To celebrate our annual Portrait Award, we surveyed the winners and finalists from all awards held over the previous 12 months and selected 10 portraits that display the immense potential of the genre.

Early photography in China had a uniquely Chinese aspect - inspired by traditional painting techniques of the era. Some photographers actually painted calligraphy over their photos, in the style of the Literati painters. Since then Chinese photography has evolved to encompass a wide variety of genres and styles.