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Photographs That Speak A Million Words

Last updated on: May 07, 2024 09:38 IST

Check out the winners of the Sony World Photography Awards 2024.

Now in its 17th year, the World Photography Organisation's awards ceremony is a major annual moment recognising the best photography in the world, celebrating the images and stories that have resonated with global audiences over the past year.

IMAGE: A collage of some of the winning images.

The prestigious Photographer of the Year title was awarded to Juliette Pavy for her series Spiralkampagnen: Forced Contraception and Unintended Sterilisation of Greenlandic Women.

Pavy won a $25,000 cash prize, a range of Sony digital imaging equipment, and the opportunity to present a new body of work at the Sony World Photography Awards 2025 exhibition.

Here is a look at the winning entries in their respective categories

Photographer Of The Year Category

Spiralkampagnen by Juliette Pavy

In 2019, Naja Lyberth, a psychologist in Nuuk, told her personal story to a local newspaper.

Following revelations of the existence of a Danish policy of forced contraception, she created a Facebook group that brought together other victims: 'We have the right to own our bodies, and it is our human right to have children.'

Architecture & Design Category

Sala Mayor (Living Room) by Siobhán Doran

'This series is part of a book project, Houses that Sugar Built: An Intimate Portrait of Philippine Ancestral Homes, for which I was granted access to these historic mansions.'

'I largely set about photographing the houses against a spoken 'backdrop', as my colleague interviewed the owner or custodian, but sometimes worked in complete silence.

'The sala mayor (main living room) typically showcases the character of the architecture and the lifestyle of the people, but also leaves room for the viewer's interpretation of these unique residences.'

Creative Category

कितनी गिरह? (How Many More Knots?) by Sujata Setia

'We were seven daughters and four sons. When anyone came through the door my father would give our hand to them in marriage.'

Documentary Projects Category

Series: Spiralkampagnen: Forced Contraception and Unintended Sterilisation of Greenlandic Women

An archive photograph of Jytte Lyberth at the age of 14, when she had her IUD inserted.

After a school medical check-up she went to hospital and was asked to take off her clothes. She was never told what was going to happen.

A few months later she experienced severe pain from the coil and returned to hospital to have it removed. Since then, she has never been able to have children.

Environment Category

Doña Leocadia by Mahé Elipe

Series: Echoes of the Hive.

For 12 years, the indigenous association led by Leocadia Utiz has been organising a native corn seed fair.

Farmers from participating communities are invited to exchange native seeds and forgotten indigenous knowledge.

According to Mayan belief, Leocadia claims to be descended from corn. Together with her family, she ensures the protection of the forest by cultivating milpa.

Landscape Category

Untitled

Series: The Sacrifice Zone BY Eddo Harthmann

An infrared image of the remains of an observation tower at Opytnoe Pole.

This was the first testing ground at the Semipalatinsk Test Site, which was a large-scale facility used between 1949 and 1962 for atmospheric nuclear tests.

©Eddo Hartmann, The Netherlands, Winner, Professional competition, Landscape, Sony World Photography Awards 2024

Portfolio Category

Alas by Jorge Monaco

Like many trans women living in small towns and cities around the world, Alas suffers from discrimination.

©Jorge Monaco, Argentina, Winner, Professional competition, Portfolio, Sony World Photography Awards 2024

Portraiture Category

Father and Son by Valery Poshtarov

Series: Father and Son

Series Description: In a world that is already growing apart, holding hands becomes a silent prayer -- a way to come together again.

While posing, fathers and sons hold hands for the first time in years, sometimes decades.

It's a powerful moment, often filled with hesitation or even resistance. This act of intimacy became the project's main purpose, the photographs being just a mere testament to the long-unspoken love between the men.

Spanning cultures, reaching corners of Bulgaria, Georgia, Turkey, Armenia, Serbia and Greece, this project has become a beacon of emotional expression and cultural preservation.

It serves as a global stage, encouraging fathers and sons from around the world to join the act.

