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Cue the drum roll...
A 'breathtaking, vast and intimidating' image of ocean waves crashing has won the top prize in a prestigious photography competition celebrating Australian and New Zealand snappers.
The Alpha Awards was designed to showcase the work of Australian and New Zealand photographers on Sony Alpha lenses.
Take a look at the stunning shots.
Photographer Alex Marshall, of Marlborough, New Zealand, is the winner of the Youth category for his picture of a man diving into a lake. It is titled A Celebration of Solitude.
Photograph: Alex Marshall
Photographer Benjamin Lane's image of a couple embracing each other during a kiss on their wedding day was awarded first place in the Wedding category. The picture is titled Wild Love.
Photograph: Benjamin Lane
Photographer Oscar Hetherington was awarded Grand Prize for his image 'Backwash'. It was labelled as 'vast', 'intimidating' and 'breath-taking'. The New Zealander said on social media: 'Short backstory behind the image on the morning this photo was taken, my car broke down on the way to the beach so it was a surprise I even made it out for a swim this day but sure lucky I did even though it included a ride home on the back of a tow truck'.
Photograph: Oscar Hetherington
Photographer Laurie Winter won the Astrophotographer award for her submission 'Mt Taranaki Eruption'. The image was taken on a Sony A7R iii and 24mm F1.4 GM lens, and was captured when she left Level 3 COVID-19 lockdown in New Zealand. Winter said: 'How lucky we are as a country that we are able to start getting freely amongst nature again. Even though I was freezing cold standing here under the stars, it is hard to feel more alive. I am still practicing my astrophotography, and there are a number of things I would do differently if I tried this photo again."
Photograph: Laurie Winter
Photographer Gary White won in the compact camera category for 'On The Street Vienna', which showcased an image of a young girl hanging onto a dog's leash to stop it confronting another canine.
Photograph: Gary White
Photographer Ilan Wittenberg, of New Zealand, was awarded as Editorial winner for his submission, titled Timid. He said, "During this project, I made a point to learn basic phrases of the Maasai language to connect with the community -- I found that the Maasai people opened up much more when they saw that I was engaged in their language and culture. I faced numerous challenges during this project, including extremely limited time for photographing the people as well as technical issues in capturing facial details using natural light only. I made a point to ask people’s permission, and create rapport. One of the guides taught me how to say: “My name is Ilan. What is your name?” using the Maa language. I also ensured that I was able to tip the people who agreed to be photographed to thank them for their time."
Photograph: Ilan Wittenberg
This picture of 'a red billed gull having a wash', titled A Red Billed Gull Washing, took home first prize in the Nature category.
Photograph: Simon Runting
Photographer Karl Dalyell, from Wollongong, Australia, won the Seascape category for this mesmeric image called 'Golden Twist'.
Photograph: Karl Dalyell
This submission, titled Golden Glow, was taken at Poon Hill. TThe photographer said, "After trekking the Annapurna Circuit for the previous 20 days, our final hurdle was a hike up to Poon Hill to see the the sunrise. We left early and hiked hurriedly up the 400 metre stepped ascent. When we reached the top it was still foggy, not a mountain in sight. Just as we were joking that this was a bleak end to an otherwise fantastic journey, the clouds parted for a mere 3 minutes and let through this incredible view of the golden morning light hitting the Annapurna South Peak."
Photograph: Jesse Little
Photographer David Symonds was awarded as winner in the City/Street category for his submission, titled Mediation. It was taken in Thiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India.
Photograph: David Symonds
Photographer Judi Thies, from Adelaide, Australia, won the Portrait category for her picture of a young girl with curly dark hair, titled Achang.
Photograph: Judi Thies
Photographer Scott Barbour, of Melbourne, Australia, took home first place in the Sport category for his image of Melbourne Cup Day at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne.
Photograph: Scott Barbour
Photographer Grant Galbraith was awarded as the winner of the Creative category for his image, titled The Arrival, submitted into Sony's 2020 competition. It is a beautiful black and white image, which holds a lot of mystery as it is not specifically of anything particular.
Photograph: Grant Galbraith
