FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Sony World Photography Awards 2012 Shortlist announced

New Zealander Scott Robin Barbour shortlisted in Sport Category

The World Photography Organisation announces the shortlist for the 2012 Sony World Photography Awards. Billed as the global photographic event of the year, the Sony World Photography Awards celebrate the very best in photography from around the world, from the next generation of emerging photographers through to the established masters of the art. New Zealand is represented in the shortlist by Scott Robin Barbour in the Sport category.
The 2012 competition has garnered increased worldwide interest with over 112,000 entries from 171 countries, with the shortlisted images depicting the stories of extraordinary lives from around the world.

This year the honorary jury found the quality of work exceptionally strong across all categories, discovering many photographers new to the Sony World Photography Awards roster. Manuel Geerinck (Belgium); Lee Chee Wai (China); Alejandro Cartagena (Mexico), Irina Werning (Argentina); Gwenn Dubourthoumieu (Republic of the Congo) and Simon Norfolk (UK), are but a few of the new names to place as finalists and shortlisted photographers.

Returning photographers from previous years, include 2010 Professional Landscape winner, Peter Franck (Germany); who this year is a finalist in three categories; 2011 Professional Contemporary Issues and Current Affairs winner, Javier Arcenillas (Spain); and Chan Kwok Hung (Hong Kong) whose stunningly dramatic image ‘Buffalo Race’ won the Overall Open Competition in 2011.
W M Hunt, Chair of the Honorary Judging Committee, commented: ‘As a judge, you bring an open mind and a passion for photography - its presence and its present, its past and its legacy. You are hopeful and hungry to see great work that is fresh and full, expecting the exceptional. The rewards are rich and delightful. It is a pleasure to present this year's selections.’

Astrid Merget, Creative Director of the World Photography Organisation added: ‘Looking at the vast collection of shortlisted work across the categories, is truly gratifying this year. Within the Professional awards, the bodies of work are beautifully presented and distinctive, whilst in the Open categories, the single snapshots are diverse and demonstrate excellent skill within the amateur market. The new Youth competition also delighted us, as we were thrilled to find some exceptional budding talent.’

In being shortlisted for the Sony World Photography Awards, photographers can now look forward to the invaluable support of the World Photography Organisation, which includes having their work exhibited at a major exhibition at London’s Somerset House, to coincide with the award ceremony in April 2012.

The shortlist for the Professional Competition was selected by the Honorary Judging committee which was chaired by esteemed photographic consultant W.M. Hunt. This year the Open entries were judged by a pre-selection committee of inspectors from Shutterstock, WPO and representatives from Sony. The Youth Competition was judged by a WPO and Sony selection committee.

The annual Sony World Photography Awards ceremony and gala dinner will take place on 26 April at the Hilton Hotel in London’s Park Lane. The awards celebration will once again take place alongside World Photo, London, a month-long event which brings an eclectic mix of photographic events for all to enjoy. The opening weekend of World Photo London will be held at Somerset House from 27 - 30 April with selected events including portfolio reviews, workshops, symposiums and the Sony World Photography Awards winners’ exhibitions, which continue through to 20 May 2012. Honorary Judges for the 2012 Awards and other international industry experts will be leading many of the festival events.

Professional shortlisted photographers

Honorary judging committee:

Presiding Chair: W. M. Hunt (USA) Photographic Consultant.

Chairs: Michael Benson (UK) Director, Prix Pictet; James Reid (UK) Photography Director of Wallpaper*; Claudia Hinterseer (Netherlands) Managing Director and co-owner of NOOR.
Additional Jury: Jodi Bieber (South Africa) Photographer; Jon Jones (UK) Director of Photography Sunday Times Magazine; Rebecca Lewis (US) Vice-President and Senior Agent for Art+Commerce; Prabuddha Dasgupta (India) Photographer; Shizuka Yokomizo (Japan) Photographer.

In each category the judges could select up to three finalist photographers and up to seven additional shortlist photographers. From the finalists, the winners plus 2nd and 3rd place will be chosen and announced at the awards ceremony on 26 April.
Photographers are listed alphabetically.

