Picture of Frum Newlyweds Wins Second Place in National Geographic Photo Contest

14
>>Follow Matzav On Whatsapp!<<

national-geographic-traveler-photo-contestA picture of a newly married frum couple in Yerushalayim’s Meah Shearim neighborhood has won the second place in National Geographic Traveler magazine’s 2014 Photo Contest, out of more than 18,000 entries from around the globe.

“With thousands of pictures to review, judges found themselves wandering through stunning ice caves, mysterious desert views, and intriguing scenes from cultures throughout the world,” the magazine editors wrote.

Ynet reports that the three winning pictures were published earlier this week. The first place went to photographer Marko Korošec’s “The Independence Day,” which depicts a storm near Julesburg, Colorado.

The second-place winner was Polish photographer Agnieszka Traczewska’s photo of Aaron and Rivkeh, a charedi couple, moments after their chupah.

“Meah Shearim, the ultra-Orthodox district of Jerusalem,” the photo caption reads. “Newly married couple Aaron and Rivkeh will be alone together for the first time after their wedding ceremony. Their marriage was arranged by their families. The 18-year-olds met once to confirm the choice; since then they have been prohibited to meet or even talk.”

“My picture presents a modest…moment,” Agnieszka Traczewska told Ynet. She has been capturing moments in the charedi world for seven years now, and says that over the years she has managed to get a deeper glimpse into this fascinating world.

“For me the fact that it was an arranged marriage, that those youngsters of 18, they are seeing each other for the second time in their life, was simply unbelievable,” she said.

“The moment I captured was when the couple was saying goodbye to the groom’s mother, and they were just exploding with emotions. And there was everything there – there was shyness, there was expectation, there was excitement. Maybe there was a fear.”

Traczewska was surprised that the picture was selected for the completion, “because it is a very humble picture. This is a very modest scene. There are only three characters in a thin room and it represents an extremely insular story. For somebody who is not familiar with the charedi customs, in fact it doesn’t mean anything. But at the same time, I had a feeling that there is a kind of a tornado of emotions.”

One of this year’s judges, National Geographic Traveler Director of Photography Dan Westergren, shared his thoughts on the second-place winner:

“Photography is a powerful tool for showing the ways that people around the world are clearly different but in many ways the same. The Orthodox fur hat and wedding dress are clues that this picture was taken in a very distinctive place. But the smile and laughter of the bride and groom indicate that these are teenagers reacting to a new situation.”

YNET NEWS

{Matzav.com}


14 COMMENTS

  1. Beautiful!
    I hope that the perverted world filled with antisemitism and non-acceptance, intolerance and even hate that we live in today this doesn’t turn this to be a thorn in our side; rather a rose!
    Does the couple get a gift too?
    BTW, were they asked if they agree to the publicity? Don’t they have to be asked – they aren’t public figures!

  2. I’m surprised that someone from Meah Shearim would allow a photographer to take their picture and even enter it into a contest.

  3. SayIdidit: their picture………………
    there means: over there.
    Could we ask people to please spell check or use a dictionary before posting. May help you all gain some fundamental knowledge. No shame in learning.

  4. “SayIdidit: their picture………………
    there means: over there.
    Could we ask people to please spell check or use a dictionary before posting. May help you all gain some fundamental knowledge. No shame in learning.”

    I apologize. I always mix up ‘their’ and ‘there’ . However, a spell check won’t help because they are both spelled correctly. And I am not going to check a dictionary every time I write a comment on a news site. It is one mistake and you don’t have to be so hard. Thank you!

  5. Yeah, leave SayIDidIt™ alone. Everyone understood what he meant. Don’t go around complaining about every text spelled wrong etc.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here