A Week in Pictures, Middle East and Africa, July 26, 2019

August this year is the 400^th anniversary of the start of the slave trade to North America. To mark this date one of several stories Reuters is working on are artefacts from the slave period. Ancient things in cabinets rarely make for good images but one image that will haunt me, and not because I shot it (a rare thing these days) is the “Brookes” slave ship illustration. Using a narrow depth of field, I have tried to single out an individual packed on the boat with hundreds of others to humanize him. The details in the original drawing are spectacular. It’s as if every figure is a personal portrait and makes us feel as if we know them. If this was shot too wide the figures become unidentifiable, but too tight and you lose the sense of the vast numbers involved. Read on here.

A section of a print of the Brookes Slave Ship diagram dated 1791 forms part of the collection in the Wilberforce House Museum in Hull, Britain, July 5, 2019. According to the museum the print is arguably one of the most recognisable images from the campaign to abolish the Transatlantic Slave Trade in Britain. The publication of this image provided the public with a clear visual representation of conditions on board slave ships for the first time. August 2019 marks 400 years when the slave trade to North America began.   REUTERS/Russell Boyce

Emerging from a hole dug by hand, a miner brings up a shovel of earth that may or may not contain gold. Zohra Bensemra’s picture is as compelling and compassionate as it is claustrophobic. Every element is there, the perfect shovel shape, the miner’s lamp on his head, the black and dangerous chasm, and, most importantly, the glimpse of determination in his eyes. But there is more to this than meets the eye and that is why it’s taken months to get this story out. The gold comes at a price -  Read on  

An Informal gold miner carries a shovel as he climbs out from inside a gold mining pit at the site of the Nsuaem-Top, Ghana November 24, 2018. Zohra Bensemra 

Bloody and brutal with an eerie sense of isolation and silence. This is what strikes me most with Afolabi Sotunde’s image from the clashes in Nigeria. Why is this? Very rarely do you see a dead body in the street in complete isolation; there are usually emergency services, other demonstrators or even just bystanders, all usually part of the chaotic deadly scene.   

A member of the Shi’ite movement lies dead after a Shi’ite movement group set fire to an ambulance and fire engine station at the Federal Secretariat in Abuja, Nigeria July 22, 2019.   REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde 

Bold and simple, great shape, great colour and ‘mini me’ feel to James Akena’s portrait picture lifts it above the ordinary. If I were to be really picky I’d like Bobi to be a little smaller in the frame so you can see both the eyes fully in the image behind him, but I won’t be picky.    

Ugandan musician turned politician. Robert Kyagulanyi, also known as Bobi Wine, addresses a news conference at his home in Kasangati, Kampala, Uganda July 24, 2019.    REUTERS/James Akena

Just because I am a big fan of the quirky, where objects are in place but out of context -  cars in swimming pools, boats on roofs - I can’t resist armoured vehicles under cool blue water photographed by the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority. Find out why they are underwater here. 

Jordanian Armed Forces vehicles lay on the seabed of the red Sea off the coast of southern port city of Aqaba, as part of a new underwater military museum, Jordan in this handout picture obtained July 23, 2019. Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority/Handout via REUTERS

Ammar Awad’s mysterious image of smoke swirling around a building works as the window is just about the only sharp-edged shape you can see through the soft blur of smoke. This contrast creates a momentary focal point. If the picture had been taken a little earlier, the building would not be fully enveloped by the smoke, a moment later, the window would be obscured and the focal point lost.  

Palestinian building is blown up by Israeli forces in the village of Sur Baher which sits on either side of the Israeli barrier in East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank July 22, 2019.   REUTERS/Ammar Awad

A great combination sequence picture by Mussa Qawasma from the same scene as Ammar’s picture above tells the same story but in a different way. Each element is perfectly captured. With the still images, every detail can be examined closely. For sure it would be great to see video of this, but then you would not be able to look at every detail closely, see what it looked like before, followed by the blast, the smoke and then the destruction.    

