World Press Photo 11 Exhibition in Melaka

Good news for all photo lovers in Melaka! From yesterday on, heritage state Melaka hosts world’s largest press photo exhibition, World Press Photo 11 for ten days. This most popular photo event in the world only happens in four locations in Malaysia and Melaka is one in the list.

The official opening day of World Press Photo 11 exhibition in Melaka was yesterday on the ValEEntine’s Day. I was glad to be there on its launching and witnessed the spectacular photos which have stunned thousands of readers in last year’s most shocking news events.

A good photo can tell a thousand words of a story. The photos in the exhibition share important stories including those of survival, global issues and cultural differences, acting as a platform for visitors to gain more knowledge about what is going on in the world. Each of the photos is unique and different yet all stunning.

I would recommend this exhibition to friends especially those who like photography to pay a visit. This is a good opportunity to learn and explore photojournalism which can also help with almost all types of photography. The exhibition really opened my eyes to so many new and different possibilities in photography.

So, to go to the exhibition, it is held at the Balai Seni Lukis Melaka building (next to the post office of Dutch Square Melaka) from the 14th February until the 23rd. Be quick and be there since the exhibition is in the town now, and after that it will move on to its final two locations which are Sabah and Penang.

Below are the selection of the winning photos and information obtained from the exhibition (WARNING: Some may find certain images disturbing). Click to continue viewing.

World Press Photo of the Year 2010

Jodi Bieber, South Africa, Institute for Artist Management/Goodman Gallery for Time magazine

Bibi Aisha, 18, who was disfigured as retribution for fleeing her husband’s house in Oruzgan province, in the center of Afghanistan. At the age of 12, Aisha and her younger sister had been given to the family of a Taliban fighter under a Pashtun tribal custom for settling disputes. When she reached puberty she was married to him, but she later returned to her parents’ home, complaining of violent treatment by her in-laws. Men arrived there one night demanding that she be handed over to be punished for running away. Aisha was taken to a mountain clearing, where she was held down, and had first her ears sliced off, and then her nose. In local culture, a man who has been shamed by his wife is said to have lost his nose, and such treatment is considered punishment in kind. Aisha was abandoned, but later rescued and taken to a shelter in Kabul run by the aid organization Women for Afghan Women, where she was given treatment and psychological help. After time in the refuge, she was taken to America, where she received counseling and reconstructive surgery.

2^nd Prize Spot News Single

Daniel Morel, Haiti

Rescue of a woman trapped under earthquake rubble, Port-au-Prince, 12 January

2^nd Prize Spot News Stories

Corentin Fohlen, France, Fedephoto

Anti-government riots, Bangkok, Thailand, May

1^st Prize General News Single

Riccardo Venturi, Italy, Contrasto

Old Iron Market burns, Port-au-Prince, Haiti, 18 January

1^st Prize General News Stories

Olivier Laban-Mattei, France, Agence France-Presse

Haiti earthquake aftermath, 15-26 January

A man throws a dead body at the morgue of the general hospital, Port-au-Prince, 15 January

2^nd Prize People In The News Single

Seamus Murphy, Ireland, VII Photo Agency

Julian Assange, founder of WikiLeaks, London, 30 September

1^st Prize People In The News Stories

Daniel Berehulak, Australia, Getty Images

Pakistan floods, August-September:

Flood victims scramble for food as they battle the downwash from a Pakistan army helicopter during relief operations, Dadu, Pakistan, 13 September.

1^st Prize Sport Single

Mike Hutchings, South Africa, for Reuters

Netherlands Demy de Zeeuw is kicked in the face by Uruguay’s Martin Cáceres during World Cup semi-final, Cape Town, 6 July

1^st Prize Sport Stories

Adam Pretty, Australia, Getty Images

Sports portfolio:

Ioran Etchechury of Brazil trips and falls headfirst, during the Boys 2000-meter Steeplechase, at Bishan Stadium, during the Youth Olympics in Singapore, in August. The first ever Youth Olympic Games attracted 3,351 athletes between the ages of 14 and 18, nominated by 204 National Olympic Committees.

2^nd Prize Contemporary Issues Single

Ed Kashi, USA, VII Photo Agency

Nguyen Thi Ly, 9, suffers from Agent Orange disabilities, Da Nang, Vietnam

1^st Prize Contemporary Issues Stories

Ed Ou, Canada, Reportage by Getty Images

Escape from Somalia, March:

Four Somali refugees en route to Yemen sleep in the desert after traveling all night on muddy roads and in pouring rain, Somaliland, 15 March.

1^st Prize Daily Life Single

Feisal Omar, Somalia, for Reuters

Man carries a shark through the streets of Mogadishu, Somalia, 23 September

1^st Prize Daily Life Stories

Martin Roemers, The Netherlands, Panos Pictures

Metropolis

2^nd Prize Portraits Single

Joost van den Broek, the Netherlands, de Volkskrant

Kirill Lewerski, cadet on Russian tall ship Kruzenshtern

3^d Prize Portraits Stories

Kenneth O’Halloran, Ireland

Fairground public, Ireland

1^st Prize Arts and Entertainment Single

Andrew McConnell, Ireland, Panos Pictures for Der Spiegel

Joséphine Nsimba Mpongo practices the cello, Kinshasa, DR Congo

2^nd Prize Arts and Entertainment Stories

Daniele Tamagni, Italy

The Flying Cholitas, Bolivia:

Lucha libre (Bolivian wrestling) is one of the most popular sports in the country. Women wrestlers are known as cholitas and have in the last ten years become popular in the sport. Here, Carmen Rosa and Yulia la Pacena perform in a benefit show to raise money for the bathrooms of a school in La Paz, Bolivia, 26 June.

2^nd Prize Nature Single

Reinhard Dirscherl, Germany, for Mare magazine

Atlantic sailfish attack Spanish sardines, off Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico

1^st Prize Nature Single

Thomas P. Peschak, Germany/South Africa, Save Our Seas Foundation

Cape Gannet comes to land, Malgas Island, South Africa