Warren Richardson Awarded Photo Of The Year in the 2016 World Press Photo Awards

You might remember that World Press Photo announced new guidelines last year after controversy that saw around 20% of entries disqualified, but that doesn’t seem to have slowed down the entries.

From a pool of 82.951 photos made by 5,775 photographers from 128 different countries, the contenders for the 59th annual World Press Photo Awards have been whittled down and the winners have been announced.

Of 8 themed categories, prizes went to 41 photographers in 21 countries including Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Iran, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Portugal, Russia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Turkey and the USA.

Australian photographer Warren Richardson has won the grand prize for World Press Photo of the Year, as well as first prize in the Spot News category.

Winning images from the eight categories include those of the terror attacks in Paris, the struggles of the Syrian refugees, lighting fuelled volcanic eruptions, and a humpback whale swimming with her new calf that can’t fail to make you both think and smile.

World Press Photo of the Year 2015

First Prize Spot News Category, Singles

Warren Richardson, Australia

This image shows refugees crossing the border from Serbia into Hungary, near Horgoš (Serbia) and Röszke (Hungary). Taken at night on 28 August 2015, this man and child were part of the movement of people seeking to cross into Hungary before a secure fence on the border was completed.

Second Prize Spot News Category, Singles

Demonstration against terrorism in Paris, after a series of five attacks occurred across the Île-de-France region, beginning at the headquarters for satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo. Paris, France, 11 January 2015.

First Prize Contemporary Issues Category, Singles

A city in northern China shrouded in haze, Tianjin, China, 10 December 2015.

Second Prize Contemporary Issues Category, Singles

Adam Abdel, age 7, was badly burned when a bomb, dropped on February 12 by a Sudanese government’s Antonov plane, landed next to his family’s home in Burgu, Central Darfur, Sudan, February 27, 2015.

Third Prize Contemporary Issues Category, Singles

Lamon Reccord stares down a police sergeant during a protest following the
fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald by police in Chicago, Illinois, USA, 25
November 2015.

First Prize Daily Life Category, Singles

Chinese men pull a tricycle in a neighborhood next to a coal-fired power plant in Shanxi, China, on 26 November 2015.

A history of heavy dependence on burning coal for energy has made China the source of nearly a third of the world’s total carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, the toxic pollutants widely cited by scientists and environmentalists as the primary cause of global warming.

Second Prize Daily Life Category, Singles

Indigenous Munduruku children play in the Tapajos river in the tribal area of Sawre Muybu, Itaituba, Brazil on 10 February 2015.

The tribesmen of the Munduruku, who for centuries have sanctified the Tapajos River on which their villages sit, are fighting for survival. Brazil’s government plans to flood much of their land to build a $9.9 billion hydroelectric dam, the Sao Luiz do Tapajos, as part of a wider energy strategy across the Amazon rainforest.

Third Prize Daily Life Category, Singles

Raheleh, who was born blind, stands behind the window in the morning. She likes the warmness of the sunlight on her face. Babol, Mazandaran, Iran, 12 November 2015.

First Prize People Category, Singles

A child is covered with a raincoat while she waits in line to register at a refugee camp in Preševo, Serbia, 07 October 2015.

Second Prize People Category, Singles

A mine worker takes a smoke break before going back into the pit. Miners in Bani face harsh conditions and exposure to toxic chemicals and heavy metals. Image taken in Bani, Burkina Faso, on 20 November 2015.

First Prize Sports Category, Singles

Czech Republic’s Ondrej Bank crashes during the downhill race of the Alpine Combined at the FIS World Championships in Beaver Creek, Colorado, USA, on 15 February 2015.

First Prize Nature Category, Singles

A massive ‘cloud tsunami’ looms over Sydney as a sunbather reads, oblivious to the approaching cloud on Bondi Beach, Sydney, Australia on 06 November 2015.

Second Prize Nature Category, Singles

Divers observe and surround a humpback whale and her newborn calf whilst they swim around Roca Partida in the Revillagigedo Islands, Mexico, 28 January 2015.

Third Prize Nature Category, Singles

Colima Volcano in Mexico shows a powerful night explosion with lightning, ballistic projectiles and incandescent rockfalls; image taken in the Comala municipality in Colima, Mexico, 13 December 2015.

First Prize General News Category, Stories

Refugees arrive by boat near the village of Skala on Lesbos, Greece, 16 November 2015.

First Prize Long-Term Projects

Series portraying women who have been raped or sexually assaulted during their service with the US Armed Forces. At the moment, only one out of 10 reported sexual violence cases goes to trial and most military rape survivors are forced out of service. Victims suffer from the effects of Military Sexual Trauma, (MST), which include depression, substance abuse, paranoia and feelings of isolation.

Second Prize Long-Term Projects

A daughter photographs her own parents who were in parallel treatment for stage-four cancer, side by side.

The project looks at love, life, and living, in the face of death. It honors their memory by focusing on their strength and love, both individually and together, and shares the story of their final chapters, within a year of each other.

Third Prize Long-Term Projects

Photographer documents urban and rural North Korea, capturing the daily life of its citizens, military events and ceremonies.

North Korea has been one of the most isolated and least understood countries. Few outsiders have ever had a glimpse of the country and there have been very few independent photographs ever made there. The photographer negotiated unprecedented access and took more than 40 trips to North Korea.

Images taken in North Korea between 25 February 2008 – 23 May 2015.

You can view all of the 2016 Winners in the World Press Photo 2016 Gallery.