Earlier this week, on Monday night, was the deadline for applications for the NOOR-Nikon Masterclass in Documentary Photography. Last week on Friday we were a bit worried about the number of applications we received, so far 28. When we arrived in the office Monday morning, our inbox was flooded. It took us about three days to wade trough all the emails and check all applications. We received 153 applications in total! A record number. We want to thank everybody that took the time to carefully prepare an application. Please note that the deadline is now closed and no more entries will be accepted.
This year's NOOR-Nikon Masterclass for Documentary Photography will be held in Istanbul from 24-28 March. Photographers from the following countries in the region are eligible: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece, Iraq, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria and Turkey. We especially received a record number of applications from Iran (37 applications), Turkey (32 applications), Greece (20 applications) and Armenia (19 applications). For us this shows that clearly there is an enormous need in the region for this kind of training. The coming weeks we will take the time to carefully study all applications and make the final selection of 15 participants that will be invited to come to Istanbul. We will do our utmost to get a well-balanced group with representatives from the various eligible countries. The final selection will be announced at the end of the month, in order to give the participants ample time to prepare themselves for the class.
During the five days of the workshop, the 15 participants, together with three member photographers of NOOR, Andrea Bruce, Benedicte Kurzen and Jon Lowenstein, and NOOR’s managing director, Evelien Kunst, will share experiences, work on portfolios, improve editing skills and learn how to pick up and develop stories. Each day consists of intensive communication with the photographers on the subjects of technical features and the peculiarities of the international photo market. It is a unique opportunity to gain new knowledge, contacts, learn to tell stories in a visual language and develop a personal vision.
The annual NOOR-Nikon Masterclass in Documentary Photography is organized by NOOR Foundation and supported by Nikon Europe, with the aim to support documentary photographers from emerging markets all over the world through the organization of motivational masterclasses. The NOOR-Nikon Masterclass in Documentary Photography 2014 in Istanbul is organized in cooperation with Genis Aci Project Office.