YCIS Shanghai hosted the awards ceremony for the first annual LittleStar – YCIS “Colors of China” national Photo Competition this past weekend at Gubei Campus.

The inaugural competition called for international school students, teachers, and parents to submit their best photos of several aspects of life in China, based on four categories: people, landscape, culture, and life.

The competition was judged by a number of professional photographers from established media outlets, including Mr Wang Gang Feng, the lead Judge, and a renowned photographer, widely recognised for his photos of China’s countryside. In total, 386 photos from students, teachers, staff, and parents from 19 international schools across China were submitted, which made the decision, according to Mr Wang “a great challenge, as the quality of the photographs that were submitted was very impressive.”

During the awards ceremony, Mr Wang critiqued the images, sharing his evaluation of the photos and suggesting alternate angles and techniques the participants might have used. After awards and prizes were presented to the 1st and 2nd place winners, as well as those who earned honourable mentions, the grand prize was announced, with the winning student, Miss Jenna Jung, from YCIS Shanghai, receiving the award for her compelling visual of “Monkey and Goat”. When discussing the winning image, Mr Wang shared with the audience that, “Even as a professional, it is rare for me to capture a photo of this quality.”

As she accepted the prize, Miss Jung explained her inspiration behind the photo, saying “I took the photo with my dad’s camera during our family vacation. Although I personally did not like how the animals in the photo were being treated, I felt that I was able to capture the true emotion and energy of the crowd.”

Other YCIS Shanghai students to take home top prizes included Miss Naomi Schanen and Miss Tze-Wei Hsu. Additionally, two YCIS Shanghai teachers, Mr Leonardo Lazo and Ms Cathy Essley, also won in the adult category of the photo competition.

With a school motto that focuses on “Aligning with Culture and Arts”, it was a natural fit to support a competition that allows students to express and develop their creativity through the arts. Yew Chung International School congratulates all participants in the competition! For more about the Arts programme at YCIS Shanghai please click here.