There is no ignoring the
powerful pictures from Ghouta, Syria, by Bassam Khabeih. I have included two
images; one of a man who at first appears to be helping to move rubble, before
you realise that it’s actually him who is being helped because he is trapped
waist-deep in debris. Bassam followed up on his story that you can see here. The second image is just so sad it hardly needs any
explanation. Set against a backdrop of impersonal blue-and-brown metal, the
light falls on the weeping woman, your eyes drawn to her mouth pressed against
the blue cloth that covers her dead child. See the whole story here
Tiksa Negeri’s picture is wonderfully composed and lit. The pilgrims, who appear to be buried in their own thoughts of prayer, move around the central figure drawing you deeper into the image to finally settle on the lines on the face. There is no mistaking the strong feeling of piety on the face of the pilgrim caught in the candle light. I get a real sense of peace and calm looking at this, so thank you Tiksa for a moment’s peace.
The expectation at military parades and ceremonies is that all things will be in order. Thaier Al-Sudani has shot a very busy and messy picture that breaks with this preconceived idea as the men relax, hug and kiss each other in shows of affection and respect at the end of the ceremony. The tangle of blue uniforms, arms, white gloves and red stripes highlighted against a clean blue background, gives me a feeling of a semi abstract painting. You have to visually pick your way through the swirling chaos to find a semblance of order, a face, a hand and a rifle.
Saudi women are seen at the first automotive showroom solely dedicated for women in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, January 11, 2018. REUTERS/Reem Baeshen
This is a simple picture of a brutal looking truck, dented, dirty, its headlamps and windscreen missing. So why pick it? Afolabi Sotunde has captured the grim faces of dozens of people crowded on top as it goes in a convoy along a dusty road. Its load? Some of the bodies of 73 people killed by Fulani herdsmen in clashes over land. Read on here
People are seen on a truck carrying the coffins of people killed by Fulani herdsmen, in Makurdi, Nigeria January 11, 2018. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde
A man is trapped under debris at a site after an airstrike
in the Saqba area, in the eastern Damascus suburb of Ghouta Syria, January 9,
2018. REUTERS/Bassam Khabieh
Heba Amouri, mourns as she holds the body of her
two-year-old son, Emir al-Bash at a medical centre in the besieged town of
Douma, eastern Ghouta in Damascus, Syria January 8, 2018. REUTERS/Bassam Khabieh
Tiksa Negeri’s picture is wonderfully composed and lit. The pilgrims, who appear to be buried in their own thoughts of prayer, move around the central figure drawing you deeper into the image to finally settle on the lines on the face. There is no mistaking the strong feeling of piety on the face of the pilgrim caught in the candle light. I get a real sense of peace and calm looking at this, so thank you Tiksa for a moment’s peace.
Ethiopian Orthodox pilgrims attend Christmas Eve celebration
in Bete Mariam (House of Mary) monolithic Orthodox Church in Laibela, Ethiopia,
January 6, 2018. REUTERS/Tiksa Negeri
Amir Cohen’s picture of
children having fun reminded me of the picture by photojournalist Eugene Smith
of his children running through the woods. I love the compositional balance and
shapes, and think you can almost hear the echoes of the children’s feet from
the tunnel. You can see Eugene Smith’s picture here if you
want to compare.
Children run inside a public bomb shelter in the southern
city of Sderot, close to the Israeli border with the Gaza strip, January 8,
2018. REUTERS/Amir Cohen
Some pictures attract my attention because
they are a little bizarre and raise more questions than they answer. Ammar
Awad’s gentle image of a boy standing on a horse, shot as part of a Wider Image
story on the relationship between people and their horses, is one such picture. Why would you stand
on the saddle? There seems to be no other answer except that it might be a fun
thing to do just because you can. You can see the rest of Ammar’s Wider Image story here
Palestinian teenager Mohammad Gharabli stands on his horse
in East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Beit Hanina, November 10, 2017. REUTERS/Ammar Awad
The expectation at military parades and ceremonies is that all things will be in order. Thaier Al-Sudani has shot a very busy and messy picture that breaks with this preconceived idea as the men relax, hug and kiss each other in shows of affection and respect at the end of the ceremony. The tangle of blue uniforms, arms, white gloves and red stripes highlighted against a clean blue background, gives me a feeling of a semi abstract painting. You have to visually pick your way through the swirling chaos to find a semblance of order, a face, a hand and a rifle.
Iraqi officers react at their graduation ceremony during
Iraqi Army Day anniversary celebrations in Baghdad, Iraq January 6, 2018. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani
A first glance Reem Baeshen’s picture may
appear rather stiff and formal, but to me it has an air of something slightly
out of the ordinary or even a sense of pensive expectation. Of course I could
be reading too much into this because I know that this is the first motor show
solely dedicated for women in Saudi Arabia, after King Salman ordered an end to
the ban on women drivers. Knowing this makes it a rather exciting image to
illustrate a ground-breaking change in policy. Read on here
Saudi women are seen at the first automotive showroom solely dedicated for women in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, January 11, 2018. REUTERS/Reem Baeshen
This is a simple picture of a brutal looking truck, dented, dirty, its headlamps and windscreen missing. So why pick it? Afolabi Sotunde has captured the grim faces of dozens of people crowded on top as it goes in a convoy along a dusty road. Its load? Some of the bodies of 73 people killed by Fulani herdsmen in clashes over land. Read on here
People are seen on a truck carrying the coffins of people killed by Fulani herdsmen, in Makurdi, Nigeria January 11, 2018. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde
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