(NADS) - On the afternoon of December 16, in Hanoi, the People's Army Newspaper (QĐND) held a ceremony to summarize and award the prizes of the "Portrait of a Soldier" photo contest.
Beautiful moments of Uncle Ho's soldiers in peacetime
On the afternoon of December 16, in Hanoi, the People's Army Newspaper (QĐND) held a ceremony to summarize and award the prizes of the "Portrait of a Soldier" photo contest. Attending the event were: Major General Tran Ngoc Anh, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of the General Department of Politics, Director of the Political Department, General Department of Politics of the Vietnam People's Army; Major General Vu Ngoc Hoang, full-time member of the Central Military Commission's Inspection Commission; Ma The Anh, Director of the Department of Fine Arts, Photography and Exhibition, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism; Photographer-Journalist (NSNA-NB) Ho Sy Minh, Permanent Vice President of the Vietnam Association of Photographers - Editor-in-Chief of Photography and Life Magazine. On the side of the QĐND Newspaper, there were Major General Doan Xuan Bo, Secretary of the Party Committee, Editor-in-Chief of the QĐND Newspaper, Head of the Organizing Committee of the contest, along with many cadres, reporters, workers and soldiers. Also attending the ceremony were the award-winning authors, personalities and photography lovers.
The military has always been a great inspiration for photography.
Accompanying the revolutionary cause, over the past 70 years, photography has promoted its advantage as the art of the moment, preserving the important moments of the country. From the image of the "Determination to Win" flag flying on the roof of the De Castries bunker by NSNA Trieu Dai, to the image of a tank crashing into the gate of the Independence Palace by journalist Tran Mai Huong, photography has always accompanied our Army on every path of combat and victory. Photography has made the image of Uncle Ho's soldiers become the central figure of the Ho Chi Minh era, forever engraved in the nation's history with golden history books.
Aware of the need to continue the achievements of past Army photography, highlighting the image of soldiers in peacetime, the People's Army Newspaper organizes the "Portrait of a Soldier" Photo Contest, a practical activity with profound political and cultural significance. This is also a practical activity, making an impression in the series of activities to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Vietnam People's Army, the 35th anniversary of the National Defense Day and the 80th anniversary of the General Department of Politics of the Vietnam People's Army.
Speaking at the conclusion and evaluation of the results of the contest, Major General Doan Xuan Bo emphasized: “After a year of launching, the Organizing Committee of the contest received the response of a large number of NSNA, professional photojournalists and officers, soldiers and workers working at agencies and units throughout the army. The success of the contest is not only the number of more than 3,300 works by 450 participating authors, but also the love for the profession, the interest in the topic of soldiers and especially the quality of the works. Most of the works are rich in artistry, rich in content, strong, breakthrough in composition, capturing multi-dimensional moments, containing the values of truth-goodness-beauty about soldiers in training, combat readiness, labor production, solidarity, and attachment with the people in difficult times, natural disasters, storms and floods”.
Through the award-winning works, it can be seen that the works both ensure timeliness and express artistic value and clear messages. The image of General Phan Van Giang, Politburo member, Deputy Secretary of the Central Military Commission, Minister of National Defense in the arms of the people, was captured by reporter Nguyen Manh Quan (Dan Tri Newspaper) on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the historic Dien Bien Phu Victory, moving viewers. Talking about the work that won the highest prize in the single photo category, reporter Nguyen Manh Quan said: “I took the photo when Minister Phan Van Giang came to offer incense to commemorate the heroic martyrs at the A1 National Martyrs Cemetery. Many people from all over the country stood waiting to touch the Minister's hand, expressing their affection for the highest commander of the Army. It didn't take me long to name the photo "General in the arms of the people". The photo shows the people's trust in the Army, showing that our Army comes from the people, and is closely connected to the people.
Another impressive moment was the image of a Vietnamese rescue soldier smiling while holding a Turkish baby after the historic earthquake in February 2023 by reporter Tran Thanh Dat (Nhan Dan Newspaper). For the first time, the Vietnam People's Army participated in search and rescue operations abroad. Overcoming many difficulties, Vietnamese soldiers made efforts to help the Turkish people, leaving behind good feelings about our Army during the integration period, contributing to raising the country's position in the international arena. At the ceremony, Colonel Le Ngoc Long, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of the People's Army Newspaper, Deputy Head of the Organizing Committee of the contest, presented the work "Smile in the Great Turkish Earthquake" to comrade Nguyen Khac Phi, Battalion 93 (Engineering Corps), a character in the work.
With the photo series genre, the authors have invested a lot of effort to realistically and vividly portray the image of Uncle Ho's soldiers through visual stories. Sharing about the photo series "Soldiers racing against time, searching for missing victims in Lang Nu village (Lao Cai)" which won the A prize in the photo series category, reporter Pham Bang (Lao Cai Newspaper) said: "As a reporter working in a locality where landslides, flash floods, and flash floods frequently occur, I have followed the Army many times to help people in disaster areas. However, I have never witnessed such a devastating level as the landslide in Lang Nu, when coffins carrying unfortunate victims were continuously carried out by the army from the scene. Eating and living with the army to help the people in Lang Nu, I can see the deep bond between the army and the people. In peacetime, the army is still the support for people to overcome the most difficult times."
At the ceremony, the Organizing Committee awarded 31 prizes in both single and series categories. Present on stage to receive the awards were NSNA who is over 70 years old this year, as well as amateur photographers who are just over 20 years old. It can be seen that the Army has always been a great inspiration for photography.
Promoting the photography movement about Uncle Ho's soldiers
Due to the nature of the military environment, which is not easy to access, while the art of photography needs to capture specific, authentic, and vivid moments, the Organizing Committee of the contest organized 8 creative trips to many types of units throughout the army, in the North and the South with the participation of more than 100 NSNA, photojournalists, and collaborators from many agencies and units inside and outside the Army.
After launching, the Organizing Committee regularly grasped the situation and progress of implementation, advised the Editorial Board of the People's Army Newspaper to carry out many specific and practical activities to promote and attract authors to participate in the contest, such as: Organizing meetings with artists and photojournalists in Ho Chi Minh City; organizing field trips and compositions at units throughout the army; supporting means, contacting units, creating favorable conditions for artists and photojournalists to go to the field and work... Therefore, the contest has aroused the love of creation and passion for each frame of the amateur "photographers" who are officers and soldiers working all over the country.
Major General Vu Ngoc Hoang - the author who won the C prize with the photo series "Talented Workers", said: "Currently, from the battalion level and above, all are equipped with digital cameras. Based on personal experience, I think that political cadres should try to learn and study to fully utilize the camera's functions, record all activities and impressive moments of the unit, of comrades, actively and proactively collaborate and coordinate with press and media agencies. The authorities should also provide training and fostering to both improve the qualifications and inspire the passion for photography of cadres at the grassroots level. At that time, our Army will continue to have more passionate photographers to continue the source of creation about Uncle Ho's soldiers, about today's soldiers".
Source: https://nhiepanhdoisong.vn/le-tong-ket-va-trao-giai-cuoc-thi-anh-chan-dung-nguoi-chien-si-15659.html
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