A combination picture shows a Palestinian building as it is blown up by Israeli forces in the village of Sur Baher which sits on either side of the Israeli barrier in East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank July 22, 2019.   REUTERS/Mussa Qawasma

As far as the eye can see there are football fans surrounding the victory parade bus in Ramzi Boudina’s picture. Are the arms raised in adoration or is it that just about everyone is holding up a mobile phone to take pictures and shoot video. Either way it really doesn’t matter as what it does achieve is to make the bus take on the appearance of a boat slowly sailing away from white cliffs through a sea of waving arms.  

Football fans surround a bus during a victory parade to celebrate Algeria winning the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in Algiers, Algeria July 20, 2019.    REUTERS/Ramzi Boudina  

A Week in Pictures, Middle East and Africa, July 19, 2019

It’s too hard to choose a single image from a series of pictures the team shot at the Africa Cup of Nations to show the emotions around a goal being scored, so I’ve picked two – from  anguish to jubilation. Francis Kokoroko’s picture of the stunned faces for me says it all, open-mouthed utter disbelief. The curve of the shadow folding in closer and closer to the fan in centre of the image. I imagine this stunned look went on for quite a few seconds, giving Francis time to maybe even reposition himself to get a better angle to work the light.  

Football fans react after Tunisia’s Rami Bedoui scored an own goal during their Africa Cup of nations (Afcon) match against Ghana, as they watch the match on a screen in Elmina, Ghana July 8, 2019.   REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko 

On the other hand Zohra Bensemra would have had no time at all to capture the rapturous  excitement in the boys’ faces as they celebrate a goal. The direct eye contact means you are right there in this moment of manic joy. To see the rest of the images click here 

Senegal fans celebrate after Sadio mane scores a goal during the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) Round of 16 match against Uganda in Dakar, Senegal July 5, 2019.    REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra 

Corinna Kern’s picture is a “what on earth is going on here?” picture which makes you want to know more. Corinna, who has been working on this project for several weeks, has avoided the temptation of shooting this too tight on the masks of the performers. Instead she lets the black frame of the doorway draw you in. The benefit of this is that we get to see the stark “stage”, which is actually a bus station. It’s at this point we realise this image is almost monochromatic. Read on here for more quirky images.      

Lior Avshalem, 42 and Rotem Cohen, 41 actors from the Mystorin Theatre Ensemble, perform is the group’s show ‘Seven’ a site specific act that uses all seven floors of the Central Bus Station in Tel Aviv, Israel may 25, 2019.    REUTERS/Corinna Kern 

An almost intrusive picture taken by Olivia Acland using a wide-angle lens forces the viewer into the space and mind of the woman who is being tested for signs of fever, a symptom of Ebola. She avoids our stare, but we get a such a powerful sense of fear and apprehension that we hardly notice the visual noise in the background.

A health worker checks the temperature of a woman as part of the Ebola screening when entering the General Hospital in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo July 15, 2019.    REUTERS/Olivia Acland

The colours, line of design and shape in Cooper Inveen’s picture are just irresistible. The line of the hedge sends your eye racing to the focal point of the girls sheltering under a red umbrella. If the diagonal line of the hedge was not enough we have the run of glistening water on the muddy track to also draw us to the huddle of girls. The complimentary colours of red and green shimmer against each other while the warm  tones in the road and clothing counter the damp weather. Ideally, the post behind the trees wouldn’t be there, but the world is far from perfect. Read about Mariatu Sesay here. 

Mariatu Sesay, 15, walks home with her school mates in a countryside village in Sierra Leone. REUTERS/Cooper Inveen

Cold and stark is probably the best way to describe Ahmed Jadallah’s image of the aircraft carrier USS Boxer. The tones are grey and cold, all colour has been bleached out of the image by the strong overhead and slightly hazy light. Our eye moves away from the menacing black shape of the vessel, looking for warmth in the empty space, but all we see is a tanker in the distant haze. 

