Iraqi photographers from the city of Basra have dominated Xposure International Photography Festival’s #HomeCaptured contest, now in its third week, as Ahmed Lazem took home the first prize of US$ 1,000 while Saad Al Hamady claimed the runner-up position, winning US$ 750.

Ahmed Lazem’s winning entry, ‘My Birdie, depicts a young boy with his pet bird and constant companion in this time of self-imposed home quarantine. The jury described the image as “A beautiful portrait that embodies the emotion of the child looking out together with his pet budgerigar. Soft lighting and the shallow depth of field draws the viewer into the thoughts of the child. Well framed and composed image with an excellent choice of focal length and tonal control.”

‘Light of Ramadan’,Al Hamady’s runner-up image has evocatively captured the spirit of the Holy Month. The photographer has quoted the words of a writer to describe his image thus: “In His infinite mercy, Allah has sent the light of Ramadan to erase the night. He has sent the month of the Qur’an so that He might elevate us and bring us from our isolation to His nearness.”

In their evaluation of this photograph, the judges noted that “The feelings of loneliness and isolation in young people is well depicted in this environmental home portrait. It may be strange to think about Ramadan as being alone at home with only immediate family, but this well executed image displays the skill of the photographer in visually telling the story and in the photoshop skills.”

Now entering its fourth week, #HomeCaptured is an easy-to-enter global competition that invites shutterbugs worldwide to use their artistic skills to capture the beauty of everyday moments at home or window views of the outside world.

A jury of experts will evaluate all entries on a weekly basis (Monday to Sunday) and score them independently on a five-score system that assesses their composition, technical quality, lighting, and creativity. Weekly winners will be notified by email every Wednesday, and their images will be published on Xposure’s StayHome website as well as on its social media platforms.

Entries can be uploaded at https://stayhome.xposure.ae/  in JPG format. Contestants can submit one image in each 24-hour period over the duration of the contest.