PHOTOJOURNALISM & DOCUMENTARY

Current Affairs
Finalists:
● Fernando Alfonso Brito Lizárraga Mexico
● Rémi Ochlik (IP3 Press) France

● Donald Weber (VII PHOTO) Canada

Shortlisted:
● Javier Arcenillas Spain
● Fabio Bucciarelli Italy
● Pietro Masturzo Italy
● Giorgos Moutafis Greece
● Goran Tomasevic United Kingdom

Contemporary Issues
Finalists:
● Kasia Bielska Poland
● Alessandro Grassani Italy
● Gustavo Jononovich Argentina

Shortlisted:
● Francesco Giusti Italy
● Sebastian Liste Spain
● Ivor Prickett Ireland
● Jose Luis Rodriguez Maldonado Columbia
● Natasha Shulte Ukraine
● Anastasia Taylor-Lind United Kingdom
● Donald Weber (VII PHOTO) Canada

People
Finalists:
● Alejandro Cartagena Mexico
● Maja Daniels Sweden
● Simon Norfolk United Kingdom

Shortlisted:
● Philippe Leroux France
● Kerry Mansfield United States
● Francesca Oggiano Italy
● Huage Shang China
● Salvi Danés Vernedas Spain

Sport
Finalists:
● Pawel Kopczynski (Thomson Reuters) Germany
● Andrew McConnell Ireland
● Palmer + Pawel United Kingdom

Shortlisted:
● Delfosse Colin Belgium
● Alvaro Deprit Italy
● Mikhail Domozhilov Russian Federation
● Adam Pretty Australia
● Scott Robin Barbour New Zealand
● Robin Utrecht Netherlands

Nature & Wildlife
Finalists:
• David Chancellor (Institute) United Kingdom
• Jacek Kusz Poland
• Palani Mohan India

Shortlisted:
• Salil Bera India
• Terence du Fresne Switzerland
• Barbara Leven United States
• Suren Manvelyan Armenia
• Tapash Paul Bangladesh

Arts and Culture
Finalists:
● Rob Hornstra Netherlands
● Anastasia Taylor-Lind United Kingdom
● Mattia Vacca Italy

Shortlisted:
● Javier Arcenillas Spain
● Jacek Swierczynski Poland
● Yannick Cormier France
● Alvaro Deprit Italy
● Susana Girón Spain
● Davide Monteleone Italy
● Andrea Santolaya Spain

COMMERCIAL
Campaign
Finalists:
● Javier Arcenillas Spain
● Peter Franck Germany
● Laura Pannack United Kingdom

Shortlisted:
● Michael Blann United Kingdom
● Felipe Cantillana Chile
● Jan von Holleben Germany
● Miguel Navarro United Kingdom
● Michelle Siu Canada
● Roberto Soares-Gomes Brazil
● Daniele Testa Italy

Travel
Finalists:
● Jan Brykczynski Poland
● Luis Henry Agudelo Cano Colombia
● Peter Franck Germany

Shortlisted:
● Giancarlo Ceraudo Italy
● Andrea Hamilton United Kingdom
● Cristina De Middel Spain
● Yurian Quintanas Nobel Spain
● Gianluca Pulcini Italy
● Lisa Wiltse United States

Fashion
Finalists:
● Peter Franck Germany
● Elizaveta Porodina Germany
● Jayden Tang United Kingdom

Shortlisted:
● Michelle Beatty United Kingdom
● Susi Belianska Italy
● Romano Decker Dejan Kutic Croatia
● Filippo Del Vita Italy
● Alice Pavesi Italy
● Dasha Ketsko Ukraine
● Frauke Thielking Germany

FINE ART
Architecture
Finalists:
● Igor Chirikov Russian Federation
● David Ibernón Boria Spain
● Simon Norfolk United Kingdom

Shortlisted:
● Bibi Broderick Canada
● Riccardo Budini Italy
● Tamas Bujnovszky Hungary
● Alejandro Cartagena Mexico
● Paula Gortazar United Kingdom
● David de Jong Netherlands
● Michael Joseph United States

Portraiture
Finalists:
● Lei Liu China
● Paolo Marchetti Italy
● Irina Werning Argentina

