The Sony World Photography Awards have revealed the 30 finalists and over 65 shortlisted photographers in the 2026 Professional competition.
The Sony World Photography Awards is a powerful showcase of visual storytelling that pushes the boundaries of contemporary photography.
Celebrating nearly two decades of photographic excellence, the Professional competition champions photographers whose bold bodies of work combine mastery of the craft with narrative vision.
Across this year’s competitions, over 430 000 images from over 200 countries and territories were submitted. The winning images will be announced on 16 April.
Members of the Mthwalume Brass Band pose for a photograph in KwaZulu-Natal. Shortlist, Professional Competition, Documentary Projects. Picture: Sandile Ndlovu/Sony World Photography AwardsJunior Mungongu (aka 10 Bureaux), a performance artist from Kinshasa, wearing his mask costume on the streets of the Congolese capital. Finalist, Professional Competition, Documentary Projects. Picture: Colin Delfosse/Sony World Photography AwardsNymphs is an underwater photographic series shot in a swimming pool using a camera in a waterproof housing. Lights were placed outside the water to provide both front and back lighting, with the images of national synchronised swimmers captured using breath-hold immersion. Shortlist, Professional Competition, Sport. Picture: Delfina Pignatiello/Sony World Photography AwardsThe African savanna elephant (Loxodonta africana) population is a fraction of what it once was – only a few thousand remain, including this herd of 13 individuals in the wetlands of Jonglei State, South Sudan. Shortlist, Professional Competition, Wildlife & Nature. Picture: Marcus Westberg/Sony World Photography AwardsOn the sea ice off Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada, a polar bear mother leads her newborn cubs from the safety of their snow den onto seasonal ice that grows smaller every year. Shortlist, Professional Competition, Wildlife & Nature. Picture: Sunita Mandal/Sony World Photography AwardsTornado Alley is situated across the central United States of America and can produce some of the wildest weather on the planet. Supercells traverse Tornado Alley during spring and summer, bringing breathtaking scenes as Mother Nature creates unbelievable atmospheric sculptures. Shortlist, Professional Competition, Landscape. Picture: David Baxter III/Sony World Photography AwardsAn animist girl from the Sara people is given a veil made of green beads to cover her face during a ceremony of initiation and passage to adulthood in Moundou, Chad. Shortlist, Professional Competition, Still Life. Picture: Alessandro Gandolfi/Sony World Photography AwardsThis project was born from the photographer’s observations of her son’s admiration for birds. Since he was 4 years old, her son, Seydu, has looked at birds with great attention and curiosity, and started collecting natural elements such as feathers. Shortlist, Professional Competition, Perspectives. Picture: Maria Fernanda Garcia Freire/Sony World Photography AwardsThis series was photographed over an 11-month period, with the highlight being the International Cowboy Day festival, in Nairobi, Kenya. Here Sheriff Knight (centre), the ‘Dancing Cowboy,’ leads the line dance. Finalist, Professional Competition, Perspectives. Picture: Fredrik Lerneryd/Sony World Photography AwardsBuzkashi (literally meaning ‘goat pulling’ in Persian) is the fierce, ancient sport of Tajikistan. It is similar to polo, but there are no teams and no boundaries. The ball is the eviscerated, headless carcass of a goat and the aim is brutally simple: seize it, hold it, break free. Finalist, Professional Competition, Sport. Picture: Todd Antony/Sony World Photography AwardsIn 2025, a typhoon struck Taiwan, causing severe damage along its southwestern coast. Among the affected areas were the offshore solar panels in Chiayi, which were severely damaged. Shortlist, Professional Competition, Environment. Picture: Yi-Hsuan Lin/Sony World Photography Awards
