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PHOTOGRAPHY

2022 Sony World Photography Awards: Natural World and Architecture

2022 Sony World Photography Awards: Natural World and Architecture
A chimpanzee portrait. © Pedro Jarque Krebs, Peru, 3rd Place, National Awards, Natural World & Wildlife, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Now in its 15th year, the Sony World Photography Awards returns to celebrate contemporary photography and the ways the arts reflect the world around us. Here is a selection of the images from the winners of this year's national awards in the Natural World and Architecture categories.

Landscape and Natural World

Earth’s Eye. This picture was taken with my drone in a geothermal area called Hverravellir in the centre of Iceland, in August 2021. It shows a natural hot spring that has a wonderful blue colour, especially when seen from above. © Mathis Vandermeeren, Belgium, Winner, National Awards, Landscape, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Frozen Rock. “In January 2021 the temperature went down to -25°C on the south coast of Finland. I went to Emäsalo in the city of Porvoo to capture the freezing of the Baltic Sea. As the sea starts to freeze, it creates beautiful ice sculptures on the rocks, and a few days later the sea is frozen.” © Damon Beckford, Finland, Winner, National Awards, Landscape, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Above. Strapped in and standing above a big cliff. Watching the glacier go over the edge and fall 200 meters to the ground. © Viktor Einar Vilhelmsson, Iceland, Winner, National Awards, Landscape, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

White Stallion. The Marwari or Malani is a rare breed of horse from the Marwar region of Rajasthan in northwest India, with an unusual, inward-curving ear shape. © Haider Khan, India, Winner, National Awards, Natural World & Wildlife, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Giant Tusker. “Photographing a giant tusker like Craig was a big challenge for me. Getting so close, within a few metres from this big bull, and shooting from a very low angle with a wide lens, requires some courage! After five days with several attempts at photographing Craig in an open space, I managed to get this shot face to face, with Mount Kilimanjaro as a backdrop.” © Mohammad Mirza, Kuwait, Winner, National Awards, Natural World & Wildlife, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Bondhusvatnet Glacier. “I love this peaceful place. I visit the Bondhusvatnet glacier every year hoping to get the perfect picture, and this year I finally got it.” © Hans Kristian Strand, Norway, Winner, National Awards, Landscape, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Turquoise Lake. “I took this photo of a turquoise lake in Poland with a drone in Autumn 2021. Let us not be deceived by the blue colour of the water, or the colour of the sand. It is the result of human activity interfering with the natural environment. You cannot bathe in this lake, and the water is poisonous.” © Marcin Giba, Poland, Winner, National Awards, Landscape, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Wild Horses. “When we visited France this summer, we saw the famous white Camargue horses. Their elegance and energy fascinated me so much that I was left speechless.” © Matjaž Šimic, Slovenia, Winner, National Awards, Natural World & Wildlife, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Born of Fire. “A photo from my ‘Born of Fire’ series. It was the first photo I took on my expedition to the volcanic area of Fagradalsfjall in southwestern Iceland. Volcanoes are a rare opportunity to observe the complete transformation of a landscape. Places that were only recently valleys and meadows became hills, craters and lava fields. Being there was a great experience.” © Filip Hrebenda, Slovakia, Winner, National Awards, Landscape, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Stars over Yellowstone. An astrophotography shot at the Norris Geyser Basin, the hottest geyser basin in Yellowstone. It is located near the northwest edge of Yellowstone Caldera near Norris Junction and on the intersection of three major faults. © Mazin Alhassan, Saudi Arabia, Winner, National Awards, Landscape, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

A landscape made by the lake Vanern in Sweden. © Peter Angvarson, Sweden, Winner, National Awards, Landscape, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Bat Cave Sink. Many bats inhabited this cave in ancient times. They’ve vanished due to today’s environmental changes. © Chihao Wang, Taiwan, Winner, National Awards, Landscape, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Polar Bear Cub. A polar bear cub staring wistfully into the distance, shot in Canada in November 2021. © Jenny Zhao, United States of America, Winner, National Awards, Natural World & Wildlife, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Le Mont Saint-Michel, France, at Sunset. “For me, this piece of art on the shores of Normandy is a candidate for Eighth Wonder of the World; providing a legendary view and atmosphere especially at sunset and when the tide is low.” © Cigdem Ayyildiz, Turkey, Winner, National Awards, Landscape, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Milky Way in Salzkammergut. “I planned this photo for about a year, and on that night in June 2021 the conditions were just perfect. The Gosausee lake in Salzkammergut reflects its surrounding mountains beautifully, especially the mountain Dachstein with its glacier. The picture blends two images, one taken in the blue hour, and one taken at about midnight.” © Sonja Ivancsics, Austria, Winner, National Awards, Landscape, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Architecture

Working together. © Kazi Arifuzzaman, Bangladesh, Winner, National Awards, Architecture, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

Human Element. “This image was taken in the theatre of the Polytechnic University of Ecuador, designed and built by Oswaldo de la Torre. Through my lens I wanted to reveal the relationship between a person and an architectural space – how the human being becomes another element in the spatial composition.” © Joel Alonso Rodríguez, Ecuador, Shortlist, National Awards, Architecture, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

The James Simon Gallery on Museum Island in Berlin, photographed in October 2021. © Frank Loddenkemper, Germany, Winner, National Awards, Architecture, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

A City Among the Clouds. “This is a photograph from Bukhansan Mountain in Seoul, South Korea. Lots of people climb the mountain to view the sunrise, but it’s a rare sight to see the city covered in clouds as the sun rises. I’ve gone there many times and was lucky to finally see it. I feel gratitude towards Mother Nature for changing Seoul’s architecture from monotonous to colourful.” © Wonyoung Choi, Korea (Republic of), Winner, National Awards, Architecture, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

A top-down view of Penang’s First Bridge. The 13.5-km Penang bridge highway is the second-longest bridge in Malaysia. It was built in 1985 and until 2014 it was the only road connection between Peninsular Malaysia and Penang Island. Here it’s seen from the island end. © Yih Chang Chew, Malaysia, Winner, National Awards, Architecture, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards

The Dusk. “When it was inaugurated in 1963, the 890 ft Arrabida Bridge in Porto, Portugal, was the largest of any concrete-arch bridges in the world . To get some good detail in the shot, I chose to capture a perspective of half the bridge. The dusk was beautiful on that day, and I waited for a big truck to enter the frame before my shutter button went ‘click’.” © Jose Pessoa Neto, Portugal, Winner, National Awards, Architecture, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards DM/ML

Gallery
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Comments - Please in order to comment.

  • Clyde Smith says:

    I’m assuming all of these were taken with digital cameras? There’s no information and I’m not even sure whether its relevant these days. Stunning images, regardless.

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