Sergio Tapiro, Mexico, 2015, The Power of Nature – World Press Photo of the Year finalist
The winner of World Press Photo of the Year has just been announced, with Warren Richardson’s harrowing image from Serbia taking top prize. Here are some of the standout finalists.
It seems all the photography awards are given out in spring, with the 59th World Press Photo of the Year announced this week.
Warren Richardson’s hazy, winning snap (featured at the top of the list below) shows a man passing a child across the border from Serbia to Hungary at night. The pair were part of a group of people seeking to enter the country before a secure border fence was constructed, with darkness needed for both to get through, thus no use of flash.
The judges of the contest, which has been sponsored by Canon since 1992, selected the image from 82,951 photos submitted by 5,775 professional photographers from 128 countries.
Powerful role
“Images such as Warren’s play a hugely powerful role in capturing the real impact and human side of a story and, importantly, making sure they reach a broader audience,” said Philip Brady, CEO of Canon Ireland.
With access to a lengthy shortlist, we’ve picked out 15 of our favourites for you to enjoy:
Warren Richardson, Australia, 2015, Hope for a New Life. A man passes a baby through the fence at the Serbia/Hungary border in Röszke, Hungary, 28 August 2015.
Tim Laman, USA, 2015. A Bornean orangutan climbs over 30 metres up a tree in the rainforest of Gunung Palung National Park, West Kalimantan, Indonesia, 12 August 2015.
Sergio Tapiro, Mexico, 2015, The Power of Nature. Colima Volcano in Mexico shows a powerful night explosion with lightning, ballistic projectiles and incandescent rockfalls; image taken in the Comala municipality in Colima, Mexico, 13 December 2015.
Rohan Kelly, Australia, 2015, Daily Telegraph. Storm Front on Bondi Beach A massive ‘cloud tsunami’ looms over Sydney as a sunbather reads, oblivious to the approaching cloud on Bondi Beach, Sydney, Australia on 06 November 2015.
Kevin Frayer, Canada, 2015, Getty Images, China’s Coal Addiction. Chinese men pull a tricycle in a neighborhood next to a coal-fired power plant in Shanxi, China, on 26 November 2015. A history of heavy dependence on burning coal for energy has made China the source of nearly a third of the world’s total carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, the toxic pollutants widely cited by scientists and environmentalists as the primary cause of global warming.
Jonas Lindkvist, Sweden, 2015, Dagens Nyheter, Neptun Synchro. Members of the Neptun Synchro synchronized swimming team perform during a Christmas show in Stockholm, Sweden, on 13 December 2015.
David Guttenfelder, USA, 2015. At dusk, the skyline of central Pyongyang, North Korea, 12 April 2011.
Daniel Ochoa de Olza, Spain, 2015, The Associated Press. Young girls between the age of 7 and 11 are chosen every year as ‘Maya’ for the ‘Las Mayas’, a festival derived from pagan rites celebrating the arrival of spring, in the town of Colmenar Viejo, Spain. The girls are required to sit still for a couple of hours in a decorated altar.
Daniel Berehulak, Australia, 2015, for The New York Times. A member of a German research team counts the number of penguin species and pairs as part of ongoing research on bird and penguin species in Antarctica; Fildes Bay, Antartica, 07 December 2015.
Christian Ziegler, Germany, 2015, for National Geographic. A Furcifer ambrensis female foraging for insects with extendable tongue; Montain d’Ambre, Madagascar, 29 November 2014.
Christian Walgram, Austria, 2015, GEPA pictures, FIS World Championships. Czech Republic’s Ondrej Bank crashes during the downhill race of the Alpine Combined at the FIS World Championships in Beaver Creek, Colorado, USA, on 15 February 2015.
Christian Bobst, Switzerland, 2015. Kherou, a young wrestling champion, performs a ritual in the water of the sea while pouring milk over his body in order to obtain the reinforcement of a ghost who lives in the stones at the shore. Dakar, Sierra Leone, 11 August 2015.
Chen Jie, China, 2015, Tianjin Explosion. Aerial view of the destruction after the explosion in Tianjin, China, 15 August 2015.
Brent Stirton, South Africa, 2015, Getty Images for National Geographic. A Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) fighter holds two ivory tusks. Ivory is a means of financing the LRA and is used for both food and weapon supplies. Near, Sudan, 17 November 2014.
Anuar Patjane Floriuk, Mexico, 2015, Whale Whisperers. Divers observe and surround a humpback whale and her newborn calf whilst they swim around Roca Partida in the Revillagigedo Islands, Mexico, 28 January 2015.
