Competition Winners

This collection celebrates the work of all winning photographers capturing life in its most vivid forms. These unique and international artists constitute the best of the photographic scene and we are very proud to share their work.

Winning Photographer Manel Quiros

Winning Photographer Manel Quiros
“From series: “Banishanta: Living in Solitude”⁠
Located on a small riverbank village in Mongla, southern Bangladesh, Banishanta is one of twenty legal brothels in Bangladesh. Shanta is only 9 years old. She was born on Banishanta Island after her mum Khadisha fell pregnant following an encounter with an unknown customer. Girls born under these conditions are often forced to follow the path of sex slavery, while boys end up working as drug dealers.⁠
© Manel Quiros
Second Prize David Klammer

Second Prize David Klammer
Title: "Climate activists running into Garzweiler open brown coal mine - Germany"⁠
"Activists from 'Ende Gelaende', an NGO that creates spectacular civil disobedience actions against brown coal companies that are among the worst polluters of our atmosphere. On June 24, 2019, thousands of activists blocked coal railway tracks and stormed into the huge open coal mines of Garzweiler near the Neurath power plant in Grevenbroich, Germany."
© David Klammer
Third Prize Javier Arcenillas

Third Prize Javier Arcenillas
Title: 'Maras gang member praying' - San Francisco Gotera jail, El Salvador
From long term project “Latidoamerica”⁠ - This project describes the fear, anger and impotence of victims amidst the daily terror of street gangs, murder and thievery in Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Colombia. The photographer wanted to document the heart of uncontrolled violence in Latin America, the social and political factors that aggressively reinforce that violence, as well as the determination to end it.
© Javier Arcenillas
Finalist Dave Tacon

Finalist Dave Tacon
Title: 'Fake Forest' - Chongqing, China, August 27, 2017
Workers are seen through an entrance in tempory fencing made to look like a forest scene at a construction site in Jiangbei District. Chongqing, which has a population of around 34 million, has been China’s fastest-growing city for 10 straight quarters.
© Dave Tacon
Finalist Clara Mokri

Finalist Clara Mokri
Title: “Westminster Dog Show 3” - New York, USA
A young girl and her father backstage with their Great Dane.
Part of a series of the 2019 Westminster Dog Show shot for TIME Magazine.
© Clara Mokri
Finalist Yukiko Sugiyama

Finalist Yukiko Sugiyama
Title: "CRASH”
The “CRASH” series does not refer to incidents or accidents, instead it represents the mutual relationship between nature and artifacts left behind by humans. These artifacts represent the culmination of technologies, abandoned to natural environments. These machines that have been thrown away after being judged not valuable anymore by people, could only surrender themselves to the environment.
Despite this dystopian world, similar to a sci-fi novel, this afterworld, provides a glimpse to a truth rarely seen. By discovering these artifacts, literally ‘foreign objects’ in the natural world, and usually found in very remote locations, I try to photograph them similar to human faces, appealing to the viewer’s humanity.
© Yukiko Sugiyama
Finalist Kristof Vadino

Finalist Kristof Vadino
Title “Jakarta Sinking” - Jakarta, Indonesia
Alex, 41, mussel fisherman, lives with his wife and two daughters in a cabin by the sea in North Jakarta. Directly opposite to his home is the future artificial islands of the ‘Garuda project’. In the background the ‘Bay Walk Mall’, a shopping mall and luxury apartments.
© Kristof Vadino
Finalist Kristof Huf

Finalist Kristof Huf
Title: 'Roma in Svinia' - Slovakia
Svinia consists of two settlements of similar size in Slovakia one inhabited by Slovaks and the other Roma. The conditions the Roma are living there are appalling and the unemployment is almost one hundred percent.⁠
© Kristof Huf
Finalist Gianluca Attoli

Finalist Gianluca Attoli
Untitled From series ‘The dream is always the same’
In ‘The dream is always the same’ the presence of a strong atmospheric element is the common trait. Fog, mist, snow, powerfully pictorial skyscapes: all of these aspects, individually or combined, make the main subject(s) “recede” for a moment, letting the mood and the atmosphere become the main and most immediate features of each shot.
© Gianluca Attoli
Finalist Leonardo Perugini

Finalist Leonardo Perugini
Title: 'The girl and the flag' - Khan al Ahmar, East Jerusalem
⁠ ⁠ A child plays hide-and-seek in front of the “School of Tyre”. The school was built by the Italian NGO “Vento di Terra” as a covered and secure place where children can study. The Bedouin community of Jahalin lives in the village, and just a few meters behind them an Israeli settlement is looming over.
Israel is highly opposing the life of the village impeding freedom of movement of its inhabitants and not offering them any kind of job. In 2018 Israel ordered the demolition of the village which, after, has been postponed.⁠
© Leonardo Perugini

– Theme: Visual Storytelling / Competition Judge: Ed Kashi

From classic social documentary to imaginative storytelling: The art of visual storytelling encompasses a wide range of possibilities with at its heart, the will to tell a story and we were seeking visual artists aiming to captivate and share their stories with awareness and conviction.

Join us over on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter where we’ll be sharing all our favorite images from the competition. Congratulations to all the talented photographers who made it to the final!

Finalists

1st Prize: Manel Quiros

“What is so powerful about this image is the combination of powerful graphics emotive elements and the seeming plea for help of the young girl. There is also something enigmatic and ambiguous about this image, which for me carries even more weight. This is an image that can convey a message but also be open to a variety of interpretations. Aesthetically it’s very strong and emotionally very powerful.” – Ed Kashi

2nd Prize: David Klammer

“This is a very strong new photo that goes beyond the event or moment. It’s somewhat surreal and almost feels staged. The lighting, composition and the one red umbrella gives this image heft beyond the newsworthiness of the event it depicts. This is a lovely example of a journalistic image that transcends the information it’s meant to represent.” – Ed Kashi

3rd Prize: Javier Arcenillas

“Awarded 3rd prize in the ‘Long Term Projects’ category of the 2018 World Press Photo for other images from his essay “Latidoamerica”, Javier Arcenillas’ captivating portrait of a young Maras gang member praying in San Francisco Gotera jail, Sans Salvador perfectly encapsulate the intensity and determination of the subject’s attempt for redemption. Well-composed and perfectly framed, it is a powerful reminder of the uncontrolled gang violence raging in Latin America.” – The Independent Photographer Editors

Open to All Photography

Be part of a vibrant community: The competition award is a unique opportunity to gain exposure and provides a platform to celebrate the very best of contemporary photography.

$ 24.000
Cash Prizes
International
Exhibitions
Global
Exposure
Open to all
Photographers
Professional
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THEME: EMERGING TALENT Deadline: 29 February 2020

**FREE ENTRY**

This month we are offering a FREE ENTRY on single-image submission. Regardless of your budget or location: We are proud to invite ALL photographers to take part and have the chance to present their work.

We are looking for the best upcoming photographers of all ages, background and working in all photographic fields.

Fine art, landscape, street, documentary, portrait, fashion... There are no boundaries and we want you to release your creativity in as many inventive ways as you can imagine!

1st Prize: $1000 · 2nd Prize: $600 · 3rd Prize: $400