Inkjet & Digital Printing

HP and Magnum Photos Support Professional Photographers with the Expression Photography Award

Tuesday 03. March 2009 - HP, in collaboration with the esteemed international photographic collective, Magnum Photos, today announced the Magnum Expression Photography Award international competition.

Through the award, HP and Magnum aim to support the work of emerging and professional photographers, emphasising the value of storytelling through the use of imagery.

The theme of this year’s competition is “communities”. Long-time collaborators HP and Magnum worked together to establish the Magnum Expression Photography Award to recognise photographers raising awareness and inspiring change through campaigns using photography as an expressive medium. The judging panel will consist of four Magnum photographers – Alec Soth, Jonas Bendiksen, Paolo Pellegrin and Susan Meiselas – and an HP representative, who will look for compelling documentary photography employed in innovative ways to affect social awareness and propel humanitarian compassion around the selected theme.

From March 16th to May 31st, participants will be able to submit their entry via Magnum’s website: http://expression.magnumphotos.com . Participants will be able to submit eight to 15 images, a biography and statement about the project to illustrate their story. The19 finalists and overall winner will be announced in early July.

Judges will evaluate entries based on the excellence and inventiveness in building a photographic narrative, singularity of vision, compassion for the subjects and the ability to produce a thought-provoking visual essay. The winner of the Magnum Expression Photography Award will receive an HP Designjet Z3200 Photo Printer and supplies, which enables photographers to print gallery-quality photographs in black and white or colour. The HP Quad-black inkset gives smooth transitions and true neutral greys to black and white images, while the new chromatic red ink extends the colour gamut. The winner will also receive a $10,000 grant, the opportunity to produce a multimedia essay of the work in collaboration with Magnum in Motion, production sponsorship of a solo exhibition and mentorship from a Magnum photographer. Two honourable mentions and the remaining 17 finalists will also receive awards to support and encourage their photographic work.

“We are excited to be working with Magnum on the Expression Photography Award, and to be able to give photographers from around the world the chance to express their passion and share it with a community of photography enthusiasts and professionals,” said François Martin, marketing director, Graphic Solutions Business, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). “We have a well-established partnership with Magnum Photos and we are delighted to help photographers and creative people improve their work by providing the latest printing and imaging technology.”

“Since the inception of Magnum Photos in 1947, we’ve been dedicated to discovering and illuminating compelling work by independent documentary photographers, in the tradition of our founders. The Magnum Expression Photography Award is our investment in the vitality of the medium that we are pleased to offer in collaboration with our partners from HP,” said Jonathan Roquemore, brand relations, Magnum Photos.