Ophelia: CANON PhotoMarathon Kuching 2015

Photo taken during the 'run'

Photography enthusiasts in East Malaysia had the opportunity to participate in an annual photography event which was recently organised by CANON Malaysia in Kuching on the 20th of September, 2015. Canon PhotoMarathon is Canon's largest annual photography event which is also held in other countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, India, Thailand, Cambodia, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Brunei. The "base camp" or the official venue for Kuching's CPM was Boulevard Mall. Registration began as early as 7 a.m and each participant was given goodie bag, tag and the official t-shirt. All the fees collected from participants were donated to some charities.

It is not difficult to join this event because all you need is either a DSLR or a compact camera, regardless of the brand. People who are not familiar with this event have this misconception that you need to own a professional camera, you must be a pro-photographer and you need to run as in jogging during the competition. In fact, some of us who took part in Canon PhotoMarathon came as a family. There were some young kids who participated too. So, there is nothing to be shy about for not using any Canon's camera or just because you are an amateur photographer. We were at this event to have fun and learning from one another at the same time.

Participants had to submit one photo for each theme and before the cut-off time. We were given three themes throughout the day. For those who completed the challenge within the stipulated time, they were awarded certificates of participation. Although we were not literally running to get the perfect shots, but it was a bit of a rush going places to capture photos for each theme. Besides, we had to submit only one photo within three hours for every theme. All photographers were allowed to travel anywhere to shoot, some participants even went to a cave or as far as Kuching Waterfront to take some stunning photos.

All the interesting shots taken were shown on a stage screen throughout the day and two of my photos were featured (Theme 1 & 3). Although I did not win any prize but that was already quite an achievement as not everyone's photo was up on the big screen. I must admit photos taken by those in Junior category (under 18) were as good as those in the Open category. The competition offered attractive prizes to both Open and Junior categories. The grand prize went to Sheblee Zulazhar and the Junior category won by Renee Bong. The grand prize winner won himself a trip to Japan for a photography clinic and also some really cool photography equipments. What I really like about this competition is that it truly puts our photography or shooting skills to the test and no one is allowed to edit their photos.

Just for your information, this annual photography event will not be organised in Kuching only. We are not sure if it is going to be held here again next year as Canon wants to give equal opportunity to other cities too. So, I'm glad and grateful I really pushed myself to join the Canon PhotoMarathon. It was really a fun-filled learning experience, will I do it again? Yes, no doubt I will. Hey, at least I got to meet TV-Celebrity/Professional Photographer like Justin Mott from the History Channel's Photo Face-Off.