The ten category winners were selected from over 105,000 entries, making the photography contest the largest in the world. From flamingos in Walvis Bay, Nambia by Wildlife winner Aleesandra Meniconzi of Switzerland to an incredible aerial shot of 1300 people practicing Tai Chi by Culture winner Jiangua Gong of China, the images cross a number of sub-genres as well as several continents.
The judging panel said that this year’s winners display huge photographic talent and creativity, from Architecture winner Tim Cornbill’s (United Kingdom) use of scale to the crucial moment of a rugby game by Motion category winner Camilo Diaz of Colombia. Judges also praised the use of subtle color in Lise Johansson’s Enhanced winner (Denmark) and Ralph Gräf’s Travel shot (German), as well as the black and white of Street photographer Constantinos Sofikitis (Greece). Hiroshi Taqnita’s (Japan) winning Nature shot, Alexander Vinogradov’s (Russia) simple Portrait winner and Sergey Dibtsev’s (Russia) Still Life rounds out the category winners.
Each of those ten photographers receive a Sony a7 II and lens and also competes for the final title.
The 2017 competition saw a record number of entries. The contest, now in its tenth year, also had a broader geographic range than previous years with 183 countries represented, along with a 56-percent increase in the number of youth submissions.
“It has been a pleasure and an inspiration to be exposed to such a volume of great work, and a privilege too that I could share in the personal moments, the joys, tears, life, and losses of photographers from all around the globe who recorded their experiences through their pictures,” said Damien Demolder, a journalist and photographer and Chair of the Open Competition.
The contest’s overall winner will be selected from the ten category winners and announced on April 20.
