1ST PRIZE: Phillip Glombik

“I browsed all of the beautiful finalist images over and over, letting them soak in, allowing professional judgment and subjective emotion to mingle. This was the image that always pulled me back, always invited me to get lost in wonder. I know what it is: river sediments in Iceland. But in places, it echoes the forces of creation we see in space telescope images of galactic nebula where stars are born. In other places, it echoes the desert dunes, or perhaps arctic blizzard drifts. The patterns are primordial. But what struck me most is how this image was elevated over similar images by the pattern or ripples that lay over the whole image like a veil. Just wonderful.” — Jim Richardson

2ND PRIZE: Ed Smith

“This scene is elusive in a most delightful way. Where most landscape photographs are explicit, this one is evocative. The mists are the author of this image, letting us see only snippets and hints of moors and glens in the Cairngorms of Scotland. The scattered trees serve to assure us that there is solid ground out there somewhere. I’ve spent quite some time absorbing this image. As far as I can tell there is no center of interest; I don’t miss it. Author Nan Shepherd wrote her famous book, The Living Mountain, about the Cairngorms. This picture pretty much nails it.” — Jim Richardson 

3RD PRIZE: Rémi Bergougnoux

“A captivating image, portraying a frequently documented landscape that is transformed into something truly unique thanks to the photographer’s combination of patience, and mastery of composition, light, and tone. From the slightly low angle, the viewer’s gaze effortlessly follows the meandering stream which snakes into the distance, where the magnificent Mont Saint Michel takes center stage against a breathtaking pink sky, split by a diagonal sweep of pastel-hued clouds.” – The Independent Photographer Editors