By leaving the narratives behind, these portraits become open to interpretation and I invite viewers to add their own layers of meaning, making us all contributors to this evolving story of humanity.

©Valery Poshtarov, Bulgaria, Winner, Professional competition, Portraiture, Sony World Photography Awards 2024

Sport Category

Kald Sòl (Cold Sun) by Thomas Meurot

Series: Kald Sòl (Cold Sun)

'When you're looking for surf in Iceland you take anything you can, big or small.

'Here, Samuel Redon enjoys the small, but beautiful, surf in one of the most amazing landscapes I got to witness.'

©Thomas Meurot, France, Winner, Professional competition, Sport, Sony World Photography Awards 2024

Still Life Category

Angelica Archangelica by Federico Scarchilli

Series: Flora

Angelica has been used in traditional medicine to treat multiple health conditions.

It is thought to contain various bioactive ingredients that may have antioxidant, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties.

Researchers have also studied Angelica's potential anticancer effects in a lab, testing Angelica archangelica extract on breast cancer cells.

They found that Angelica may help cause breast cancer cell death, leading researchers to conclude that the herb may have antitumor potential.

©Federico Scarchilli, Italy, Winner, Professional competition, Still Life, Sony World Photography Awards 2024

Wildlife & Nature Category

Suspended Worlds by Eva Berler

Part of my Suspended Worlds series.

'The worlds hidden in spider webs serve as a metaphor for our private inner selves, of our deepest fears and aspirations.'

Photographed on location using natural light.

Sustainability Prize Category

Untitled by Kathleen Orlinsky

'If the government's idea of wilderness was putting the land back to the way it had been, then why not put the Apache back?' asks backcountry guide Joe Saenz, a member of the Chiricahua Apache Nation who leads horseback trips exploring the Gila Wilderness.

'There is no specific word for wilderness in the Apache language he speaks, just a word for land: Benah.'

Series Description: The Gila Wilderness spans 2,250 square kilometres of rugged country in southern New Mexico, USA.

In 1924, the Forest Service designated it the world's first wilderness area.

This milestone of American conservation largely came about thanks to a young forester called Aldo Leopold, who saw the wilderness as a place to be protected both for -- and from -- humans.

However, the Gila has always been inhabited by people, from Mogollon cliff dwellers thousands of years ago to the more recent Chiricahua Apache, who lived in the region for centuries before they were forced onto reservations.

©Kathleen Orlinsky, United States, Winner, Sustainability Prize, Professional competition, Wildlife & Nature, Sony World Photography Awards 2024

Open Photographer Of The Year Category

Moonrise Sprites over Storr by Liam Man

As a moonrise burns across the horizon, lights dance above the Old Man of Storr in Scotland.

This iconic rock formation was illuminated with powerful lights attached to drones, which cut through the darkness to reveal the icy landscape.

Blizzards howled for the majority of the night, leaving mere minutes to execute this photograph before the moon became too bright.

©Liam Man, United Kingdom, Open Photographer of the Year, Open Competition, Landscape, Sony World Photography Awards 2024

Student Photographer Of The Year Category

Don't Trust Pretty Girls by Kayin Luys

'This aunt loves to sing karaoke, and often does so during family gatherings.

'This series explores my relationship with my in-laws, with the title referring to the tattoo on my partner's grandfather's left arm.

'I wanted to explore the tension between fiction and reality, guided by stories I was told, memories and my interpretations of both.

'The result is a play of possibilities that reflect and/or transcend reality. Thanks to the increasingly strong bond formed, I found a second home with my new family.'

Youth Photographer Of The Year Category

Lonely Surfer by Daniel Murray

'I took this picture in Newquay, Cornwall, at the start of summer to capture the figure on the beach.

'I felt that this moment summed up Cornwall quite nicely in one picture.'

Published with permission from Sony Photography Awards.

Photographs curated by Rajesh Karkera/ Rediff.com
Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com

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