USS Boxer (LHD-4) ship sails near a tanker in the Arabian Sea off Oman July 17, 2019.   REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah 

Tiksa Negri’s image is a potent display of political defiance: a youth leader, draped in a flag, stands in front of a sea of faces that stretches back to the far horizon. For me the power of the scene is in the fact everyone is seated on the ground, you sense that the crowd is silent, listening. The clean colours and vertical lines of the flag cape cut through the sea of faces, the top line of the flag matches the horizon, the youth’s head is almost lost in the background of the trees.   

A Sidama youth leader carrying a flag addresses people as they gather for a meeting to declare their own region in Hawassa, Ethiopia July 17, 2019.   REUTERS/Tiksa Negeri

I kept coming back to Mohamed Abd El Ghany’s image and I wasn’t sure why. It doesn’t have people in it, but the eye on the sarcophagus seems to follow you around the room, like something out of a B horror movie. I took the time to look harder, then it struck me: the face looks like that of a child who has just woken up too soon and is in that mysterious transition period between sleep and wakefulness. What do you think? 

A sarcophagus that was discovered during archaeological excavations near the King Amenemhat II pyramid is displayed during a presentation of the find, south of Cairo, Egypt July 13, 2019.   REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany

Shafiek Tassiem’s picture has an air of tension about it. Perhaps obvious since it shows   two soldiers in full gear on the paved streets, but I think it’s more than the obvious that creates this feeling. Maybe it’s the clever symmetrical composition using the barred windows, the soldiers placed equally apart. Maybe it’s the line that cuts the image horizontally in half that is not comfortable for the eye?  Then there’s the slow shutter speed blurring the figure in the foreground, so the person seems to be hurrying past. I’m still not sure but looking at this image I feel apprehensive.   

Soldiers patrol as they are deployed to quell gang violence in Manenberg township Cape Town South Africa July 18, 2019.   REUTERS/ Shafiek Tassiem

A Week in Pictures Middle East and Africa March 8, 2019

I wanted to share Baz Ratner's wonderful cameo portrait in yesterday's initial edit but as the selection was quite large I decided to exclude it. Having slept on this decision I have changed my mind. The colours and the strong shape of her profile had actually haunted my dreams. Not much I can add as the simplistic beauty of this portrait speaks for itself, except I would have loved a slight crop on the left to remove mark in the background. You can see the full story here

Kenyan model Aiuma Nassanyana waits behind the scenes before the fashion show showcasing African fashion and culture during a gala to launch the book 'African Twilight: The Vanishing Rituals and Ceremonies of the African Continent' at the African Heritage House in Nairobi, Kenya March 3, 2019.   REUTERS/Baz Ratner

It would be wrong for me to include only one image from Rodi Said, who is in Syria near Baghouz waiting for the last Islamic State enclave to fall, so I’ve chosen three. In the first image it’s the catchlight of the warm late sunlight above the shadows that highlights the look on the boy’s face as he looks out from the shelter of the queue of women. No matter how hard you look he is giving none of his thoughts away. Maybe that’s a good thing for us but a bad thing for him as who knows what this child has witnessed. Latest here

A boy looks out from a queue of waiting women near Baghouz, Deir Al Zor Province, Syria, March 5, 2019.   REUTERS/Rodi Said

Not the most beautiful image I have selected but  certainly one of the most subtly poignant. The focus of the image is created by the clever crop of the truck that leads the viewer’s eye straight to the children in the back of the speeding vehicle. Their gaze takes to you the line of people in the mid distance. The captions reveals that the recently freed are now looking across at their former captors,  who are now prisoners themselves.  

Children from the Yazidi community, who were recently freed after being captured by Islamic State fighters, ride on the back of a truck near Baghouz, Deir Al Zor province, Syria, March 6, 2019.    REUTERS/Rodi Said

It takes a little for you sort out what is going on in Rodi’s picture as your eye darts from pile to pile of scattered clothing and blankets. You finally notice the grey hood of child sitting looking at the makeshift bed. It’s only then you see the child with the pink hat leaning on their mother. Once in the core of this image you cannot draw away.   

