Release Date: 23 August 2004


Judging over; last chance to attend Awards

It's the largest ever entry to either of their respective competitions, and now the MPA and BIPP have just completed the marathon juding session to pick the final winners for the British Professional Photography Awards 2004.

Over 2,500 entries were received for the innaugural Awards, from which the British Professional Photographer of the Year and Overseas Professional Photographer of the Year will be chosen.

Chairman of the six-strong judging team, Dennis Hylander, said of the judging: "It was a very intense three day's work for all 7 judges, but it was a resounding success. Just about all the judges told me it was the best they'd ever attended. As far as the standard of entries is concerned, there were far fewer weak images than weve seen in previous competitions, which made the task even harder.

"We firstly assessed each image individually, then electronically marked the stronger pictures. Each score has been noted on the back of the print, so the image author has some kind of feedback. Then the final five images in each category was hand assesed and the winner chosen. I can honestly say that this judging was as fair as it gets."

Winners will be notified at the Awards Dinner and 'Oskars' will be presented to photographers from both the UK and overseas in 16 major categories, before the announcement of the overall UK and overseas winners.

Now is the very last chance to book you place for the Awards Dinner on the evening of Sunday 17 October at the Hilton National Hotel in Coventry. It's also the final opportunity to book your 'weekend pass' for the seminars taking place across the three days (Sat - Mon) with a superb line-up of international speakers.

A weekend seminar pass is just £25, plus VAT for MPA or BIPP members (£35, plus VAT for non-members). Speakers include: the current Overseas Master Photographer of the Year Gerry O'Leary FMPA FBIPP; Hossain Mahdavi AMPA ABIPP; Piotr Kowalik FMPA FBIPP; and Dutch style pioneer Henk Van Kooten FBIPP.

The British Professional Photography Awards is a collaboration between the Master Photographers Association and the British Institute of Professional Photography.
For further information about the seminars or to book any of the functions or accommodation, please call the MPA on 0845 130 9700.

ENDS


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Issued on behalf of:
Master Photographers Association
Jubilee House, 1 Chancery Lane, Darlington DL1 5QP
Tel: 0845 130 9700 Fax: 01325 357813
E-mail: enq@thempa.com
http://www.thempa.com
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Written and distributed by WPS Media. Tel. 01904 427777
Contacts: Darron Hartas, Peter Brandon, Katerina Paphitis