A Middlesex University student, Asef Ali Mohammad, who moved to the UK 10 years ago from Pakistan, is amongst an international cast of ten finalists for the 2012 Sony World Photography Awards Student Focus competition.
Asef submitted his image of Hazara people in Pakistan. The Hazaras, who live mostly in Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan, have been subject to persecution, kidnapping and target killings – something Asef wanted to raise awareness of. This year the competition has attracted entries from over 200 institutions across six continents. Asef, from North Finchley, said: “I’m excited about being nominated for such a prestigious award. The whole environment that has shaped up in recent years around photography at Middlesex is fantastic. Each year I’ve seen other students get published in magazines and exhibited – it sets the bar high, inspires, and gives you something to aim for.” The photographers were asked to take on a role similar to that of a haiku poet and create and submit one image that depicts a ‘fleeting moment’, or ‘the decisive moment’.
The ten finalists will take part in the final competition with the winner announced at the Sony World Photography Awards ceremony at London’s Park Lane Hilton Hotel on 26 April. Students will also have their images will be exhibited as part of World Photo, at Somerset House, London.