Children sit next to their injured mother near the village of Baghouz, Deir Al Zor province in Syria March 7, 2019.   REUTERS/Rodi Said

Who has not, as child, thrown food up into the air to catch it in your mouth? And sometimes the game is extended to throwing sweets and food for others to catch in their mouth, the simple joy of a “catch” more than a little pleasing. It is this basic sense of joy that draws me to Samar Abo Elouf’s picture from Gaza, captured perfectly in environmental portrait style, hands throwing up nuts, eyes focussed and mouths wide open. To see the full story if girls living in Gaza click here.

Fatma Youssef, 17, a Palestinian high school student and horse rider and her friend catch nuts in their mouths at their school in Gaza City, February 7, 2019. REUTERS/Samar Abo Elouf

A simple portrait beautifully shot by Hayam Adel using the strong window daylight to sidelight his subject and the warm tungsten lighting of the lamp to give the background a warm glow. Crossed curves of light used to their best effect.  You can see the whole story about global maternity leave here.

Nahla Mohamed Abdel Rahman, 37, a professor at faculty of applied arts, hold her three-month-old baby Younis, at their house after her first week back at work, in Cairo, Egypt, February 22, 2019.   REUTERS/Hayam Adel

The composition of Khalid al-Mouslily’s picture zooms you at speed along the muddy and battle-damaged street to the vanishing point on the distant horizon, not a yard of this journey untouched by the conflict. When you return to the foreground of the image you see the three lonely figures walking through this barren cityscape, trying to pull their lives back together. 

Marwa Khalid, 28, walks with her children, Mustafa and Muhaymen, in the old city of Mosul, Iraq March 3, 2019.   REUTERS/Khalid al-Mouslily

Although the march was attended by hundreds of people I like this single act of defiance in Zohra Bensemra’s picture. It’s not clear if this woman is taking pictures of herself within the demonstration or whether she is shooting pictures of the demonstration itself, but she looks determined and powerful even though the perspective of the image dwarfs her against the riot policeman. Her action of shooting pictures with her phone is clearly defined against the clean background, making it the focal point of the image. This clarity of shape contrasts with the confusion of the busy reflections in the riot shield in the foreground.  

A lawyer holds up her mobile phone near a police member as she marches with others to the constitutional council during a protest to denounce an offer by President Bouteflika to run in elections next month but not to serve a full term if re-elected, in Algiers, Algeria March 7, 2019.  REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra  

A regular line of blue helmets and black uniforms cut through a crowd of protesters cutting the image in half, a perfect illustration of the saying “thin blue line” – the separation between order and disorder - in Ramzi Boudina’s picture. I can’t help feeling a sense of unease when looking at it. I am not experienced in crowd control but I would have thought that for effective policing, ideally a police line should not be completely surrounded, no matter how peaceful the crowd?   

Students take part in a protest to denounce an offer by President Bouteflika to run in elections next month but not to serve a full term if re-elected, in Algiers, Algeria March 7, 2019.  REUTERS/Ramzi Boudina  

I am a great fan of detail pictures that tease you and draw you into a story and make you want to know more. Raneen Sawafta’s will be a pull for anyone interested in film; not only because it’s almost a sin for film to be on the floor in the grit and dirt and will send a shudder down the spine of most, but because once you have got over the initial shock of this, you will want to know more about the green ticket. You can find out here

Film strips and a ticket ae seen on the ground in a former cinema in Tulkarm in the Israeli-occupied West Bank February 24, 2019.    REUTERS/Raneen Sawafta

And really there is no other reason for adding Amir Cohen’s image to the week’s selection than that it’s a moment of simple joy captured in a perfect balance of light and intrigue. When was the last time you did a headstand when taking your dog out for a walk? And imagine the odds of doing that and having it captured by an international photographer of Amir’s calibre.

A woman does a headstand along the shore of the Mediterranean Sea in Ashkelon, Israel March 2, 2019.    REUTERS/Amir Cohen

And lastly, our talented and cherished colleague Yannis Behrakis died last week after a year-long battle with cancer. What he has left is an amazing legacy of powerful news pictures that can be seen here    

A Syrian refugee kisses his daughter as he walks through a rainstorm towards Greece’s border with Macedonia near the Greek village of Idomeni September 10, 2015.   REUTERS/Yannis Behrakis