Protests and rallies

Like all the best protest pictures they have to jump out at you and for that they have to have drama. The drama can come from capturing a moment of action, but to stay in the memory they are also laden with symbolism. This is a powerful image because whilst it captures the dramatic gesture of a fist thrust into the air against a moody foreboding sky, it also symbolically captures what the Black Lives Matter movement is about- anger, defiance, solidarity and togetherness in the fight for equality. We see the anger and defiance in the central character's expression. as he thrusts his fist into the air; and the more fearful but equally defiant look his compadre to the left has. We get the solidarity and togetherness of his friend next to him who is wrapping his arm around him for support. The three subjects telling us that they stand together in their fight. The background crowd of fellow protesters plus BLM written on the megaphone gives us the necessary information we need. The perfect photo that can be used on the cover of any Magazine or front page of a newspaper, as well as a long-lasting visual testament to a time in history. A powerful, worthy winner.

This photographer has done really exceptionally well in covering this march. Here, he/she has chosen to zoom in on faces, taking out context; but we don't need to see the surrounds to get the what it's about, as it is written on the masks of the protesters - a famous quote, with a simple X underneath. The photo has drama even though there is no action and it has emotion even though you can't see expressions . The eyes of the foreground subject are piercing and seem to tell you to confront the issue and do something about it. A call to action, even though it's not visually obvious. Even though I don't like black and white photography used for it's own sake as it too often is; in this case, it's used effectively to strip the visual element down just concentrating on the eyes and the mask. The fellow protester to the right also in the mask, enhances the composition. A really powerful symbolic image.

This is a great picture that any editor would be looking to use to show civil strife and unrest when people take to the streets to protest a big issue. All the elements are there in the frame - the prostate demonstrator struggling under a group of policemen over the top of him, centre frame, with his face clearly seen thrust up in pain and defiance mouth open, shouting; giving the photo emotion. The police providing the action as they run across the frame along the top.. Together, these elements give all the drama you need for a great protest picture. The placards strewn all around the protester gives you the context that you need for a photo like this. Well done.

Sometimes photographing po;pular protest involves capturing the positive joyful emotions in all the natural drama that civil upheaval can bring.. Here, the photographer captures the lively, upbeat nature of the democratic uprising in Egypt, presumably in it's early days. He/she using flash blur (flash with a slow shutter speed) to enhance the movement and busyness as people come together in joyful celebration of an ideal; a demonstrator stands on his the back of his friend's motorbike waving an Egyptian flag as it speeds through the busy nighttime streets. Flash blur can be a difficult technique to execute, but when it's done properly to good effect, it can convey a lot more in an image. An arresting photo.

This is a very thoughtful and intelligent picture that shows the photographer has taken the trouble to work around the story using a different way to show the unrest, anger and destruction that can be brought about by people taking to the streets to protest. And, as the photographer has indicated, he had to be a bit brave as we can see that this particular demonstration had turned violent. Using a long(ish) lens he has focused in on the smouldering glowing embers from a pile of bikes that had been set alight, compressing the elements within the frame; the police protesters scattered along the top of the frame showing what the pile of burning rubble was all about. I also love the way the figures are almost rendered abstract from the heat waves eminating from the glowing embers in the foreground below. Again, with a great protest picture it's all about combining the elements of drama, symbolism and context. A great image.

This photograph has the potential to be so much more if the composition was a bit different. It's full of drama, and the photographer has done well to think differently about depicting civil strife and disorder. Here they have captured the biolence by concentrating on the broken up bits of paving stone, after they have presumably been hurled at authorities and/ or an opposing group of protesters. the pair of legs are a distraction rather than an aid. Maybe if the camera had been placed lower on the ground so as to make the projectiles even closer to the frame and thereby the figure becoming complete in the frame , we would be getting a more balanced composition with all the elements tidily placed within the frame. None-the-less, a striking image.