31 Powerful Winning Shots From The 2025 All About Photo Awards

“A worker doing challenging work by carrying a huge bag full of plastic trash up a big stack that is made entirely of wasted plastic bottles.”

“Husnah Kukundakwe (15) during an early swim training at the Elite Swim and Gym pool in Kampala, Uganda.
Husnah was born with a congenital limb impairment that left her with no right lower arm.
Husnah is a Ugandan swimmer who is currently the country’s only classified Paralympic swimmer. Her first appearance at the World Championships in London was mentioned among the International Paralympic Committee’s (IPC’s) Top 10 Moments of 2019.”
Husnah: “Swimming was for me an escape from being really shy. I was always hiding my disability, because people look at me weirdly when they see my arm. So I’d always wear a sweater the whole day, even when it was hot, so people couldn’t see my hand. But when I started swimming, I learned to be more confident about myself.”

“This group of young people risk their lives every day in this ship graveyard. They have to dive to pull iron plates from the sunken carcasses of ships using only their hands and the strength of their arms. Exhausted, they must find the strength to fight the waves and currents to bring the heavy pieces to the beach where they are weighed and sold.”

“This photograph shows people surrounding the remains of a car previously engulfed in flames in Dhaka, Bangladesh.”

“In the heart of Eastern Turkey’s winter landscape, men and water buffaloes share the warmth of the Budaklı hot springs in Bitlis. Rising mist veils the frozen surroundings, blending human and animal silhouettes in a primal ritual of survival and coexistence. While the snow-covered plains and distant mountains whisper solitude, the steamy embrace of the thermal waters becomes a sanctuary, where tradition, resilience, and nature converge in harmony.”

“A young girl with an Arabian horse reflects the growing role of women in preserving cultural traditions. While equestrianism was historically male-dominated, Emirati women today actively participate in horse breeding, endurance riding, and racing, making this image a tribute to both tradition and modern progress.”

“Luo He is a Lolita handcraftswoman. In the process of commercialization of the Lolita subculture community, a variety of creative industry occupations have arisen, and one of them is the handcraftswomen. They emphasize their subcultural identity by making handmade accessories to enrich their Lolita-style outfit. The hat and the mirror are both of her own design. From the series Lolita Dreams, which is about the Lolita fashion subculture community in China.”

“In a distant Ethiopian village without electricity, life unfolds under the natural light that guides daily activities, emphasizing a culture where life, work, and socializing predominantly occur between sunrise and sunset. Early in the morning, we shared breakfast with a local family. I was captivated by how the light entering the hut through a distinctive opening to the outside world illuminated the face of this beautiful Ethiopian woman.”

“In a secret workshop in Kabul, women are attending make-up classes. In 2023, the Taliban announced that all beauty salons in Afghanistan must close, citing that these establishments provided services that are prohibited by Islam and contributed to economic difficulties for the families of grooms during wedding celebrations. The Taliban has restricted women’s employment and access to public places like parks and gyms, and has imposed strict limitations on media freedoms.”

“I noticed that hardly any street photographers shot from the level of the street. When I started doing this and adding the element of flash, I was astonished at the new perspective it reveals.”

“4-H kids enter their chickens at the Alaska State Fair in Palmer, Alaska.”

“This picture was captured during a snowstorm near St. Jacobs and Elmira, in the Township of Woolwich, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. Running Through the Silence of Snow shows a powerful moment of tradition and resilience. While the world around us moves faster every day, the Amish hold on to a simple and strong way of life. In this photo, a horse-drawn buggy moves quickly across a quiet, snowy landscape. The only sound was the steady beat of the horses’ hooves, with everything else covered in silence. I wanted to capture the feeling of that moment, peaceful, timeless, and full of quiet strength.”

“Piglets and pig pens in the settlement of Pata-Rât with a landfill in the background and garbage spread by the wind throughout the area.
Pata-Rât is a Roma settlement on the outskirts of Cluj-Napoca, Romania, whose community lives in close proximity to a garbage dump. Roma are by far the most long-standing discriminated against minority in the EU, and in addition, the Pata-Rât community faces environmental racism.”

“This image, The Museum, is a reflection—both literal and metaphorical—of how we perceive nature when it’s removed from its context. I was drawn to the quiet stillness of the taxidermy displays, but what truly caught my eye was the layered interplay of glass, light, and reflection. In that moment, the animals, the museum, and the young boy observing them all became part of the same silent tableau. The boundaries between viewer and exhibit blurred. This photograph is my attempt to capture that intersection: of life and preservation, wonder and melancholy, observation and memory.”

“My house and all my belongings were recently destroyed by a fire, turning the site into something like an archaeological dig for my own life. One morning, I got up to make coffee and smelled smoke. Minutes later, I was standing in the street in bare feet and pajamas, watching everything I had turn to ashes. This series, The Burn, is a way of coming to terms with this loss. It resonates with psychologist William Worden’s “Four Tasks of Grief,” a framework for understanding how people journey through grief: (1) Accept the reality of what happened. (2) Feel the feelings. (3) Build a new life that includes the loss. (4) Build a new relationship with what you lost.”

“A Black and White street portrait of a young impoverished couple with a baby taken in 1999, in Northampton Massachusetts.”

“Through a close-up of a woman smoking a cigarette, her red nail polish, and the swirling smoke, we witness the artful interplay of colours that evoke classic cinema’s timeless elegance. This photograph holds a moment of intrigue, A whisper to reflect on the balance of indulgence and mystique. A delicate dance between pleasure and secrets.”

“Maidan is the largest park in Kolkata; a soldier on horseback poses for a portrait.”

“On the side of an HDB complex in Singapore, an abstract mural mimics a TV test signal pattern. I spotted it from a taxi en route to the airport, jumped out—luggage in hand—and climbed a nearby building to frame the design at eye level. Just as I set up, a resident biked home through the center of the pattern, completing the scene.”

“This Imaginary story photo tells about the children of our future who must pay the price for the impact of our current disposable habits! As we all know that the issue of plastic bottle waste escalated quickly into a very scary and complicated environmental issue that contributes to pollution to the ecosystems everywhere. Millions of tons of plastic waste end up in the oceans each year that posing a very harmful threat to Biodiversity and the Environment.”

“Inspiration often comes from unexpected places — whether it’s other artists, films, or simply a moment of discovery. For me, this image was born when I came across a brutalist concrete structure on the beach in Khao Lak, Thailand. The building, with no real purpose, contained a small platform where local children played. I took a quick photo, and the surreal contrast between the playful children and the dark concrete structure against the vast sea struck me. The next day, I returned to shoot a man deep in philosophical contemplation, reflecting on the world. Later, I added a woman and a child, creating a visual triptych that reflects on the social roles of individuals in society.”