This balanced "Yin-Yang" image is a wedding photo of the year 2020

The coronavirus pandemic has certainly changed the weddings in 2020 – but thankfully, it didn’t stop them. Although this has been a challenging year for couples and wedding photographers alike, plenty of couples have still tied the knot and lots of wonderful photos have been taken. The International Photographer of the Year is a contest that gathers the best wedding images, and it has just announced its 2020 winners. They celebrate love and unity in these crazy times, and they are certainly a real treat to look at.

The Grand Winner of this year’s WPY is James Simmons from Perth, Australia. His image was also the winner in the Black & White category. If I may say, I really like his balanced image that reminds me of the Yin-Yang symbol. I think it’s a great representation of what a relationship and a marriage should look like.

Describing how the image came to being, James said:

“After Lisa and James’ ceremony, we stopped in at a spot in the Perth CBD for a drink and
chill with their crew before heading out to their reception. While there, we took the opportunity to shoot some portraits. The location is super architectural and minimalist, with big rectangular columns breaking up the space and the light that reflects into the area. This shot was taken on the corner of a column and was initially a portrait of Lisa standing against the dark side to really show off her stunningly-detailed dress and backlight her veil.

Her husband James was standing pretty close, giving her something to look at and as I shot and reframed, James’ silhouette started to creep in. The Ying Yang symbol instantly came to mind and later as I refined the image in Photoshop the King & Queen chess board design was also an influence that worked well visually.”

The runner-up of the 2020 contest is Antonio Crutchley from Miami, USA. He photographed this beautiful couple in a car outside the Filmore at Jackie Gleason Theater in Miami Beach. His image also won in the Engagement category.

Photographers from more than 60 countries submitted their photos for the 2020 contest in ten categories:

Album Design
Epic Location
Single Capture (Photojournalism)
Bridal Party
Couple Portrait
Solo Portrait
Dance Floor
From Above
Engagement/Non-wedding Day
Black&White

This year, another category was added: the “Rising Ninja Star” Award. Croatian photographer Midhat Mulabdić won the category among the 150 top entries.

As for the Album Design, this year’s winner is Eric Ronald from Australia whose photos follow a couple at their wedding in Cairo, Egypt.

Take a look at more stunning category winners and runners-up below. You can check out more images and information on the contest’s website and Photo Publicity.