Prize Winning Photographs: Sony World Photography

The World Photography Organisation has announced its category winners and shortlist in the Open competition of the Sony World Photography Awards 2023.

These Awards recognise the best single shots from 2022.

Over 415,000 images from over 200 countries and territories were submitted to the Sony World Photography Awards 2023 and over 200,000 were entered into the Open competition category.

Each winner receives digital imaging equipment from Sony and will go on to compete for the prestigious Open Photographer of the Year title and a $5,000 prize.

The overall winner of the Open competition were announced at the Awards ceremony in London on April 13, 2023.

Here are 19 of the top images from the winning entries.

Winner, Open Competition, Motion: Zhenhuan Zhou

Slam on the Brakes

Barrel racing is a competition where cowgirls ride quickly around barrels; the one that does this in the shortest time wins.

Every time a horse reaches a barrel it needs to brake sharply, turn around the barrel and then race to the next one.

The whole race is exciting, especially at the turns.

Winner, Open Competition, Architecture: Mark Benham

The Silos

Taken from afar, this photograph of silos and associated buildings at the Port of Brest, France, appears to be a montage composite rather than the group of buildings that it actually is.

'To enhance this idea I changed the sky to a simple colour vignette that complimented the colours in the composition.'

Winner, Open Competition, Creative: Boris Eldagsen

Pseudomnesia ' The Electrician

From the series Pseudomnesia ' The Electrician, a haunting black-and-white portrait of two women from different generations, reminiscent of the visual language of 1940s family portraits.

Winner, Open Competition, Lifestyle: Azim Khan Ronnie

Childhood

Children weave in and out of scores of giant cones or topas, as they roll a wagon around a rice processing plant.

The cart is used by workers to carry rice and put it down for drying, but after they have finished with it, the children use it as a toy to play with.

More than 30 children turned this rice mill in Bahmanbaria, Bangladesh, into an obstacle course.

Winner, Open Competition, Landscape: Giorgos Rousopoulos

Untitled

'I had to stop and gaze at this stunning view during a hike in Pindus National Park, Greece.'

The peak in the distance is Mount Tymfi, which stands at a height of 2,497 metres.

Winner, Open Competition, Natural World & Wildlife: Dinorah Graue Obscura

Mighty Pair

'I think that a good picture does not need colour, it just needs to capture the desired moment in time.'

'While I was shooting Crested Caracaras in flight in South Texas, I noticed these two, which were perched in a very similar way.'

'They were staring in the same direction and not moving, almost as if they were posing for me.'

'I was amazed by their powerful personalities.'

Winner, Open Competition, Object: Mieke Douglas

Recycled

'Photographs of pretty flowers from my garden? Look again...'

Winner, Open Competition, Portraiture: Sukhy Hullait

Charlie

During the COVID-19 pandemic a lot of people found they had time on their hands.

With most skateparks closed, Charlie -- and many others -- helped turn an abandoned pub car park, which had laid derelict for eight years, into a DIY skate park.

Winner, Open Competition, Travel: Max Vere-Hodge

Ghosts

The Mundari tribe of South Sudan appear like apparitions among the nightly fires they light to keep the tsetse flies and mosquitoes off their beloved Ankole-Watusi cows.

Each night, as the cattle return from grazing, the herders tend to them by massaging ash into their skin to prevent bites.

Winner, Open Competition, Street Photography: Andreas Mikonauschke

Exhausted

In Andalusia, Spain, the traditional Easter processions are a fascinating event to watch.

The different brotherhoods (Hermandades) with their uniformed brothers (cofrades) are an everyday sight during the holy week, Semana Santa.

Central elements of the processions are the heavy wooden frames (pasos) showing biblical scenes with one or more statues.

These are carried through the streets by volunteer paso carriers underneath – usually one only sees their feet, but sometimes during the rare breaks one gets an impression of the tough job they have.

Open competition, Architecture: Anthony Chan

Old Meets New

In an industrial district in Hong Kong, surrounded by a mix of old and new developments, this shot was taken to highlight a contrasting co-existence: a new skyscraper's stylishly designed front entrance and an old industrial complex with myriads of air conditioners, pipes and wires mounted on its wall.

The shadow and light accentuated the overall monochromic effect of the city's architecture

Open competition, Creative: Isabel Salmon

Untitled

'I began to document my mum's experience with labyrinthitis and PPPD -- a sensory documentation of her condition.'

'I am finding ways to explore this through experimental techniques, with the intention of combining sound and also considering other senses.'

'I hope to create an installation in collaboration with my mum, using a series of conversations with her.'

Winner, Open competition, Landscape: Vicente Ansola

Exodus

'I encountered this field of sunflowers in Castilla and León.

Sunflowers always seek the divine by following the sun on its route. These ones, although withered, stood up proudly.'

'When I grabbed my camera to shoot, I no longer saw sunflowers but women walking the dry fields of Castilla, wearing ancestral garments.'

'An army of spirits -- the inexorable exodus of the Spanish rural.'

Winner, Open competition, Lifestyle: Utsab Ahamed Akash

The Honey Collector

The honey collectors collect in winter. They place the bees' nests near the mustard field as they can produce more honey that way.

We often see this kind of scene in the Bangladesh countryside.

Winner, Open competition, Object: Leonardo Reyes-González

Segundo Uso (Second Use) II

Still-life photography of things thrown away (aka trash), that might be useful for someone else -- or could, hopefully, become an art.

Winner, Open competition, Portraiture: Simone Corallini

The Endless Summer - Surf Trip

Simone Gentile, a 16-year-old surfer.

Winner, Open competition, Street Photography: Etienne Souchon

Havana Running Away

'This is the third picture of thousands taken over a month-long trip to Havana, Cuba, with my 35mm -- and it is my favourite!'

'There is something happening here, some kind of tension: this car looks like it is drifting in the middle of the street, and this kid looks like he is running away from something.'

Winner, Open competition, Travel: Thanh Nguyen Phuc

Bike with Flowers

A hundred years ago there were just 36 streets and now there are many more, but the street culture remains strong in Hanoi.

There are lots of shops in the main streets but people in the old streets prefer to get serviced by mobile street vendors.

'I spent a weekend following street vendors and found that they were walking or riding their bikes all day. Here is one of my favourite moments.'

Winner, Open, Motion: Raido Nurk

Surfing Festival

'The waves were the biggest I've ever seen in the evening when I took this photo in The Hague, Netherlands.'

The waves and the pouring rain created quite a unique atmosphere.

This year's Open competition was judged by Eric Schlosser, Art Director, Tbilisi Art Fair, Georgia.

The overall winners in the Student, Youth, Open and Professional competitions of the Sony World Photography Awards 2023 are on display at Somerset House, London, from April 14, 2023, to May 1, 2023.

Published with permission from The Sony World Photography Awards 2023

Photographs curated by Rajesh Karkera/Rediff.com