‘Bosnia Old Bridge Diving’. Stefan Jevtic dives from the Old Bridge during the 456th traditional annual high diving competition in Mostar, Bosnia. A total of 31 divers from Bosnia and surrounding regions leapt from the 23-metre-high bridge into the Neretva river. © Armin Durgut, Bosnia And Herzegovina, Shortlist, Regional Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Dynamic Athlete’. To demonstrate the dynamic nature of this young Swiss athlete I worked with water splashes and gelled lights. © Sandra Handschin, Switzerland, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Knights’. This photograph was taken in November 2022 at a horse festival in Morocco. The picture was taken using a slow shutter speed, while panning the camera to follow the movement of the knights. © Oday Shanshal, United Arab Emirates, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Glare of a Predator’. During a game drive in Sri Lanka’s Kumana National Park I came across this magnificent Sri Lankan leopard resting in a tree, staring at us through the branches. It was an unforgettable encounter. © Rajeev Abeysekara, Sri Lanka, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Run’. A para-athlete running during the Asian Para Games competition. © Mawaruddin Mawaruddin, Indonesia, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Vojtech’. Vojtech, a ballet student in Prague. This portrait is from the series Ballet Life. © Ivana Dostálová, Czech Republic, Shortlist, Regional Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Great Joy’. I took this photograph on the day that my friend’s father passed on. We received the news after the shoot, and all I can now remember about his father’s passing is this photograph. © Tshabalala Bongani, South Africa, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘The Girl with the Red Hat’. A little girl walking through Eleftheria Square in Nicosia, Cyprus. This great building was designed by Zaha Hadid. © Elena Georgiou, Cyprus, Shortlist, Regional Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘The Captivating Eyes’. This spotted owlet was photographed from a hide at the National Botanical Garden of Bangladesh. During the day these amazing birds tend to hide in nests made in the holes of tree trunks, but they sometimes peep out to observe their surroundings with their captivating yellow eyes. © Protap Shekhor Mohanto, Bangladesh, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Retro Vibes’. As a fan of the 1980s, I wish today’s technology was available in those days. © Adil Javed, Kuwait, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘The Horse Rider’. Anna is a kitesurfer who loves horses. I wanted to take a portrait of her and her beautiful horse at the beach in El Gouna, Egypt, where she spends most of her time training. © Abdelrahman Gabr, Egypt, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Lady of the Garden’. This image is from my series, Lady of the Garden. As with other portraits in the series, I wanted to create a sense of movement in the photograph. © Alexandros Othonos, Greece, Shortlist, Regional Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Same But Different’. Phare performers tell Cambodian historical and folklore stories through performance, combining theatre, music, dance and circus techniques. I took this image during one of their series called Same But Different. © Chan Sithy Heng, Cambodia, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

As a young photographer, one of the major challenges I face is getting a good camera and other accessories to use. For this portrait I used a Speedlight fitted with a softbox and a reflector to bounce light onto my models. Taken at Rivers State University, Nigeria. © Nukabari Opuama, Nigeria, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘The Jetty’. A 132-second long exposure of the jetty at Desaru, Malaysia. © Eng Tong Tan, Malaysia, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘1,001 Yachts’. An aerial view of the yacht harbour. © Uku Sööt, Estonia, Shortlist, Regional Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Watching Each Other’. During the DokuFest film festival in Kosovo, films being shown at one of the cinemas set up in the city are watched without a ticket. © Suer Celina, Kosovo, Shortlist, Regional Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Turtle Dream’. A female diver glides peacefully alongside a friendly sea turtle off the coast of Perhentian Island, Malaysia, a harmonious coexistence between human and nature. © Thiện Nguyễn Ngọc, Vietnam, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Convergence’. Team Brazil competes in the preliminaries of the women’s team highlight artistic swimming event during the 2022 World Aquatics Championships at the Alfréd Hajós National Swimming Stadium, Budapest. © Dávid Balogh, Hungary, Shortlist, Regional Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Live the Life’. It is estimated that around 20,000 children from various parts of Rajasthan are leading a nomadic life, staying close to their animals. © Donell Gumiran, Philippines, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Imperfect’. What the world might see as imperfections are what make us unique. For this portrait I wanted to strip my subject to their most basic self, removing the colour and background distractions to show them in their true form. © Angela Perez, United States, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Old Car Full of Flowers’. This image was taken in Mexico City in April 2022. We were walking along the street when we saw this beautiful old car full of flowers and took the opportunity to use it in a photoshoot. © Samia Berbiche, France, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Siren’s Dawn’. A portrait of a woman I met at the Baltic Sea in Poland. © Mateusz Żurowski, Poland, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

Youths jostle to drink alcohol as part of a cultural practice during the Indra Jatra Festival in Kathmandu, Nepal. During the week-long celebration a statue of Swet Bhairab (not seen in this picture) is unveiled and the alcohol is served through an extended brass pipe coming from the idol’s mouth. It is a crazy experience, even for spectators, with many participants getting injured every year. © Rabik Upadhayay, Nepal, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Wonderland’. Wonderland hometown. © Yawar Abbas, Pakistan, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘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. © Andreas Mikonauschke, Germany, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Pink Village.’ Every year between November and February, wild Himalayan cherry trees blossom around the village of Ban Rong Kla in Thailand. On the way to the village you have to pass through Phu Hin Rong Kla National Park, which was a key communist stronghold in the long-running conflict between the country’s Royal Armed Forces and the (now defunct) Thai Communist Party. © Saravut Vanset, Thailand, Winner, National Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘Portrait of a Girl’. This portrait of Nastea was taken in Varancau, Moldova. It is part of a series entitled Homeland, which explores the connections between young people from the northern part of Moldova and their surroundings. One third of Moldova’s population has emigrated and the number of citizens leaving increases every year. Homeland isn’t only a place, person or event. It is a poetic quest for my roots; for a home whose meaning always changes. © Maria Guțu, Moldova, Republic Of, Shortlist, Regional Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2023

‘An Absolution’. The second night of the volcanic eruption in Meradalir valley, Iceland, which started in early August, 2022. © Niks Freimanis, Latvia, Shortlist, Regional Awards, Sony World Photography Awards 2022 DM/ ML