‘Wedding in Paradise’ to feature in 2022 Dubai Expo |10 July 2021
Mr D’Offay (Photo: Jude Morel)
Potential brides and grooms across the globe will be able to view the work of local wedding photographers in a two-month long exhibition at Dubai expo 2022, under the theme ‘Wedding in paradise’.
Seychelles will be participating in the exhibition between February 11 and February 19 and during that time it is expected that over 15 million people will be in attendance which will provide ample marketing opportunities for the country.
Emmanuel D’Offay, special advisor in the department of Culture, said in an interview this week that this exhibition will be a good opportunity for Seychelles to promote itself as a unique paradise wedding destination.
“Wedding in Paradise is an experience that most couples strive for and we can offer that. As a tropical country we have an advantage as we have gorgeous beaches, not to mention our flora and fauna,” said Mr D’Offay.
He added that the exhibition will not only help wedding photographers showcase their work but also wedding planners and wedding decorators. Wedding Videographers can also submit their work and stand a chance to be featured.
They will be promoted to touring agents in Dubai as well as visitors.
Fifteen to 20 pictures will be featured in the main exhibition. However there will be a catalogue where all pictures that will be submitted will be added so that everyone’s work including people in the wedding business is represented. Each photographer and business will get their own page which will include their CV and contact details.
Mr D’Offay also stated that he wants diversity in pictures as every photographer has their own trademark and ways of taking pictures.
“We want locals to benefit from the wedding crowd coming to the country; we want to promote our local photographers and elevate the photography business in Seychelles because it is a sure fire way to bring in money in the economy as it is still an untapped market,” he added.
The exhibition is in collaboration with the department of Culture and department of Tourism as stated by Mr D’Offay, tourism has an important role as their marketing agents will be marketing Seychelles.
A photographer will also be present during the expo to give a rundown on the wedding experience in Seychelles.
Call for participants will be announced soon and everyone in the photography business can submit their portfolio of work before July 31 which is the due date and those selected will be announced in the second week of August.
Each photographer must send six high resolution pictures in PDF format, their curriculum vitae (CVs) and a small contribution to print their pictures if they get chosen.
“This is an opportunity that photographers should not miss as this is the first time we are participating in an international photography exhibition of this magnitude. Now is the time, especially in this day and age where we need to grab every opportunity we get, to promote our destination as well as artists,” Mr D’Offay said.
Christophe Zialor
