Magical full moons, thrilling thunderstorms and eerie underwater chasms: The breathtaking winners of the 2023 Black and White Photo Awards revealed
These photographers use their cameras to strip the world of color – and the results are mesmerizing.
Their work is celebrated in the Black and White Photo Awards 2023an annual competition set up to ‘nurture the spirit of black and white photography’.
This year thousands of images were submitted by photographers from 92 countries worldwide, focusing on themes such as ‘landscape’ and ‘flora and fauna’.
Photos that have received critical acclaim include a magical image of a full moon over a Canadian mountain landscape, a heartwarming shot of a baby hippo bonding with its mother, and a powerful image of a thunderstorm over Italy.
However, the judges paid special attention to one image in particular and declared it the ‘Absolute Winner’. It’s a hypnotic portrait, created by French photographer Patrice Quillard, of a gelada monkey in Ethiopia, as the creature stares through the camera lens.
“The results have exceeded all our expectations,” said the judges of the winners and finalists. Scroll down and you’ll discover why they were so moved. At the very bottom you will find the overall winner…
Photographer Carlos Guevara called this striking image of Antarctica’s frigid landscape “Gateway to the Inner World.” It is a finalist in the contest
This penetrating shot shows a full moon seemingly teetering on top of a mountain in the Canadian Rockies. The work of Lee Nordbye, it is a finalist in the competition
This beautiful photograph of a sperm whale is titled ‘Giant of the Deep’. The film was a finalist in the awards and was captured by Francisco Javier Garcia Lopez
The top prize in the ‘Landscape’ category is this powerful shot of a lightning storm over the town of Porto San Giorgio in Italy’s Le Marche region. It is the work of photographer Edoardo Frenquelli
Captured by Edoardo Frenquelli, this atmospheric shot of fog hanging over the hills of Italy’s Le Marche region is a finalist in the contest
This epic photo was taken from the Hopi Point Lookout, which overlooks the Grand Canyon in Arizona. The work of contest finalist photographer Steven Scarborough
LEFT: This moody shot, an award finalist, shows Hintersee, a lake in Germany’s Bavarian Alps. It is the work of photographer Andrea Rosin. RIGHT: This striking image was taken in Valletta, the capital of Malta, by Manuel Guerra Tejado. It gets a ‘Bronze Mention’ in the ‘Street’ category
This heartwarming photo from Lurdes Santander shows a baby hippo and its “protective” mother as she teaches it how to maneuver through water. Santander explains how ‘the little one’ had not yet mastered his breathing in the water. The image is a finalist in the competition
This mesmerizing image shows a flock of grandala birds in the morning light near the town of Lachen in the Indian state of Sikkim. Caught by Soumya Ranjan Bhattacharyya, it is a finalist in the contest
The volcanic craters of Iceland’s Fjallabak Nature Reserve are the subject of this mesmerizing shot by Award Finalist Julie Stamenic
LEFT: This eerie portrait of a lone tree captured by Ken Evans near the city of Manchester, Maryland, receives a Bronze Mention award in the Landscape category. He reveals, “I shot this image at dawn on a very foggy day, just as the sun was on the hill.” RIGHT: This eerie image shows Leru Cut, a 100-meter underwater canyon in the Solomon Islands. Photographer Pavlos Evangelidis says, “It really is a beautiful place, especially when the sun shines and the sun’s rays break through the cracks, as in the photo.” It impresses the jury and gets a ‘silver mention’ in the ‘Landscape’ category
In this fascinating shot, Muslim devotees board a train after attending the annual Biswa Ijtema gathering in the Tongi township of Bangladesh. Caught by Joy Saha, it is a finalist in the competition
This frantic photo by Awards finalist Azim Khan Ronnie shows hundreds of people trying to board the train in Tongi, Bangladesh
This striking shot of a glacier, a finalist in the competition, is the work of photographer Matteo Strassera. He calls it ‘World of Ice’
Taking second place in the ‘Flora and Fauna’ category is this beautiful portrait of a newborn humpback whale calf and its mother, by Ricardo Nascimento. The photographer notes that the calf, just a week old, is a shade of “pristine white.”
Take a look at the photo at the top of the contest podium. It shows a gelada, a species of monkey, in Ethiopia’s Simien Mountains National Park. Recalling when he took the portrait of the gelada, photographer Patrice Quillard says, “Suddenly and for a brief moment he turned to me, looked at me intensely, and I understood the full force of his dominance over his troops. It was an unforgettable moment for me’