David Degner » Egypt Photographer » Photojournalism Blog

Centralized call to prayer in Cairo, Egypt

David — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 19:02:33 +0000

Sheikh Antar gives the call to prayer, also known as the adhan or azzan at a mosque in Khan El-Khalili Cairo on the last day before Ramadan. According to official statements adzan’s like this throughout Cairo will be replaced by a pre-recorded call to prayer from a central broadcasting system. The first conversion is scheduled to occur in the neighborhood of Heliopolis during Ramadan.

Adhan is called out by the muezzin in the mosque, sometimes from a minaret, five times a day summoning Muslims for mandatory prayers.

For the next two weeks I’ll be working with On Look Films as the videographer as we document these unique calls to prayer around Cairo. It is a documentary about a 1,400 year old tradition that is about to be erased forever from the audioscape of Cairo.

Family planning and birth rates in Egypt and the Middle East

David — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 17:20:00 +0000

I don’t know what the article is yet, but I thought this photo would by ideal for illustrating a story on family planning and birth rates in Egypt or the Middle East.

Photo on the Front of Al-Masry Al-Youm

David — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 23:44:35 +0000

Because I send most of my photos to papers in the US and Europe I never get to see them in print. When the image of Gamal Mubarak’s poster popped up on Al-Masry Al-Youm’s front page I got a good tingle in the back of my head.

Yes, I’m a bit proud that they used my image because Al-Masry Al-Youm is on of the few papers worth reading in Egypt.

Ayman Nour, reacting to Gamal Mubarak’s supporters campaign

David — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:45:12 +0000

Last night was a long night of following the Ayman Nour campaign.

In an attempt to regain legitimacy and momentum Al-Ghad party held a vote for party president and chose incumbent Ayman Nour. To show his popular support he walked through the neighborhood he used to represent in parliment from Bab Al-Sharayah to Ramsees.

The images start with a meeting where Gamal Mubarak’s poster was passed around, out to the street near Talaat Harb, to Bab Al-Bahr and Ramsis Square. The final image was at some early hour of the morning as Nour’s Campaign staffers joke and strategize.

These movements come after a long term battle with a splinter group of Al-Ghad and well-publicized campaigning from Gamal Mubarak’s supporters in the past few days.

In an attempt to regain legitimacy Al-Ghad party held a vote for president of the party and the founder Ayman Nour was chosen. To show his popular support he walked through the neighborhoods he used to represent in parliment from Bab Al-Sharayah to Ramsees.

These movements come after a long term battle with a splinter group of Al-Ghad and well-publicized campaigning from Gamal Mubarak’s supporters in the past few days.

For a larger set of images go to the photo archive.

Film about Child Abuse in Egypt

David — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:07:01 +0000

Friends of mine are working on a documentary film about child abuse in Egypt’s schools. Here is a single image from on the set.