#MakeVisionCount Photo Competition winners announced

We are delighted to announce the winners of the #MakeVisionCount Photo Competition. The third World Sight Day photo competition has been a great success with 1100 photo submissions uploaded from 90 countries.

Winner – Professional Category:

Visually impaired child learning to write by Ramon Castillo.

Visually impaired child's learning to trace alphabets with a brush and ink — “Sometimes we take our vision for granted not knowing how important it is”. Photo Credit: Ramon Castillo

Runners-up – Professional Category:

Let take care, for more smile by Yves Abatangana
During a school screening and education exercise organised by my NGO by Cyril Amankwah
Alec being fitted with a pair of glasses from Pooja Doshi by Pooja Doshi
One eye blind life of women in southern kayah state of Myanmar by Min Hsan
“I began to lose my sight two years ago. I couldn’t go anywhere without my granddaughters. I just wanted to be able to see my grandchildren, and my village again.”
Tashi Yanzon was one of more than 260 people who had their sight restored at a four day eye camp in Ladakh, India by Daniel Jesus Vignolli

Winner – Amateur Category:

RAAB interrupts a woman’s housework in Inhambane (Mozambique) by Francisco Sanz, Ulls del món

Woman sitting on the floor with baskets of vegetables. She is covering her left eye while taking an eye test. — RAAB interrupts a woman’s housework in Inhambane (Mozambique). Photo Credit: Francisco Sanz

Runners-up – Amateur Category:

School Sight Test by Md. Mahmudul Islam
White cataract dark world getting ready to get his vision back by Prasanth Gireesh
Child after cataract surgery now he is happy by Mahesh Aryal
Student beneficiary wearing spectacles supported by SiB Pakistan Urban Peadiatric Eye Care project by Munazza Gillani
Vision for all, leaving no-one behind by Fatima Kyari

This year, we used software to help put in a place strict process to make sure the participants are not affected by vote-stuffing: IP addresses and voting patterns have been screened to make sure that the competition was fair.

Voting patterns such as sequence voting with regular interval for an extended period of time and high volume of votes in a extremely short period of time were verified. Known proxy IP adresses such as Tor and Digital Ocean were also removed. (We have taken into consideration that many users maybe using services to speed up internet in places where connectivity is an issue).

This photo competition has been more than collecting eye care photos – the photos had stories of effort, achievement and hope from around the world. A photo-blog series on some of these photos have also been published. Thank you for your photographs and stories – without you, this competition would not have been the roaring success that it is. Your submissions are a big resource for the eye health world.

IAPB thanks Bayer for their support in delivering this photo competition.