World Photography competitive 2025 awards most hypnotic images
A showcase of selected winning World Photography
Splish Splash ©Christopher Baker, United States, Shortlist, Open Competition, Natural World & Wildlife, 2025 Sony World Photography Awards, Christopher Baker
Sony World Photography Awards
The Sony World Photography Awards presents a showcase of selected winning and shortlisted images at Somerset House, a stunning neoclassical building and cultural centre in London.
Competition entrants were invited to submit their strongest single images from 2024. Over 419,000 images from over 200 countries and territories have been received.
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From the entries, winners and shortlisted photos were chosen from ten categories. One award recipient for The Open Photographer of the Year will receive a US$ 5,000 cash prize and a range of Sony digital imaging equipment.
World Photography celebrates a singular moment
The winning photos, as well as those shortlisted, were chosen for high recognition as the best individual images representing some of the most arresting photography from the past year.
Now in its eighteenth year, the Open competition celebrates the ability of an individual photograph to capture and distil a singular moment and evoke a broader narrative.
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The Sony World Photography Awards is free to enter and is an internationally acclaimed global voice for photography, providing insights into this contemporary art form.
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The Awards offer world-class opportunities for established and emerging artists to gain exposure for their work at their annual exhibition in London, which will then travel to other locations.
Competition of World Photography
Established in 2007, the competition is one of the world’s biggest and most prestigious. It is the principal programme for the World Photography Organisation, a leading global platform dedicated to the development and advancement of photographic culture.
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Some highlights from this year’s competition include stunningly serendipitous images in the Natural World & Wildlife category.
The Whale Raft winner
Estebane Rezkallah’s category-winning photo, The Whale Raft, depicts a group of polar bears feasting on the carcass of a whale in East Greenland.
The Whale Raft, ©Estebane Rezkallah, France, Winner, Open Competition, Natural World & Wildlife, 2025 Sony World Photography Awards, The misfortune of some brings happiness to others, and for these polar bears, the death of a whale in east Greenland heralded a royal feast. Attracted by the smell, more than sixty bears were recorded in the area. However, their behaviour was almost benevolent, possibly due to the abundance of food. Estebane Rezkallah
The image description noted that “The misfortune of some brings happiness to others, and for these polar bears, the death of a whale in east Greenland heralded a royal feast.
Misfortune provides feast
Attracted by the smell, more than sixty bears were recorded in the area.
However, their behaviour was almost benevolent, possibly due to the abundance of food.”
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Splish Splash, of a Great Blue Heron with a freshly caught fish by Christopher Baker, shows how being in the right place at the right time is a critical aspect of a photograph’s success.
Splish Splash, Christopher Baker ©Christopher Baker, United States, Shortlist, Open Competition, Natural World & Wildlife, 2025 Sony World Photography Awards. Great blue herons like to fish at the base of a small spillway where larger fish gather in the churning water. Although the photographer has captured images of herons catching fish here on many occasions, in this instance the early morning sun was at just the right angle to light up the splashing water, which gave the scene a different look. Christopher Baker
Although the photographer has captured images of herons catching fish on many occasions, in this instance, the early morning sun was at just the right angle to light up the splashing water, which gave the scene a spectacular look.
Iceland Sundhnukur crater
The tremendous effort by photographers to capture unique images in the Landscape category is evident in Vilhelm Gunnarsson’s untitled, otherworldly photo of the Sundhnukur crater chain in the Reykjanes volcanic zone, north of Grindavík on Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula, taken during a series of eruptions.
Untitled, ©Vilhelm Gunnarsson, Iceland, Shortlist, Open Competition, Landscape, 2025 Sony World Photography Awards. The series of 2023–2024 Sundhnúkur eruptions started on 18 December 2023, at the Sundhnúkur crater chain in the Reykjanes volcanic zone, north of Grindavík on Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula. As of 20 November 2024, seven eruptions had occurred, following a period of intense earthquakes. Vilhelm Gunnarsson
The breathtaking view is magnificent and gives enormous credit to the photographer who braved the elements and perfectly positioned himself to photograph this massive molten mess.
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A once-in-a-lifetime image by KunPeng Zhu, A Comet Hits the Earth, shows the formerly unknown Comet C/2023 A3.
A Comet Hits the Earth, ©KunPeng Zhu, China Mainland, 3rd Place, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2025. Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) over the Badain Jaran Desert in Inner Mongolia, China. KunPeng Zhu
The Comet fascinated the world as it made its exceptionally brief and rare pass over the Earth, in full view over the Badain Jaran Desert in Inner Mongolia, China.
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High praise for spot-on composition is also given to Victor De Valles Ibañez for the Split Shot of a freediver in a flooded cave in Menorca, Spain.
Split Shot, ©Victor De Valles Ibañez, Spain, Shortlist, Open Competition, Landscape 2025 Sony World Photography Awards. A split shot of Julia freediving in a flooded cave in Menorca, Spain. Victor De Valles Ibañez
In the category of Architecture, the vibrant energy of an interior facade where geometry and vibrant colours mingle was captured by Thibault Drutel.
