Lishui is said to be a hot spot for photographers from around the world. [Photo/Zhejiang Daily]

The 2022 FIAP World Photographers Conference is being held in Lishui city in East China's Zhejiang province on Nov 17-21 – and as a result the metropolis is expected to raise its profile massively in the world of international photography.

It's the first time the city and the Luxembourg-based International Federation of Photographic Art, or FIAP, are jointly holding the world event – seen as a milestone for Lishui's ambitions to become a top international photography venue.

Photography art powers pictures economy

Compared with previous Lishui photography festivals, this year's World Photographers Conference is seen as making major breakthroughs in brand expansion and local industry development.

According to the conference organizers, Lishui's existing and established photography festival – after years of development – is already among one of the top festivals of its kind in the world in terms of its exhibition scale and influence.

During the FIAP conference a video products expo, a sideline activity, will see 36 leading domestic and foreign brands and institutions – such as Huawei, Baidu, Philips and VCG – organize product sales, auctions and other activities.

At another sideline event – the Lishui PHOTO Art Fair – more than 420 works by Yousuf Karsh, Edward Weston and other well-known photographers have been registered for sale.

In 2020, Lishui cooperated with VCG to build an image digital center, a one-stop integrated platform for photography management and government image resource sharing. In 2021, the Lishui photography park project was launched, with an investment of more than 4 billion yuan ($560.6 million). The project is committed to creating a demonstration model for urban renewal and is regarded as being an important window for displaying Lishui culture in the new era.

A picture of tranquility: Boats are anchored on the Oujiang River in Lishui at dawn. [Photo/Zhejiang Daily]

Young people under spotlight

The World Photographers Conference will highlight the role of young people in the field through a slew of great activities.

An exhibition featuring the works of young photographers, yet another sideline event of the conference, has captured the attention of youngsters from around the world. It is designed to provide a platform to showcase their talent and to inspire their creativity, as well as to explore new trends.

Young photographers will be invited to share their insights at a talk show session on the afternoon of Nov 19. The collision of different ideas in a light-hearted way is expected to help these emerging insiders to open their minds and voice their opinions without reserve.

Cutting-edge technology to empower conference

The latest in imaging technology will be released at the World Photographers Conference. For example, representatives of the science and art visualization team at Tsinghua University will release their visualization image development results, while Huawei will release the Huawei Image XMAGE system.

In addition, the conference will also hold an image industry forum, bringing together representatives and well-known entrepreneurs from different industries – such as image production and manufacturing, internet platforms, art trading and media communications – to discuss and exchange ideas on the industry's development and innovation.