Haunting images from the 2025 Environmental Photography Awards

The Grand Prize went to the photo "Unseen Unsung Heroes" by photographer Angel Fitor (Spain).

This year's 2025 Environmental Photography Awards attracted thousands of entries from around the world , aiming to honor the beauty of nature while warning about the threats from climate change, pollution and human encroachment on ecosystems.

The competition consists of five main categories: Polar Wonders, Into the Forest, Ocean Worlds, Humanity versus Nature, and Change Makers: Reasons for Hope.

In addition, the organizers also awarded prizes voted by the public and prizes voted by students.

The winning image in the “Underwater World” category was Unseen Unsung Heroes, which shows polychaete worms pushing sand out of their burrows on the seabed. The image also won Spanish photographer and marine biologist Angel Fitor the Grand Prize, which comes with a cash prize of 5,000 euros.

Angel Fitor also won the Changemakers: Reason for Hope category with his photo Training Day, which shows a baby sea turtle recovering at a rescue center in Spain. His other two works, Night Stalker and Beauty Languages, were also nominated in the Ocean World category.

The top winner receives a prize of 5,000 euros and is invited to attend the opening ceremony of the Photo Exhibition in the Principality of Monaco.

Each winning photographer in five separate categories will receive a grant of €1,000, in recognition of their efforts and unique perspectives in conveying environmental messages through photography.

Winning photo in the People and Nature category - Photo: AMY JONES

In the People and Nature category, photographer Amy Jones won with her photo “Breeding Machine,” which depicts an Indo-Chinese tigress named Salamas, who was kept for 20 years on a tiger farm in Thailand to breed for the tourism and trafficking industry. The photo captures the heartbreaking moment she pressed her head against the wall of her cage.

The Student Choice Award went to photographer Bambang Wirawan for his photo "Forest Guard", which captures the moment a Sumatran tiger emerges from the bloody skeleton of its prey, an image that is both wild and dark - Photo: Bambang Wirawan

Winning photo in the Polar Wonders category - Photo: GALICE HOARAU

In the Polar Wonders category, Galice Hoarau won with this image of a lion's mane jellyfish swimming beneath an iceberg near Greenland. The image is a stunning testament to the fragility of life amid melting ice.

A rare image of two male deer beetles fighting fiercely for a mate, captured by Iacopo Nerozzi (Italy), won the Deep Forest category - Photo: IACOPO NEROZZI

Speaking about the competition, Ami Vitale, National Geographic photographer and chair of the jury, shared: "Images have the power to evoke emotions, awaken awareness and motivate action. These photos not only warn of danger but also inspire hope, that we can still make a difference and protect nature."

This year's People's Prize was awarded to Fernando Faciole's "After the Flames, Hope", which captures the image of a South American tapir recovering from a forest fire in Brazil. This is considered a symbol of hope and the strong vitality of nature after devastation - Photo: FERNANDO FACIOLE

The Prince Albert II Foundation Environmental Photography Award is not only an artistic platform, but also an urgent call from nature to humanity. Held annually, the award is where photographers around the world tell the story of the Earth through images, stories that are both beautiful and heartbreaking, majestic and fragile.

Each frame is a true slice of a changing world, a powerful reminder that if we don't act today, tomorrow will be gone.

MINH HAI

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/nhung-khung-hinh-am-anh-tai-giai-thuong-nhiep-anh-moi-truong-2025-20250512092557303.htm