Shortlisted:
● Gwenn Dubourthoumieu The Democratic Republic of Congo
● Lavinia Parlamenti Italy
● Johann Rousselot France
● Javier Arcenillas Spain
● George Mayer Russian Federation

Landscape
Finalists :
● Rona Chang United States
● Lee Chee Wai Malaysia
● Mitch Dobrowner United States

Shortlisted:
● Regis Boileau France
● Ximena Etchart Argentina
● Jeroen Hofman Netherlands
● Zhang Kechun China
● Matthias H. Risse Germany
● Chaoliang Shen Taiwan, Province of China
● Stephen Wilkes United States

Still Life
Finalists:
● Renan Cepeda Brazil
● Rena Effendi (INSTITUTE) Azerbaijan
● Helen Thompson United Kingdom

Shortlisted:
● Michal Cole United Kingdom
● Peter Franck Germany
● Martina Geccelli United Kingdom
● Miri Mor Israel
● Song Nian Ang Singapore
● Gicheol Shin Republic of Korea

Conceptual
Finalists:
● Manuel Geerinck Belgium
● Luis Mallo United States
● Cristina De Middel Spain

Shortlisted:
● Carlo D'Orta Italy
● Photographer Hal Japan
● Giuseppe Parisi Italy
● Carlos Henrique Reinesch Brazil
● Sanne Maloe Slecht Netherlands

● Frauke Thielking Germany
● Patricia van de Camp Netherlands

Open shortlisted photographers
In each category judges were able to select up to ten images.
Architecture
● Babul Bhatt India
● Patrice Carré France
● Filippo Di Rosa Italy
● Fabrizio Intonti Italy
● Francisco Mendes Portugal
● Rui Nunes United Kingdom
● Fulvio Pellegrini Italy
● José Ramón Montes Spain
● Thai Son Huynh Vietnam

Arts & Culture
● Dovile Dagiene Lithuania
● Levi Fanan Brazil
● Kushal Gangopadhyay India
● Antonio Iubatti Italy
● Sanket K India
● Klaartje Lambrechts Belgium
● Oliver Mezger Germany
● Tan Nono Rahardian Indonesia
● Samanta Sollima Italy
● Paul Störm Australia

Enhanced
● Alexandr Afonin Russian Federation
● Sandra Cifo United States
● Paul Irving United Kingdom
● Milan Makarský Czech Republic
● Frank Martin Eisele Germany
● Rodolfo Mejías Venezuela
● Jochen Resch Germany
● Oren Shved Israel
● Victor Vargas Villafuerte Canada
● Antonios Vlachou Slovakia

Low Light
● Elmar Akhmetov Kazakhstan
● Edoardo Brotto Italy
● Ignasi cunill Spain
● Teng Hin Khoo Malaysia
● Sergey Kochmak Russian Federation
● Christoph Krüger Germany
● Belentsova Natalia Russian Federation
● Pansiri Pikunkaew Thailand
● Derrick Woo Hong Kong
● Heng Zee Kek Singapore

Nature & Wildlife
● Nadav Bagim Israel
● Anita Erdmann Canada
● Handri Fitrido Indonesia

● Felicitas Frei Switzerland
● Giovanni Frescura Italy
● Peter Krejzl Czech Republic
● Chan Kwok Hung Hong Kong
● William Lee United States
● Kuntal Paul India
● Petar Sabol Croatia

Panoramic
● Pramiga Aditya Indonesia
● Ionut Hrenciuc Romania
● Istvan Nagy Netherlands
● Noel Plaszkó Hungary
● Matthew Post Australia
● James Rider United Kingdom
● Terry Soo Australia
● Ian Taylor United Kingdom
● steve Williams United Kingdom
● Denise Worden United States

People
● Victoria Bolshemennik Israel
● Tommy Braxton United Kingdom
● Thomas Dymond United Kingdom
● Mehmet Fatih Yaldiz Turkey
● Ana Gregorič Slovenia
● Paul MacKinnon United Kingdom
● Christine Pearl United States
● Fulvio Pellegrini Italy
● Zulkifli Thalib Indonesia
● Игорь Лобанов Russian Federation

