Ilyas Yılgör 4th International Photography Competition awards have been presented to their recipients.

The awards at the ‘İlyas Yılgör 4th International Photography Contest’ organized by the Mersin Metropolitan Municipality have been handed out. This year, 285 participants from 50 countries took part in the contest held in 3 categories with a total of 3,000 photographs.

An award ceremony was held for the winners of the İlyas Yılgör 4th International Photography Contest, organized in collaboration with the Mersin Value Adding Committee (MEDEKA) and various institutions, coordinated by the Department of Culture and Social Affairs. The ceremony began with opening speeches at the Multi-Purpose Hall of the Congress and Exhibition Palace, followed by a documentary about the life of Mersin artist İlyas Yılgör.

In the contest held in three categories: Life, Portrait, and Print, 285 participants from 50 countries presented a total of 3,000 photographs. A total of 73 awards were distributed, with winners honored with Gold Medals, İlyas Yılgör Special Awards, Mersin Metropolitan Municipality Honorary Awards, along with medals and cash prizes. The winning photographs were displayed at the ceremony.

### Winners
In the Life category; the FIAP Gold Medal Award was won by İnci Koyun from Bursa, the Camera Obscura Gold Medal went to Özlem Dağlı from Adana, the İlyas Yılgör Special Award was received by Amy Jazic from Croatia, and the Mersin Special Award given by the Metropolitan Municipality was won by Atila Karaderi from the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
In the Portrait category; the FIAP Gold Medal Award was won by Andrey Putilin from Russia, the Camera Obscura Gold Medal went to Irina Markova from Kazakhstan, the İlyas Yılgör Special Award was received by İnci Koyun, and the Mersin Special Award was won by Hasan Dayanıklı from Adana.
In the Print category; the FIAP Gold Medal Award was won by Natalia Shotova, the Camera Obscura Gold Medal Award went to Mustafa Kılıç, the İlyas Yılgör Special Award was received by Mehmet Uluyurt, and the Mersin Special Award was also won by Mustafa Kılıç. The awards were presented to the first-place winners during the ceremony.

“If there is no emotion and story in a photograph, that photograph is nothing more than a piece of paper”
Mersin Metropolitan Municipality Deputy Secretary General Serdal Gökayaz began his speech by congratulating everyone who participated in the contest and contributed their efforts, stating, “We continue our work in the field of culture and art with determination to implement participatory cultural policies that are shaped in our city. This contest is also an event that was brought to life with this understanding and continues to bring together the cultural and artistic dynamics in the city even after the passing of İlyas Yılgör.” Mersin Photographers Tradesmen and Craftsmen Chamber President Ahmet Bayans expressed pride in organizing the 4th contest, saying, “I hope we will continue this in the future.” Bayans concluded his remarks with İlyas Yılgör’s expression, “If there is no emotion and story in a photograph, that photograph is nothing more than a piece of paper.”

“You get motivated by the awards”
Özlem Dağlı, who won first place in the contest, stated that she started her photography journey in 2012, saying, “I was awarded a gold medal, it’s a wonderful feeling. I started this journey a year ago. Last year, I received my first exhibition award. A year later, I was deemed worthy of the gold medal. The award is a reflection of the effort we put in. You get motivated by the awards and you embrace your work with more determination.” Hasan Dayanıklı, who received an honorable mention award, expressed that photography is a part of his life and noted that he participates in prestigious contests like İlyas Yılgör.