The General Organisation of Sea Ports (GOP) is organising a photography competition as part of the week-long Bahrain Maritime Festival 2011 (BMF) starting from September 25.

The contest titled “Reflection of the Two Seas” is open to all amateur photographers residing in Bahrain, said a GOP statement.

The contest is to be held in two different categories: For those in the age group of 10 to 16 and for those above 16 as well as one dedicated category for staff and relatives of the GOP and sponsoring organizations, it added.

The contest will give budding photographers an opportunity to show their interpretation of Bahrain’s rich sea legacy, said the GOP statement.

Photographs that speak about the quintessential spirit of the Bahraini maritime tradition will be showcased at an exhibition as part of the BMF activities being held in Bahrain City Centre.

'Scenes that capture aspects of Bahrain’s maritime life, industry or landscape, in both abstract and figurative forms must be submitted by September 15,' said a senior official.

Hassan Ali Almajed, director general, GOP, said, 'We enjoyed a hugely successful photography exhibition last year as part of our first annual Bahrain Maritime Festival, which featured both old and new images of Bahrain’s maritime sector from KSDi’s collection.'

'This year, we wanted to open the opportunity for Bahrain’s talent, and we have picked a theme that is at the very heart of Bahrain’s essence.  We are very much looking forward to seeing how young photographers present their reflections of this and will endeavor to do our best to promote their work.'

'All entrants must provide a maximum of two high quality photographs  (minimum of 5mb in 300dpi) together with their caption and brief description via email to marine.contest@gmail.com or alternatively via a CD (marked: “Marine Contest”) to Miracle Graphics’ offices at NBB Tower (9th floor) before 6 pm on September 15,' said Al Majed.
 
Three winning submissions per category will be selected by an independent judging panel made up of Bahrain-based professional photographers.

The prizes in each category are a BD500 voucher from Sharaf DG (winner), an iPad 2 (1st runner-up) and a professional one-on-one photography course led by Bahraini photographer Shukri Rasool (2nd runner-up).

In addition to the competition, the festival will also witness other key activities, beginning with an anti-piracy seminar that will bring maritime experts together with top government and shipping industry officials to help all stakeholders adopt a practical and sustainable strategy to address the issue of maritime security and best practices to counter piracy.
 
A highlight of the BMF will be a Kids Carnival at Bahrain City Center, which will include a number of activities aimed at entertaining children. The carnival will run concurrently with the photo expo over a period of four days.-TradeArabia News Service