• MaryAnne Golon, Director of Photography, TIME (New York)
• Rebecca McClelland, Deputy Picture Editor, Sunday Times Magazine (London)
• Jean-Francois Leroy, Director General, Visa Pour L'Image (Perpignan, France)

In addition to $20,000 in funding, each grant recipient will receive collaborative editorial support from Getty Images' photo editors as they execute their projects in the coming months.

Ziyah Gafic proposes to use his grant to complete his series of photo essays titled "Troubled Islam -- Short Stories From Troubled Societies."

"My aim is to capture the quiet loneliness and determination of people trying to carry on with their lives," he said, "when the very fabric of their community, rituals and social life has been torn apart."

The series documents the aftermath of war and violence in the daily life of Muslim communities in Europe, Africa and Asia, in a post 9/11 context. The grant enables Gafic to complete his ninth and final essay on Lebanon, recording the impact of recent hostilities as people return and reconstruction begins in a place where Muslims and non-Muslims can still coexist, despite their damaged relations and continuous foreign interference.

Christopher Anderson plans to focus on a project titled "The Bolivarian Revolution...Venezuela and Bolivia at a Crossroads." He will focus on the new socialist revolution in Latin America -- a change fueled by oil, leftist nationalism, authoritarian populism and indigenous identity, yet ignored by Western media. But rather than highlighting the concrete manifestation of events, Anderson will strive to convey the humanity behind this loaded word, Revolution, and to brush an emotional portrait of a time and place.

"Oil and politics make Latin America relevant today, but I am shocked to discover that there is no interest or financial support from the magazines to cover these subjects," said Anderson. "I argue that Latin America does matter, and that this is a particularly interesting time to invest in documenting life there. My hope is that this grant will make that possible."

Judge Jean-Francois Leroy commented: "Being part of the jury for the Getty Images Grant for Editorial Photography was really interesting. To be able to go through more than 150 files is always fascinating. Very quickly, after the first round, the strongest, most serious and thoughtful projects and the best organized portfolios were easily identified and the choice of the three judges, working together, was reduced to a dozen, without any hesitation.

It was exciting to recognize some portfolios from established photojournalists, even though they were anonymous, as well as to see the work from newcomers to the field. Agreement on the two winners was quite unanimous, even obvious! In very different ways, both met the grants program goal and criteria and I'm very glad with our two winners. They really were the best."

Aidan Sullivan, vice president, Photo Assignments North America for Getty Images said, "Photojournalism brings to life the most pressing and engaging global issues, whether political, social or environmental. In an increasingly difficult time to raise funding for this work, we at Getty Images are committed to helping these talented, dedicated photographers produce these important projects."

More about the grants program, the judges, the winners, their projects and portfolio work can be viewed at http://www.gettyimages.com/editorial-grants.

About Getty Images
Getty Images is the world's leading creator and distributor of visual content and the first place creative professionals turn to discover, purchase and manage imagery. The company's award-winning photographers and imagery help customers create inspiring work which appears every day in the world's most influential newspapers, magazines, advertising campaigns, films, television programs, books and Web sites. Headquartered in Seattle, WA and serving customers in more than 100 countries, Getty Images believes in the power of imagery to drive positive change, educate, inform, and entertain. Visit Getty Images at http://gettyimages.com/.