The Sony World Photography Awards season is well on its way. The competition, famously open to amateur and professional photographers alike, prompts anyone with a camera and an eye for the world's natural and artificial wonders to submit the best and brightest in contemporary image making. The contest began in 2007, and has since collected an impressive 700,000 entries from across the globe. This year alone has seen submissions from Romania to New Zealand, Indonesia to Portugal, the US to the Netherlands.
We've already given you a taste of the early stages of the 2015 awards participants. Now, we're showcasing 15 of the best images across categories (everything from architecture to current affairs to wildlife) that are in the running for accolades this year.
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See a sneak peek of the photographers leading the race right now. In the meantime, you still have time to submit your own works, whether you'd like to compete in the professional, open, youth or student contests. Those competing in the professional contest will be judged by the 2015 honorary jury consisting of Oliver Schmitt, Matthew Leifheit, Xingxin Guo, Joanna Milter, Maria Pieri, Enrica Viganò, and Sasha Erwitt. The deadlines for this season ends on January 8, 2015. Check out the website for more information.
Cioplea Vlad, Romania, Split Second Category
(c) Cioplea Vlad, Romania, Entry, Split Second Category, Open Competition, Sony World Photography Awards
Image title: Dog Fight
Image Description: This is exactly the moment when Romanian YAK Team is breaking the formation just in front of the public at Bucharest International Air Show. At that moment they look just like they are haunting each other.Image location: Bucharest International Air Show 2014
Image title: Dog Fight
Image Description: This is exactly the moment when Romanian YAK Team is breaking the formation just in front of the public at Bucharest International Air Show. At that moment they look just like they are haunting each other.Image location: Bucharest International Air Show 2014
Ioulia Chvetsova, France, Arts and Culture Category
(c) Ioulia Chvetsova, France, Entry, Arts and Culture Category Open Competition, Sony World Photography Awards Awards.
IMAGE TITLE: Holi.
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Hindu devotees throw vivid colour at each other to celebrate the start of spring during Lathmar Holi Festival. Hindu brahmans from the village of Nandgaon are covered in colored powder as they sit and sing on the floor during prayers. IMAGE LOCATION: Krishna temple, Nandgaon, Mathura district, state Uttar Pradesh, India.
IMAGE TITLE: Holi.
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Hindu devotees throw vivid colour at each other to celebrate the start of spring during Lathmar Holi Festival. Hindu brahmans from the village of Nandgaon are covered in colored powder as they sit and sing on the floor during prayers. IMAGE LOCATION: Krishna temple, Nandgaon, Mathura district, state Uttar Pradesh, India.
Gareth Lowndes, New Zealand, Travel Category
(c) Gareth Lowndes, New Zealand, Entry, Travel Category, Open Competition, 2015 Sony World Photography Awards
Image Title - Desert Dawn
Image description - About 30 minutes after sunrise a hot air balloon is captured in the distance beginning it's descent to land in a camel farm. The image was shot while floating over the dunes in a chase balloon.Image location - Dubai
Image Title - Desert Dawn
Image description - About 30 minutes after sunrise a hot air balloon is captured in the distance beginning it's descent to land in a camel farm. The image was shot while floating over the dunes in a chase balloon.Image location - Dubai
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Andrew Suryono, Indonesia, Nature and Wildlife Category
(c) Andrew Suryono, Indonesia, Entry, Nature and Wildlife Category, Open Competition, 2015 Sony World Photography Awards
Image title: Orangutan in The Rain
Image description: I was taking pictures of some Orangutans in Bali and then it started to rain. Just before I put my camera away, I saw this Orangutan took a banana leaf and put it on top on his head to protect himself from the rain! I immediately used my DSLR and telephoto lens to preserve this magic moment. Image location: Bali, Indonesia
Image title: Orangutan in The Rain
Image description: I was taking pictures of some Orangutans in Bali and then it started to rain. Just before I put my camera away, I saw this Orangutan took a banana leaf and put it on top on his head to protect himself from the rain! I immediately used my DSLR and telephoto lens to preserve this magic moment. Image location: Bali, Indonesia
Cor Boers, Netherlands, Architecture Category
(c) Cor Boers, Netherlands, Entry, Architecture Category, Open Competition, Sony World Photography Awards
IMAGE TITLE: Blaak