Smile
● Ricky Alexander Indonesia
● Nguyen Duc Tri Vietnam
● Gerold Guggenbuehl Switzerland
● Arnold Jumpay Philippines
● Anom Manik Agung Indonesia
● Kivera Mara Réunion
● Diana Mrazikova Slovakia
● Meghann Prouse United States
● Nick Redman United Kingdom
● Piotr Stasiuk Poland

Split Second
● Cemhan Biricik United States
● Tobias Bräuning Germany
● Samuel Chan China
● Andrzej Chrobot Poland
● Alessandro Falco Italy
● Don Horne Ireland
● Johnny Joo United States
● Gustavo Magnavacca Argentina
● Greg Parker United Kingdom
● Peter Prazenka Slovakia

Travel
● Krzysztof Browko Poland
● Krzysztof Browko Poland
● Marco Lachmann-Anke Germany
● John Lai Teck Kee Malaysia
● Carlos Macedonio Brazil
● N S Ng Singapore
● Keith Pace Malta
● Suprijanto Suprijanto Indonesia
● George Turnbull United Kingdom
● Malte Wittmann Germany

Youth shortlisted photographers
Culture
• Hanne Grannestad Norway
• Lam Ka Ho Hong Kong
• Sahil Lodha India
• Merijn Mulder Netherlands
• Carolina Paltrinieri Italy
• Adrian Pelegrin Bonet Spain
• Kolyaskin Sergey Russian Federation
• Benedek Varga Hungary

Environment
• Alla Aliokhina Ukraine
• Kolyaskin Sergey Russian Federation
• Thamyres Matarozzi Brazil
• Adrian Pelegrin Bonet Spain
• Bernard Pieterse South Africa
• Imanuel Thallinger Austria
• Kazi Sudipto Bangladesh
• Kseniya Sovenko United States

Portraits
• Tertious Alio Russian Federation
• Hadi Asgari Iran
• Lidia K United Kingdom
• Darya Kasyanova Russian Federation
• Samujjwal Sahu India
• Karina Sembe Ukraine
• Kolyaskin Sergey Russian Federation
• Felicia Simion Romania
• Marina Tkhorzhevskaya Russian Federation
• Berta Vicente Spain

Key dates 2012
20 March Open (amateur) category winners announced
26 April Sony World Photography Awards, gala ceremony held London Hilton
27 April Sony World Photography Award Winners and World Photo, London exhibitions open at Somerset House London
For further information or to access high-res images please contact:
Amy Barder / Kiri Gillespie
Tel: + 44 (0) 20 7631 2666
amybarder@colmangetty.co.uk or kiri@colmangetty.co.uk
For further information on Sony please contact:
Dean Allen
Sony New Zealand
021488127
Dean.allen@ap.sony.com
Notes to editors
● Astrid Merget, Creative Director of the World Photography Organisation and members of the jury are available for interview through Colman Getty

● To request an interview with shortlisted photographers, contact Colman Getty

● Images are available to download via the press area of www.worldphoto.org. Use of images must comply with SWPA terms and conditions. Password details are available from Colman Getty

● In selecting the shortlist, jury members are required to choose a minimum of 3 photographers with a maximum of 10 in each category

● Photographers entering the Professional competition may enter a minimum of 2 and maximum of 10 images per category, being judged on a body of work; those entering the Open category, are judged on a single snapshot in any category.

● Images submitted must have been taken in 2011 for the Open Competition, whilst Professionals may have taken their images in 2011, or first published their work in 2011.

● The Youth Award is open to any photographer under the age of 20.

● Created by the World Photography Organisation (WPO), the World Photography Awards, sponsored by Sony, launched in 2007. WPO supports professional, amateur and student photography, lending a global platform for the photographic industry to communicate, converge and showcase current trends in Photojournalism, Fine Art and Commercial photography. Delivering various initiatives and programmes across this global community, these programmes involve the photographer in commercial, cultural and educational activities within the many industry sectors, whilst also creating cultural activities for the public to participate in. Currently included within the WPO portfolio are the World Photography Student Focus Competition; the World Photo international festivals and events, and the World Photography Focus Programme.

● The WPO website - www.worldphoto.org features an online gallery and news section. It also includes comprehensive information about the Awards, the categories, a current list of World Photographic Academy members, and key dates.

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