RUNAWAY BAY, St. Ann:

The winning entries from the 2006/2007 Youth Zoom Photography Competition, a project of the Jamaica National Building Society (JNBS) Foundation, will be on display at the annual awards ceremony scheduled to take place at the Runaway Bay HEART Academy, in St. Ann, on Thursday at 2:00 p.m.

Guest speaker at the event will be Dr. Jonathan Greenland, executive director of the National Gallery, who was also one of the judges in the competition.

According to Ruth Jankee, general manager of the foundation, almost 50 entries were received in this year's competition from students attending some 37 high schools across the island.

Those 37 schools produced 300 particpants from September of last year through April.

Workshops were held for high-school students in 13 parishes, and there was increased participation, based in part on the revival of photography clubs and the establishment of new ones.

Fresh insights

Professional photographer, Howard Moo-Young, who conducted most of the sessions, said that students brought fresh insights to the programme.

"They are certainly conscious of the issues in their communities, and once they became more adept at photography techniques, were able to capture very moving images," said Mr. Moo-Young.

A vital component of the project included sessions in advocacy, which were taught by a representative of the United Nations Population Fund.

This aspect of the project helped students to increase their awareness of their ability to speak out and have an influence on addressing the issues affecting the lives of people in their communities.

The budding photo-journalists will receive cash prizes and other awards. Their photography work will subsequently be displayed in an exhibition which will tour major libraries under the auspices of the National Library Service.

- Contributed