An arresting photograph of a flock of thousands of geese in mid-flight from the point of view of another bird has been announced as the overall winner of the Drone Awards 2021, the main international contest of aerial photography. The award is part of the International Festival of Visual Arts Siena Awards, and the winning images from eight categories will form the exhibition “Above Us Only Sky” in Siena from October 23rd till December 5th 2021.
Drone Photographer of the Year
The Norwegian photographer Terje Kolaas, is the overall winner of the Drone Awards 2021. The image, titled Pink-Footed Geese Meeting the Winter, was shot in central Norway and portrays geese flying towards Svalbard, in the Arctic, with the landscape still covered with snow. The birds’ early arrival is likely linked to climate change. The photo was selected from tens of thousands of images submitted by photographers from 102 countries.
Urban
First place in the Urban category was won by the photo titled “Metaphorical Statement About City and Winter,” by Russian photographer Sergei Poletaev. The image portrays an old monastery near Moscow with a large power plant in the background.
Wildlife
Oman photographer Qasim Al Farsi won the Wildlife category with “Back to Adventure,” an aerial shot that immortalizes a green turtle ready to return to the water after laying its eggs on the coast of Oman, between Ras Al Jinz and Rashad turtle reserve.
Sport
“Gold at the End of the Rainbow” by Australian photographer Phil De Glanville, which captures a striking rainbow above surfer Ollie Henry struggling with a frightening wave, is the winning image in the Sport category.
People
“Fishing in Mangrove Forest,” taken by Vietnamese photographer Trung Pham Huy, won in the People category. It portrays a fisherman who begins his working day in the mangrove forest of the Tam Giang lagoon, in a white winter atmosphere.
Nature
In the Nature category, the first place award goes to the American photographer Martin Sanchez with “Extragalactic.” The image was shot in Iceland and captures the extraordinary moments of the eruption of a volcano from above, offering an exclusive view of the interior of the crater.
Abstract
The image “Poisoned River,” which portrays many small channels full of poisons, shot by the Romanian photographer Gheorghe Popa won first place in the Abstract category. In an abstract and personal way, it describes the natural disaster produced by chemical waste generated by the mining of copper and gold in the Apuseni mountains in Transylvania.
Wedding
From the Tuscan coast, and in particular, on the occasion of a late summer sunset in Marina di Pisa, the shot by the Italian photographer Matteo Original entitled “Towards the Infinite Together with You,” is the winner of the Wedding category.
Storyboard
Finally, Pakistani-American photographer Adrees Latif wons the Storyboard category with “Blanketed in Fire Retardant,” a sequence of apocalyptic images depicting the city of Talent, Oregon, completely covered in red flame retardant dropped by aerial firefighting efforts in hopes of saving the town from the fire. The disaster resulted in three fatalities, caused 3,000 residents to be displaced, and destroyed nearly 3,000 structures over a 9-mile area.
Video
In the Video category, Greek photographer Nestoras Kechagias won with “Ice Ballet”.
The full list of winners, runners up and highly commended submissions can be viewed on the Drone Awards website.
[Via Drone Awards]
FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!