly, life is better.
‘More than 1,750 migrants have perished in the Mediterranean since the start of the year – more than 30 times higher than during the same period of 2014, the International Organisation for Migration said on Tuesday.’ – The Times.
The figures are staggering.
‘It is thought that the Italian Navy saved some 170,000 boat people in 2014 and brought them to Italy. It is also thought Italy’s centre-Left government then lost all trace of 100,000 of them once inside Italy.’
I can’t even attempt to guess what the solution to this will be. Stop the boats? How? Accept the migrants? Where to house them? When people are desperate to survive they will leave everything, risk everything to seek ‘Eldorado’. Then, there’s always the threat from ISIS using this guise to enter Europe.
Syabas! Two Malaysian winners at Sony World Photography Awards 2015 !
Received this fantastic news a few days ago, but obviously it has been embargoed till 00:01 GMT! Congratulations to both Malaysian photographers, and good luck in competing against the other category winners vying for the Main prize. I have been following the Sony World Photography Awards for some years now, and the Malaysian presence is definitely on the increase.
Both images are stunning examples of photographers being totally dedicated to the art, having good observational and sound technical skills, and might I add, waking up early and sleeping late to catch the unique moments.
Really well done and a fantastic experience and exposure!
Will try to attend the Gala Opening in London on 23 April.
IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE (From SWPA)
31 March, 2015 : Two Malaysian photographers are today announced as category winners in the 2015 Sony World Photography Awards, the world’s biggest photography competitions.
The two photographers are:
• Nick Ng Yeow Kee, winner, Low Light category, Open Competition
• Yong Lin Tan, winner, Environment category, Youth Competition
Ng and Tan’s achievement is extraordinary as they were selected from over 86,000 entries from across the world and yet neither is a professional photographer. The winning images were chosen by a panel of experts from the World Photography Organisation which was chaired by Sam Barzilay, Creative Director of United Photo Industries (USA). In both the Open and Youth competitions the judges were looking for the single best shot in each category.
Ng, who lives in Kuala Lumpur where he works as Dental Implantologist and is Chapter Organizer of The Royal Photographic Society, won the Low Light category with an image titled “Early Dawn”. The image was taken in Old Kolkata, India
Malaysia, and captures a group of people getting ready for the day.With the same image, Nick was selected 2nd place for the Malaysia National Award earlier this month, a competition to find the single best shot taken by a Malaysian photographer. Talking about his winning photograph Ng comments: “The image was taken while I was walking along Old Kolkata. Seeing the locals entering an old abandoned shop-house along a row of old buildings, I decided to venture in, knowing that they were probably preparing themselves for the day. The shop house was an amazing spectacle, with streams of people taking their turns washing themselves as well as their clothes. After mingling for around five minutes, they accepted me as part of them, and that was when I started to photograph their morning activities.”
He continues: “I am still in shock after being selected the Low Light Category winner – it is one of the best moments of my life. This is definitely a high point in my photography journey, and will encourage me further in my passion as a photographer. I dedicate this to the people that have allowed me a glimpse of their life, and I am privileged to have listened to them silently.”
Tan, aged 19 from Penang Island, won the Environment category with an image titled “Back alley” taken in Kedah. The Youth Competition was open to all photographers aged 19 and under. Talking about his winning image, Tan comments: “This is the back alley of my grandmother’s house in Alor Setar, Kedah, Malaysia. I shot this during Chinese New Year last year when the sky is the clearest and brightest with stars. A flower plant can also be seen flourishing with limited resources and space, there is a lot of cats wandering around the back alley usually after dinner time, waiting to be fed by the good people around here.”
For their award, both Ng and Tan will receive a Sony ILCE-7M2K camera with 28-70mm kit lens and a Xperia™ smartphone. Ng will now compete against the winners of the other nine Open categories for the 2015 Sony World Photography Awards Open Photographer of the Year title and $5,000 (USD) prize.
The overall winning Open and over all Youth photographer will be announced at a gala ceremony in London on 23 April and this photographer will be flown to London to collect his/her prize. In addition Ng and Tan’s winning images will be exhibited at Somerset House, London from 24 April – 10 May and published in the 2015 edition of the annual Sony World Photography Awards book.
The winners of all ten Open categories, plus the Youth and Mobile Phone competitions which were also announced today, can be viewed at http://www.worldphoto.org.
Leviathan
Ventnor Harbour, IoW
Rokko Mountain High – Have your portfolio reviewed in Japan, 2015
The 2015 Mt.ROKKO INTERNATIONAL PHOTO FESTIVAL is now accepting participants for it’s Portfolio Review session from 28 – 29 August 2015. The festival runs from 21 to 30 August in Mt.Rokko, Kobe, Japan. In it’s 3rd consecutive year, the festival have explored the themes of Communication and Education in contemporary photography practice. I was fortunate to be involved as a Reviewer and it has broadened my perspectives and views about Japanese photography as well as connecting with many talented photographers from abroad and from Japan too.
I would recommend any photographer hoping to expand their knowledge and obtain valuable feedback from an international array of Reviewers, to apply for this event, not least, the new friendships, sharing and connections you will make.
Apply here
See below for past articles :
Festival Review Highlights 2014
Festival Feedback Lim Paik Yin
Festival Feedback Nadia J Mahfix
Thaipusam Today
Thaipusam Today, a short article I posted in 2008 with some black & white images taken in 2002/3 when I first photographed this amazing street event. For those going for the very first time, you will simply be in awe and quite literally don’t know what and where to point your camera. There are so many opportunities to photograph, and fighting your way through the crowds of visitors, devotees, and other fellow photographers seem like a real turn off. However, with a little patience, planning and preparation, you will make it through the day with some inspiring shots.
No doubt, you will want to photograph the young boys and men shaving their heads in submission, devotees showering and offering their prayers by the river, the Kavadi holders, and their in-trance gestures, their bodies adorn with hooks and oranges, and pierced cheeks and tongues, etc. But you have already seen them all before. Move on.
It is so easy to shoot repetitive images but difficult to capture artistic ones. You will want to shoot everything, and often, the barrage of fellow photographers will carry you along with them, all training their lenses at the same subject.
Move away from them and find your pace. Go wander off the main procession on your own and carry simple gear, avoid the crowds and go early. Photograph the preparations, the setting up and the helpers, the cleaners, the fairground operators, the stall holders, these are more interesting than the many typical images of Thaipusam you will have seen.
Most of all, enjoy this amazing festival that is rather unique to Malaysia and Singapore, and some parts of India.
Thaipusam is on February 3rd, 2015.
http://explorenation.blogspot.fr/2008/01/thaipusam-today.html
Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité
Paris Unity Rally. Trafalgar Square, London 11 January 2015 
explorenation.net ~ photography posts, workshops, writings and thoughts by Steven V-L Lee 
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