Sharjah, United Arab Emirates - February 25, 2025 For over four decades, the UAE has organized the International Festival of Falconry, where hundreds of falconers from dozens of countries gather in Abu Dhabi to exchange expertise and explore various hunting traditions. The first was held in 1976, organized by Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan who was an internationally known falconer. For a National Geographic feature Syrian photographer Mustapha Azab documented the “Falconry Across Borders”. Exhibited at Sharjah’s Xposure International Photography Festival. “It was an opportunity for us in National Geographic Arabia to document everything related to this craft and sport in terms of clothing in terms of tools in terms of different birds in terms of different characters and nationalities. The project is a combination of anthropology, geography, costumes and different cultures of peoples.” Though falconry has existed in numerous cultures throughout history, it has always been central to Middle Eastern culture. In 2016, the Unseco recognised falconry as UAEлs intangible heritage. “Almost all countries use similar birds, whether they are in Asia and North Africa”, explains Mustapha Azab. “Birds in a region in the Americas are slightly different. This cultural dialogue has affected the tools, the methods of hunting, and the types of birds used to improve the abilities of birds among these peoples.” Only recently Dr Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Ruler of Sharjah, inaugurated the Sharjah Falconers Club. The clinic building is considered the largest in the Arabian Gulf region and provides advanced and integrated healthcare. It includes a laboratory equipped with the latest international devices and technologies, a feather splinting room, a falconry operating room, a CT scan machine, the first of its kind in the region. Today, falcons are used for sports more than anything else. These events are so popular among the Arabs that a typical racing falcon sells for over 800,000 UAE dirhams. For centuries, another animal has been a loyal and steadfast friend to the Emiratis: the camel. In a 4-year project Irish amateur photographer Frank Fergusson illustrated the rarely seen day to day caretaking of the UAE’s camels, whilst also showing the natural beauty of the country’s landscape. “One of the photographs I have was taken during a thunderstorm and a camel kept following. We were under a shelter for about two hours. The camel kept following the herdsman and the herdsman just put his hand up like this and the camel kept nudging it for all of those two hours and it showed the fondness between them. So there੩s a real close affection between them. They really, really look after them and the camels return it. They really are, they૩re beautiful animals and there଍s a great fondness between both the people who come mostly from Pakistan mostly for a number of years. Some of them come for a couple and go home but some of them have been here for a long time. There௛s a beautiful bond between them.“ The camel holds a special place in the heart of every Emirati. Even today, despite urbanisation and modernisation, it continues to be a symbol of their cultural heritage. “Many of them actually have said we came in, we looked around and we said this has to be an Emirati. Because who else would take photographs of camels and a camel farm in the desert and who else would have that feeling of the relationship with them? And that surprised me”, explains Frank Fergusson. “And perhaps I෨ve had two comments, one posted up by somebody last night who said that this photographer, over four years, has captured the beauty of our desert. And then someone else came over to me yesterday and said, do you know something? He says, you have captured the soul of our culture in your photographs. And it༠s just the love that they have for their culture and the desert and the camels is wonderful.” Spread over thousands of small camel farms there are 300,000 camels in the UAE, mostly used for breeding, racing and to provide milk. Every single camel has a registered owner. They really, really look after them and the camels return it. They really are, theyᖝre beautiful animals and thereᗁs a great fondness between both the people who come mostly from Pakistan mostly for a number of years. Some of them come for a couple and go home but some of them have been here for a long time. There’s a beautiful bond between them.“ - Various shots of Frank Fergusson’s exhibition at Xposure - SOT Frank Fergusson, photographer (English): “Many of them actually have said we came in, we looked around and we said this has to be an Emirati. Because who else would take photographs of camels and a camel farm in the desert and who else would have that feeling of the relationship with them? And that surprised me. And perhaps Iᠿve had two comments, one posted up by somebody last night who said that this photographer, over four years, has captured the beauty of our desert. And then someone else came over to me yesterday and said, do you know something? He says, you have captured the soul of our culture in your photographs. And it᥷s just the love that they have for their culture and the desert and the camels is wonderful.” - Various shots of camels in the desert - Various shots of desert dunes Video Location: United Arab Emirates,Sharjah