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Cube houses (Dutch: Kubuswoningen) are a set of innovative houses built in Rotterdam and Helmond in the Netherlands, designed by architect Piet Blom and based on the concept of "living as an urban roof": high density housing with sufficient space on the ground level. Blom tilted the cube of a conventional house 45 degrees, and rested it upon a hexagon-shapedpylon. His design represents a village within a city, where each house represents a tree, and all the houses together, a forest. IMAGE LOCATION: Rotterdam, Netherlands
IMAGE TITLE: Blaak
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Cube houses (Dutch: Kubuswoningen) are a set of innovative houses built in Rotterdam and Helmond in the Netherlands, designed by architect Piet Blom and based on the concept of "living as an urban roof": high density housing with sufficient space on the ground level. Blom tilted the cube of a conventional house 45 degrees, and rested it upon a hexagon-shapedpylon. His design represents a village within a city, where each house represents a tree, and all the houses together, a forest. IMAGE LOCATION: Rotterdam, Netherlands
Arief Siswandhono, Indonesia, People Category
(c) Arief Siswandhono, Indonesia, Entry, People Category, Open Competition, Sony World Photography Awards
IMAGE TITLE: Timeless affection
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Fina (the girl in the picture) is the younger of my two daughters. Fina used to be scared of cat, which was the reason why we decided to adopt two kittens. We wanted Fina to learn how to live with cats, how to hold them, how to care for them and how to treat them as family members to help her overcome her fear. Now we can proudly say she did! Day by day, 7 months passed by and today Fiona and the cats are best friends, and love and care for each other. In this picture I wanted to show how gracefully they're together in a frame with Leon, one of her babies. IMAGE LOCATION: Banyuwangi - East Java - Indonesia
IMAGE TITLE: Timeless affection
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Fina (the girl in the picture) is the younger of my two daughters. Fina used to be scared of cat, which was the reason why we decided to adopt two kittens. We wanted Fina to learn how to live with cats, how to hold them, how to care for them and how to treat them as family members to help her overcome her fear. Now we can proudly say she did! Day by day, 7 months passed by and today Fiona and the cats are best friends, and love and care for each other. In this picture I wanted to show how gracefully they're together in a frame with Leon, one of her babies. IMAGE LOCATION: Banyuwangi - East Java - Indonesia
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Miquel Ángel Artús Illana, Spain, Travel Category
(c) Miquel Ángel Artús Illana, Spain, Entry, Travel Category, Open Competition, Sony World Photography Awards
IMAGE TITLE: The trace of an ancient glacier.
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Denali is six million acres of wild land, bisected by one ribbon of road. Travelers along it see the relatively low-elevation taiga forest give way to high alpine tundra and snowy mountains, culminating in North America's tallest peak, 20,320' Mount McKinley. What used to be glaciers are now white and blue rocks that contrasts with red, yellow, orange and green tundra of this vast natural paradise. The image is taken in Autumn when the colours multiply and make the landscape truly remarkable. IMAGE LOCATION: Denali Park, Alaska
IMAGE TITLE: The trace of an ancient glacier.
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Denali is six million acres of wild land, bisected by one ribbon of road. Travelers along it see the relatively low-elevation taiga forest give way to high alpine tundra and snowy mountains, culminating in North America's tallest peak, 20,320' Mount McKinley. What used to be glaciers are now white and blue rocks that contrasts with red, yellow, orange and green tundra of this vast natural paradise. The image is taken in Autumn when the colours multiply and make the landscape truly remarkable. IMAGE LOCATION: Denali Park, Alaska
Courtney Colantonio-Ray, USA, Split Second Category
(c) Courtney Colantonio-Ray, USA, Entry, Split Second Category, Open Competition, Sony World Photography Awards
Image Title: Covered
Image Description: So much of a portrait relies on the face in a photo. But when it’s covered, we can see a whole different side of a person through their movement, their posture and even what we think the expression on their face will be when it’s finally uncovered.Image location: Los Angeles, CA. USA.
Image Title: Covered
Image Description: So much of a portrait relies on the face in a photo. But when it’s covered, we can see a whole different side of a person through their movement, their posture and even what we think the expression on their face will be when it’s finally uncovered.Image location: Los Angeles, CA. USA.