Minimalist urban architecture
Colourful Doors shows an interior bathed in light while the doors create an orderly mosaic, and metallic lines and reflections add a touch of modernity to this minimalist celebration of urban architecture.
Colourful Doors, ©Thibault Drutel, France, Shortlist, Open Competition, Architecture, 2025 Sony World Photography Awards. The vibrant energy of an interior facade where geometry and vibrant colours mingle. Bathed in light, the doors create an orderly mosaic, while metallic lines and reflections add a touch of modernity to this minimalist celebration of urban architecture. Thibault Drutel
The winning entry in the Motion category captures the danger and excitement of the moment a rider is thrown from their mount during a ‘tbourida,’ a traditional Moroccan equestrian performance.
Tbourida La Chute, ©Olivier Unia, France, Winner, Open Competition, Motion, 2025 Sony World Photography Awards. Many of the photographs taken during a traditional Moroccan ‘tbourida’ show the riders firing their rifles. With this image, the photographer wanted to share another side of the event, and show how dangerous it can be when a rider is thrown from their mount. Olivier Unia
Olivier Unia’s Tbourida La Chute shows another side of the event, which often focuses on riders firing their rifles.
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In a more artistic depiction, The Movements of the Characters in Hát Bội, photographer Tuan Nguyen Tan presents a traditional Vietnamese performance art that combines music, dance, and drama, reflecting the life, stories, and aspirations of the Vietnamese people.
The Movements of the Characters in Hát Bội ©Tuan Nguyen Tan, Vietnam, Shortlist, Open Competition, Motion, 2025 Sony World Photography Awards. Hát bội is a traditional Vietnamese performance art that combines music, dance and drama. As with other traditional art forms, it reflects the life, stories and aspirations of Viet people. In hát bội, the characters are a crucial facor – without them, other elements of plot and action would not be expressed fully. Tuan Nguyen Tan
Hajime Hirano’s winning image in the Lifestyle category depicts a street vendor surrounded by products in Japan’s largest electronics town, which evolved from a gathering of shops in the late 1950s to a modern-day mecca for electronic parts.
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Akihabara superbly conveys the town’s core industry and the seller’s voluminous offerings in a tiny retail space.
Akihabara, ©Hajime Hirano, Japan, Winner, Open Competition, Lifestyle, 2025 Sony World Photography Awards. The prototype of today’s Akihabara was a gathering of street vendors selling parts for radios. After the late 1950’s, during a period of rapid economic growth, Akihabara grew into ‘Japan’s largest electronics town.’ Nowadays, it is famous worldwide for its anime and cosplay culture. With two different faces, we can say Akihabara is a town that embodies an essence of ‘Japaneseness.’. Haime Hirano
Syed Mahabubul Kader reveals the ambitious optimism of a group of workers unloading paddy straw, a by-product of farming that is used for a variety of purposes, including as cattle feed and fuel for a truck.
Paddy Straw, ©Syed Mahabubul Kader, Bangladesh, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2025. A group of workers unloads paddy straw from a truck. The rice straw is a by-product of farming that is used for a variety of purposes, including as cattle feed and fuel. Syed Mahabubul Kader
Paddy Straw, shortlisted in the Lifestyle category, presents a situational scene that is simultaneously comical as it is incredible.
Shamans Bolivia
Ask a Shaman, by Matjaz Simic, presents the winning photo in the Travel category. The image of a group of Shamans in La Paz, Bolivia, is taken against colourfully decorated local architecture on a bright, sunny day, framed by the sky full of fluffy clouds.
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The chance arrangement of all elements created an interesting and visually appealing photo.
Ask a Shaman, ©Matjaž Šimic, Slovenia, Winner, Open Competition, Travel, 2025 Sony World Photography Awards. Shamans play a major role in Native Bolivian traditional culture. This scene was captured above La Paz, Bolivia. Matjaž Šimic
The soft rays of the sun envelop Elephant Rock, a majestic rock formation in Saudi Arabia, during a breathtaking sunset in a magnificent photo by Karolina Jurkiewicz shows the spirit of exploration of wonderous lands and places.
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Eternal Light, Timeless Rock, shortlisted in the Travel category, is enriched by the presence of a child running towards the light, adding a sense of wonder and showing the power of a singular photographic image to capture a moment and immortalise it.
Eternal Light, Timeless Rock, ©Karolina Jurkiewicz, Poland, Shortlist, Open Competition, Travel, 2025 Sony World Photography Awards. The soft rays of the sun envelop Elephant Rock, a majestic rock formation in Saudi Arabia, during a breathtaking sunset. The scene is enriched by the presence of a child running towards the light, adding a sense of wonder and the spirit of exploration. Karolina Jurkiewicz
The 2025 Sony World Photography Awards Open competition category winners and shortlist are featured in full on the Sony World Photography Awards website.
Text World Photography Organisation & Cammy Yiu and photos as Credited
