The Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum International Photography Award (HIPA) has announced categories for its 11th Season themed ‘Nature’ noting that submissions are open until midnight on 30th November 2021, UAE time, on the official website www.hipa.ae.

Ali bin Thalith, Secretary-General of HIPA, said that the choice of Nature as a theme was to inspire inclusivity and invite participants to expand their artistic horizons. “We want to provide them the full opportunity to translate their relationship with Mother Nature and their understanding of its meanings; targeting the elements and scenes that they find attractive and framing it through their photographic works for the world to see,” he said. “This category gives photographers the chance to explore the different characteristics of nature across the continents of the world, and sharing with us amazing natural phenomena, scenes and habitats.”

He also spoke about the Portrait category saying, “Portrait photography has catapulted the careers and subsequently worldwide fame of many iconic photographers and the faces they have photographed. The beauty of portrait photography lies in the ability of the photographer to decide how they want their audience to see and feel when they view their portraits.”

Another category is the Portfolio which returns challenging photographers to showcase their storytelling skills through a series of photographs, while the General category remains a favourite among photographers who can participate either through black and white, or colour compositions.

As for HIPA Special Awards, there are two categories: Photography Content Creator Award, which extends to editors, publishers, bloggers, researchers, inventors, promoters and all print and digital content creators; and Emerging Person/Organisation in Photography Award that is presented to an emerging person or organisation that has shown outstanding work or vision in the photography industry on a regional, national or international level.

There is also the Photography Appreciation Award which is a special category for a person or group who has shown a long-standing commitment to enhancing the art of photography.

Bin Thalith concluded that the grand prize stands at US$120,000, and judges can choose the winner from any of the season’s categories.