The Xposure International Photography Festival in Sharjah, UAE has been attracting the biggest names in the industry in recent years.
The seventh edition of the festival, which was held from the ninth to the fifteenth of February, included 74 photographers, 68 exhibitions and more than 50 workshops.
Behind this festival is Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qasimi, Deputy Ruler of Sharjah and Chairman of the Sharjah Media Council.
Al-Qasimi has a brilliant eye behind the lens and a great skill in photography, thanks to that festival, and he tells Euronews: “I learned a lot from “Expogear”. Every time I see a photographer, I ask him.”
“As time goes by, you start to see things differently. You start to see different colors… This is a place to learn.”
Al-Qasimi always carries his visualization machine with him, saying that “the beauty that you see with your eyes is trying to transfer it to an image.”
Famous Hungarian photographer Esther Horvath was also at the festival, presenting her documentation of the scientific expedition in the middle of the Arctic Ocean.
Since 2015 she has been dedicated to polar photography working alongside scientific groups to achieve a better understanding of climate change and environmental issues.
Speaking of her mission in the Arctic Ocean, Horvath says, “I felt like I was filming the moon landing mission. For me, the moon landing is an inspiration for my work. When we think about it, it’s not thousands of pages of scientific publication that come to mind but a picture of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin.” on the surface of the moon.”
“And that’s also my goal with photography to translate difficult scientific research into something very visual that people can understand,” she adds.
Brazilian photographer Gabriel Weckbold also attended the festival for the second year in a row, and believes that the event is an opportunity for cross-fertilization of cultures and ideas.
“I come here and see my art complete itself in a completely different culture and that’s incredible to me,” he says.
Last year, the festival also witnessed a large attendance, making it one of the largest photography events in the world.
The event provides a section dedicated to companies specialized in the field of photography to display the latest equipment and advanced technology for those interested from beginners and amateurs to professionals.
“The event is an inspiring meeting place for photographers who want to push the boundaries of their knowledge and creativity,” says Asaad Abboud, Managing Director of Leica Middle East (the official sponsor of the festival).
