Saturday, April 25, 2015

Al Ain Zoo Photography Competition





Al Ain Zoo’s annual Photography and Videography Competition is back
- The 2015 competition returns with new categories and valuable prizes, encouraging enthusiasts to take their best shots of wildlife and nature

Al Ain, United Arab Emirates, 21 April, 2015: Al Ain Zoo’s annual photography and videography competition has kicked off, challenging young enthusiasts to take their best shots and videos of Arid Land Wildlife and their zoo experience until the end of May.
With a focus on capturing behaviour and the improvements in camera phone technology, anyone can enter the competition without the need for expensive equipment. Through exciting new categories, budding, amateur and professional photographers and videographers have the opportunity to showcase their creativity. Six categories form this year’s main ‘Zoography’ photo competition including ‘At Play’, ‘Snackattack!’, ‘At Rest’, ‘Friendship’, ‘Poser’, and the zoo’s answer to Selfies – ‘Zoofies’!

Commenting on the new additions, Muna Al Dhaheri, the Chief of Conservation and Education at Al Ain Zoo, said:

Educating all our visitors, and especially the younger generation about animals and ensuring that wildlife and nature is a source of inspiration for them is a core commitment of Al Ain Zoo. This year, new categories were added to the competition, which gives us a great opportunity to further communicate our conservation efforts, and reward those who help us put these efforts in a picture. The launch of the new Photographer of the Year awards will help further establish Al Ain Zoo’s leading role in the topic of Arid Land Wildlife, bringing to life the beauty we need to conserve, and the challenges such life faces in today’s world.”

The response to last year’s competition was great, and with the addition of new categories and exciting prizes this year, the continued and valued support of Grand Stores and Nikon, we are confident that participants will surprise us with even more creative entries,” she added.

New for 2015, the zoo starts its hunt to find the ‘Arid Land Wildlife Photographer of the Year’ and ‘Junior Arid Land Wildlife Photographer of the Year’. The two dedicated awards are open to anyone in the world and participants are required to submit photos of arid land species either in the wild, at the zoo, interacting with their natural habitats, or trying to adapt to the changing world.

The zoo also launched ‘My Day at Al Ain Zoo Video Competition’, which coincides with the 10th anniversary of the first ever YouTube video called “My Day at The Zoo” filmed at San Diego Zoo, one of Al Ain Zoo’s strategic partners. This category invites budding videographers to film their journey and best moments at the zoo.

A welcome return for 2015 is the sponsorship of Grand Stores and Nikon Camera’s, donating a range of high-tech camera equipment, animal photo workshops and participating in the judging panel to decide the winners. The winning entries will be exhibited in the Sheikh Zayed Desert Learning Centre, due to open later this year, and also featured in the zoo’s 2016 calendar. The winners will be announced on 30 September, 2015.

About the Competition Categories:
At Play - Animals enjoy their lives at Al Ain Zoo and whether it’s pulling funny faces or pulling pranks on one another, they brighten both their day and the zoo’s with their antics. Look out for when the zoo adds ‘enrichment’ activities to brighten their day.

Snackattack Feeding time is most animal’s favourite time of the day, from a Crocodile’s snappy snacking to Lady the Gorilla foraging out her favourite seeds.
At Rest Arid Lands are hot places and most of our animals are highly acclimatized to the weather. From digging a shallow hollow to lay in, to a flick of the tail animals take it easy and rest in the heat of day to keep themselves cool. Being in Al Ain, the green heart of the UAE, many animals enjoy the shade of the abundant plant life in the zoo.
Friendship As we have 4,000 animals, most of our 197 species are not alone. Look out especially for baby animals making friends or sharing family moments. One of 2014’s winners celebrated the intimacy of Chimpanzees, and you can spot other more unusual friendships in the zoo in our mixed animal exhibits – or snap a close encounter in the children’s petting zoo.
Poser – Humans aren’t the only ones to strut their stuff. From the birds on display in our bird and parrot shows, to the prowl of a leopard the zoo has plenty of attention seekers. From displays of plumage to flexing of muscles, in the animal kingdom survival of the fittest is often survival of the most fabulous.
Selfie – We all know you love a selfie. Put those reverse camera phones on, get out your selfie sticks, set your timers to get back in the picture and share online to your heart’s galore – all with your favourite animals in the background. Just remember to not be too enthusiastic and try to get too close - where we have fences it’s for a reason!For more information on the terms and conditions for each category, kindly visit www.alainzoo.ae

Al Ain Zoo is open daily from 9am to 8pm until 31st May, 2015. Summer Night Zoo operating hours will begin 1st June, 2015, opening daily from 4pm to 10pm.

For images or more information, please contact:
Tarek Ali
Communications Officer
Al Ain Zoo
Mobile: 052 6058861
Direct: 03 7992235

For more information on Al Ain Zoo please visit www.alainzoo.ae.  
You can also follow Al Ain Zoo on www.facebook.com/AlAinZooUae

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