Georg May, Germany, Nature and Wildlife Category
(c) Georg May, Germany, Entry, Nature and Wildlife Category, Open Competition, Sony World Photography Awards
IMAGE TITLE: Morning Hour
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: A white fallow deer standing in the morning mist an early morning in Eifel National Park, Germany. One hardly dares to move - can only look fascinated. IMAGE LOCATION: Germany
IMAGE TITLE: Morning Hour
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: A white fallow deer standing in the morning mist an early morning in Eifel National Park, Germany. One hardly dares to move - can only look fascinated. IMAGE LOCATION: Germany
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Ralf Wendrich, Germany, Architecture Category
(c) Ralf Wendrich, Germany, Entry, Architecture, Open Competition, Sony World Photography Awards
IMAGE TITLE: 'Step by step'
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: A staircase in Berlin, reduced to the essential. IMAGE LOCATION: Berlin
IMAGE TITLE: 'Step by step'
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: A staircase in Berlin, reduced to the essential. IMAGE LOCATION: Berlin
Kyle Breckenridge, Canada, Nature and Wildlife Category
(c) Kyle Breckenridge, Canada, Entry, Nature and Wildlife Category, Open Competition, Sony World Photography Awards
Image title: Dinner Time
Image description: The mother and the cub are Spirit Bears or Kermode bear a subspecies of the North American Black Bear living in the Central and North Coast regions of British Colombia, Canada. These bears are rarer than the Panda Bear in the wild.Image location: Image was taken in the Great Bear Rainforest of British Columbia near a small village called Klemtu. I have been told that this the 2nd time a white mother and cub has been documented. Most mother and cubs are usually a black and white combination
Image title: Dinner Time
Image description: The mother and the cub are Spirit Bears or Kermode bear a subspecies of the North American Black Bear living in the Central and North Coast regions of British Colombia, Canada. These bears are rarer than the Panda Bear in the wild.Image location: Image was taken in the Great Bear Rainforest of British Columbia near a small village called Klemtu. I have been told that this the 2nd time a white mother and cub has been documented. Most mother and cubs are usually a black and white combination
Jubair Bin Iqbal, Bangladesh, People Category
(c) Jubair Bin Iqbal, Bangladesh, Entry, People Category, Open Competition, Sony World Photography Awards
IMAGE TITLE: Vigorous Touch of the Morning
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: A Hindu monk is walking in a foggy winter morning of a mango garden of Dinajpur. IMAGE LOCATION: Dinajpur, Bangladesg.
IMAGE TITLE: Vigorous Touch of the Morning
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: A Hindu monk is walking in a foggy winter morning of a mango garden of Dinajpur. IMAGE LOCATION: Dinajpur, Bangladesg.
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Nick Ng, Malaysia, Split Second Category
(c) Nick Ng, Malaysia, Entry, Split Second Category, Open Competition, Sony World Photography Awards
IMAGE TITLE: The Morning Ritual
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: A man washes his feet before bathing in the Hooghly River, part of the Holi Ganges River in the early morning in Kolkata, India. The morning ritual of bathing oneself in the Ganges is a tradition of most Hindus, paying homage to their ancestors and their gods. The river is considered a sacred embodiment of the Hindus. IMAGE LOCATION: Below Howrah Bridge, Kolkata, India
IMAGE TITLE: The Morning Ritual
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: A man washes his feet before bathing in the Hooghly River, part of the Holi Ganges River in the early morning in Kolkata, India. The morning ritual of bathing oneself in the Ganges is a tradition of most Hindus, paying homage to their ancestors and their gods. The river is considered a sacred embodiment of the Hindus. IMAGE LOCATION: Below Howrah Bridge, Kolkata, India
Lisa Vaz, Portugal, Nature and Wildlife Category
(c) Lisa Vaz, Portugal, Entry, Nature and Wildlife Category, Open Competition, Sony World Photography Awards
IMAGE TITLE: In a crowd of King Penguins.
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: King Penguins live in large colonies in South Georgia, a spec of an island in the South Atlantic Ocean and just below the Antarctic Convergence. They are very beautiful, gracious and yet almost comical birds and a true delight to observe. This image aims to capture and reflect how gracious and colourful Wildlife can be even at the ends of the Earth. IMAGE LOCATION: old Harbour in South Georgia, South Atlantic Ocean.
IMAGE TITLE: In a crowd of King Penguins.
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: King Penguins live in large colonies in South Georgia, a spec of an island in the South Atlantic Ocean and just below the Antarctic Convergence. They are very beautiful, gracious and yet almost comical birds and a true delight to observe. This image aims to capture and reflect how gracious and colourful Wildlife can be even at the ends of the Earth. IMAGE LOCATION: old Harbour in South Georgia, South Atlantic Ocean.
Diego Arroyo Méndez, Spain, Smile Category
(c) Diego Arroyo Méndez, Spain, Entry, Smile Category, Open Competition, Sony World Photography Awards
IMAGE TITLE: Hamer Man
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Hamer man collecting wood to build a defensive fence for the cattle in the Lower Omo Valley. IMAGE LOCATION: Omo Valley, Ethiopia.
IMAGE TITLE: Hamer Man
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Hamer man collecting wood to build a defensive fence for the cattle in the Lower Omo Valley. IMAGE LOCATION: Omo Valley, Ethiopia.
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See 32 more submission, previously shown on The Huffington Post, below:
