It seems like this year—even though it was a hard one—helped creative minds flourish all over the world. The Budapest International Foto Awards just published their winners and the photographs are as breathtaking as they are thought-provoking.
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#1 Polar Bear Family In A Melting World
"Mother Bear and her two young cubs are at the ice edge, wondering about their next move. 2018 was a relatively warm year in the high Arctic, and this is the last piece of ice in eastern Svalbard. Without sea ice, the mother bear can't hunt for herself and her cubs." Photograph by: Roie Galitz
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#2 The Freedom Of Belarus
Photographer: Hanna Rozava
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#3 Cormorant Master
"Cormorant fishing is a dying 1,000-year-old tradition in Guilin, China. Sailing peacefully across Li River in Guilin, men fish without the aid of a rod, hook or bait, instead of using a method that involves birds diving underwater." Photograph by: Sherwin Magsino
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#4 Fate
"This little girl was looking for firewood near her crumbly haunt at Christmas. The very poor and poverty-stricken family is unemployed. For them, survival from one day to the next is a big challenge. Tarnava Valley / Transylvania." Photograph by: Istvan Kerekes
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#5 Garbage In The Cloud
"Thick smoke, countless toxic substances that more human casualties than the flames themselves—deadly clouds that arise from fires at sorting plants, landfills, and vehicle recycling points." Photograph by: Piotr Zwarycz
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#6 Giant Of The Sea
"The whale shark in the picture is just floating beneath the boats on the surface. This is the largest fish on earth with a size of up to more than 10 meters. It is a peaceful and impressive inhabitant of our planet. Many details had to be taken into account when taking the picture, due to the proper composition." Photograph by: Földi László
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#7 Space In Between
"The turquoise lake in the crater of the Kawah Ijen volcano looks serene and inviting. It also happens to be the world's largest acidic lake. But the main highlight was watching the Milky Way rise on the crater summit, probably the most beautiful mornings the photographer has seen on the trip." Photograph by: Sherwin Magsino
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#8 Prozac
"The series shows the personal experience of the photographer: 'Since I was 20, I have been prone to depression. Finding antidepressants unhelpful, I decided to get out of Moscow and find somewhere I could be happier, chronicling my own experiences. But the depression followed me. People imagine that depression is like ordinary unhappiness, only more so. It isn’t. And the things we typically do to cheer ourselves up can’t be relied on as treatments. I tried a change of scene to get away from my troubles but to no avail. I think depression has to be understood and treated as an illness, although I am not sure how.'" Photograph by: Arseniy Neskhodimov
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#9 The Skin I'm In
"Carol Mayer was left near death following a house fire when a young mother. She incurred horrific burns to over 80 percent of her body ... her family was told she would not survive. However, survive she did after enduring the year-long agony of intensive care, operations, and skin grafts to recovery. Over a decade on Carol gives her time voluntarily to counsel and help later day burns victims and assist burns foundations. Carol has long grown accustomed to 'The Skin I’m In.'" Photograph by: Brian Cassey
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#10 The Silent Cry Of Hong Kong Protester
"Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill Movement in Hong Kong. Demonstrators participated in the demonstration on August 11, when a male demonstrator was attacked by secret police that night, blood on his face and his front teeth were shot down. This was the first time the police had dressed like a protester. Demonstrator opened his mouth silently in front of the camera." Photographer: Chiasheng Wu
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#11 Alternative Realities: Escaping The Lockdown II
"Alternative Realities: Beach Club Scene at Bondi Beach escaping the Lockdown." Photograph by: Dietmar Sorgatz
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#12 We Run, You Fly
"Dimpy Bhalotia is an award-winning celebrated street photographer of Indian origin based in London. Her project which is titled 'We Run, You Fly' is a very important project for her. This project is to highlight the depletion of birds in the urban world. Earth is a balance of the ecosystem between humans, animals, and natural resources. Any system interrupted or disturbed and humans won’t exist. It's a mistake that will echo for generations to come. She is raising her voice through her photographs." Photographer: Dimpy Bhalotia
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#13 New Zealand Locks Down
"A portrait of Jacinda Ardern as she announces an unprecedented, nationwide lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic." Photographer: Dominic Thomas
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#14 In The Wrong Place At The Wrong Time - Accidental Victim Of Drug Gangs
"A man like anyone else, good, drunkard, according to his wife, was sitting on a bench in the main square of his town in the wrong place at the wrong time, when two rival drug gangs confronted each other, taking by accident his life. This happened in a remote rural area in the central part of Mexico, Jalisco State." Photograph by: Eduardo Lopez Moreno
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#15 I'm Not My Body. A Story About Euthanasia
"In 2016, the artist met Claire C., a then-33-year-old wheelchair-bound woman, suffering from severe debilitating pains in her right foot, epilepsy, and spastic quadriplegia. Since the age of seven, her life has been about life-threatening accidents, invasive operations, severe painkillers, and ultimately wanting to end her life. Claire has been seeking effective pain treatment besides addictive morphine-based painkillers since 2012. In 2017, a spinal neurostimulator implant was initially successful. In 2012 Claire renewed her request for active euthanasia since her pains have fully returned." Photograph by: Michel Petillo
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#16 Planet Earth
"Photo was taken at 42,000 ft over the Sahara desert, flying at the edge of space. Our beautiful little blue marble, floating through the vast void of infinity." Photograph by: Christiaan Van Heijst
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#17 The Blue Viper Strikes
"Beware the impossibly fascinating blue viper...this really is a ‘look but don’t touch’ situation, because as visually beautiful as that blue viper is, it’s not the kind of creature you want to mess with. Sold in specialty pet shops, this one is really not for beginners." Photograph by: Robin Yong
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#18 The Last Moment
"Once a passionate pupil of the violin in Cité Soleil had now become a downcast boy with a big cap who no longer had an interest in playing. Water on the brain was causing his head to grow bigger day after day. "Luxon, if it's okay," I asked guardedly, "could you play once more for me?" I had a sudden feeling that we only had a few moments left together. With his eyes closed, the boy played his tune just in time to meet a ray of light. Urim Hong is a photographer who searches for light in the isolated world. After majoring in the humanities as well as pedagogy, he taught children for a decade and, in that process, found himself called to photography. He majored in photography at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. Currently, he is leading a project for the children and orphans in Citi Soleil, a small village within the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area in Haiti. He was selected as Editorial Photographer of the year at the 2018 IPA, 2019 MIFA, and PDNedu Awards Documentary winner." Photographer: Urim Hong
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#19 Waiting For A New Life
"A migrant man looks at the horizon at sunset, after being rescued at sea, off Libya, by the organization 'Mediterranea Saving Humans' on the Central Mediterranean." Photograph by: Valerio Nicolosi
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#20 I Am Rohingya
"The Rohingya is a minor Muslim ethnic group who lived in Myanmar for centuries. However, due to the racism and many other socio-political issues among the majority in Myanmar, they were declared as a stateless Bengali community who migrated to Myanmar from Bangladesh. Over one million Rohingyas live in Myanmar and they are the most persecuted people in the world who are deprived of their own land, human rights, and citizenship. In recent times, the Myanmar Army started a silent genocide to forcefully evacuate them out of the country. Mohammad Rakibul Hasan is a Dhaka-based documentary photographer, filmmaker, and visual artist. His work explores the themes of human rights, social development, migration, gender violence, and the environment. His images express the resilience of the human spirit and strength at adversity. Hasan holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Photography from Falmouth University and an Undergraduate Certificate in History of Art from Oxford University. He also pursued a Postgraduate Diploma in Photojournalism from Ateneo de Manila University and graduated in Film & Video Production from University of Sydney." Photographer: Mohammad Rakibul Hasan
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#21 Naturalia: Chronicle Of Contemporary Ruins
"This is what happens when abandoned places are reclaimed by Nature. She is stronger, and whatever happens to Man, She will always be there. When Man leaves, She comes back and She takes back everything. This series asks the fundamental question of the place of Man on Earth and his relationship with Nature. Far from being pessimistic, and at a time when Man’s domination of Nature has never been so extreme, it aims to wake our consciousness." Photograph by: Jonk
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#22 Country Doctor
"Once the Covid-19 pandemic started spreading in Italy, Luigi Cavanna, the head of the Oncology ward in Piacenza Hospital, decided that the best way to approach the disease was to treat it early, in the same way you would treat cancer. Equipped with a device that monitors the level of oxygen in the blood and a portable ultrasound chest scanner, doctor Cavanna started visiting patients at their homes—treating them mostly with hydroxychloroquine. In this way, he saved more than 365 patients." Photograph by: Gabriele Micalizzi
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#23 Ausentes
"The series Ausentes originates as a crossing of interests that allows the photographer to build a visual trap. These forms are usually used as visual seduction, but, by placing a nude as an accent, one that opposes the tradition of the museum where women are passive and consumable, a body that hides, protects, and blocks, proposes a language that uses abstraction as a means for expression." Photograph by: Rodrigo Chapa
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#24 Concrete Tetrapods
Photographer: Pei Hsuan Wu
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#25 Home
"A moment of life from a family who live in extreme poverty. The horse, which is a treasure for the family, is treated almost like a family member. He is a sure source of income because they undertake a lot of agricultural jobs. The father works as a day laborer to provide for the family. But their life is terribly difficult. I took the picture in the Transylvania area of Romania." Photographer: Istvan Kerekes
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#26 Balfour
"During coronavirus days, thousands of demonstrators gathered in front of the Prime Minister's Official Residence on Balfour Street in Jerusalem every week to protest against corruption and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's continued governance." Photograph by: Jorge Novominsky
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#27 Cocoon
"A photographic study of human beauty and fragility. Image captured underwater." Photograph by: Torleif Lie
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#28 In Red
"It is a highlands at an altitude of 4,000 meters in Sichuan, China. That place became red after heavy rain around sunset. The Larung Gar is the biggest Tibetan Buddhist academy in the world." Photograph by: Tetsuo Kurita
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#29 Seven
"According to the classic scripts of Chinese medicine, the 7 emotions—ecstasy, fury, worry, reverie, grief, terror, and shock—are causes of chaos. If left untamed, they can disrupt the heart, intestines, and the Qi of a balanced body." Photograph by: Wei Ding
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#30 Isolated Portrait
"Isolated Portrait is the desire to tell the forced isolation in quarantine time. I had the fortune to have access to many houses, mostly of unknown people, and listening to their personal stories. During those meetings, independently from their situation and their feelings, the portrait has revealed to be a common point: 'I am here.' 'I am here' is the desire to feel part of the world despite forced isolation. The control, both in the shooting phase and in the subsequent development phases, is very little and this is the reason why I chose to use this method, which metaphorically reflects." Photography: Sergio Bruno
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#31 Protest
A New York demonstration up close.
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#32 Lost Dreams
"Magical sunset at the world-famous Anse Source d'Argent beach on La Digue Island in Seychelles." Photograph by: Erika Valkovicova
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#33 Growing Up In India´s Coal Belt
"The coal fields in Jharia at the heart of India's coal belt have been burning for more than 100 years. Villages perched on the edge of the pits still house people, threatening to collapse from one day to the next. Open-pit mining is expanding in the region having a profound impact on the environment and the people who live here. Every morning before sunrise, the coal fields and disused mines come alive with scavengers who pilfer coal to sell on the black market in order to make a meager living. For the new generation growing up here, will this be the only way of life too?" Photograph by: Costa Corbas
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#34 Welcome Into Your Own Dream
We completed a very difficult but beautiful task for the diving watch brand. Photographer: Kyo Chen
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#35 Coal Survivors
"The mining town of Toretsk is isolated from the rest of eastern Ukraine. The mines in this coal-rich Donbas region have closed one by one since the 1990s. Since the start of the (ongoing) Donbas conflict in 2014, young people have left the region due to the proximity of the frontline, just 10 km away. Central Mine is the oldest and deepest coal mine (1124 meters) in the region. Its infrastructure is dilapidated and in dire need of repair. The situation is tense and as of mid-February 2020, miners had not been paid for four months and rumors of closure by the summer of 2020 are rife." Photographer: Alain Schroeder
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#36 David: Raised In Belgium, Facing Removal To The Drc
"David (not his real name) grew up in Brussels and dreams of a career in fashion, but hardline laws make him an asylum seeker in his own country. Despite being born in France and raised in Belgium by Congolese parents, David is in serious danger of being deported to the Democratic Republic of Congo (a country abandoned by his parents when they were still children). Refused by his father because of his homosexuality, he moved into a flat with three other gay asylum seekers through Le Refuge, an organization supporting isolated LGBTQI+ youth." Photographer: Alessia Capasso
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#37 Hecho En Barrio
"The story of young people in poor Mexican areas in the city of San Luis Potosi. Mexico has the highest rate ever of violence and criminality because of the drug cartels' war. The neighborhoods are in the front line, the youth being the cannon fodder at all levels." Photograph by: Jean-Felix Fayolle
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#38 Eight Rooms
"Eight Rooms is a series of eight scenes—portraits—where people are captured in disturbing situations." Photograph by: Tomas Vrana
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#39 Connecting The Dots
"Framed through the window of public transport during the Covid-19 crisis. The pandemic changed our lives in so many ways. This photo was one of the many I took of with people wearing masks, but for me, it's the one that describes the crisis on so many levels, visible and inner frames we are living into this period." Photograph by: Anita Palcheska
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#40 Psycho Rocker
"What will come to your mind when it comes to a band vocalist, or being a performer yourself? No matter which part you are in any kind of career, we are all in fact living men who feel and aware. We feel joy, sorrow, and furious. Music is one of the necessities in our daily life. We need music to release pressure, ease the pain, or even inspire ourselves. To become a band performer, you need to advocate your own faith to the world with heart and soul. Music is not only itself, it’s a life attitude, or more, an expression of one’s soul. The vocalist Zoieliao from The Roadside Inn, Taiwan." Photographer: Jin-Hao Jiang
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#41 The Most Wanted
"All shot as part of Evening Standard Magazine's 'The Most Wanted' series, where I am asked to come up with stand-out imagery to promote individual designer pieces. Each shot is created within very tight timeframes and within tight budgets, as such I try to stick to bold palettes and adding a conceptual interest that grabs the attention of the viewer, elevating the product from purely 'fashionable' to an aspirational chic. I am a London based photographer, shooting portraits, and still life across a variety of publications." Photographer: Natasha Pszenicki
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#42 Sundial Bridge Abstract
"As a photographer and graphic designer, I'm attracted to graphic shapes and the parts of structures. Sundial Bridge in Redding, California offered a wonderful study to create a unique, point of view images." Photographer: Farrell Scott
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#43 The Mud People Festival In Nueva Ecija
"The photo depicts the Mud People Festival in Aliaga, Nueva Ecija, Philippines on June 24, 2018. Devotees wear dried banana leaves and cover themselves with mud then offer prayer and also pay homage to Saint John the Baptist. According to a local legend, the Japanese soldiers were about to execute the villagers of Aliaga during World War II. But in the midst of the downpour, Japanese soldiers suddenly changed their minds. Afterward, the villagers celebrated by rolling around the muddy ground. There´s a belief that being saved from the execution is a miracle of Saint John the Baptist." Photographer: Mr. Jophel Botero Ybiosa (Philippines)
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#44 Mothers Of Togo
"In 2018, UNICEF named Togo, West Africa the '15th most dangerous place to be born in the world.' Nearly 1/10 mothers lose a child before their fifth birthday due to lacking facilities and medications for easily preventable diseases—malaria, diarrhea, pneumonia, & HIV. Integrate Health oversaw renovations of four maternity wards, providing basic utilities many take for granted: running water, electricity, proper sanitation, and upgraded pharmacy. Zoe Rain aimed to capture the palpable strength, hope & pride in the eyes of the matriarchal families directly impacted by the renovations." Photography: Zoe Rain
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#45 Voodoo - Genetic Modification
"A personal and playful vision of what happens today with the strong use of GMOs. At the same time, fears are growing that genetically modified organisms could be harmful to animal and human health." Photograph by: Luca Rosati
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#46 How We Bleed The Earth, Our Guilt And Shame
"A series of images portraying the impact of humankind's destructive industrial practices on the natural environment. The images portray the terrible beauty of mining’s toxic impact on the land, whilst serving as a reminder of man’s folly. The Rio Tinto river flows to the Gulf of Cadiz carrying high acidity levels and heavy metals, in effect making this an environmental disaster, a toxic reminder of human’s ability to irreversibly destroy the landscape in the name of corporate profits, a legacy of greed for future generations." Photograph by: Torleif Lie
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#47 A Series Of Unfortunate Fortunate Events
"The artist has started shooting herself every day because as a creative, if she doesn't work, she will slowly shut down." Photograph by: Lara Alcantara
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#48 Ollie
Photographer: Rodrigo Palma
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#49 Color Division
"I divided the pictures into different colors, matched with their special geometric shapes, hoping to give people a visual beauty and use the abstraction of color graphics to express my understanding of fine art photography and a metaphor for human nature. Tong Fu was born and worked in Beijing, China He is an artist who has been focusing on art photography for many years and has won many awards." Photographer: Tong Fu
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#50 The Lonely Prom
Photographer: Kelly Ryerson
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#51 Monologue
"The photographer's monologue seems to have a lot of characters, and yet it doesn’t. Because it's all her, and yet it's not. She is in constant conflict and struggle with herself, just like the rest of us." Photograph by: Sabrina Komár
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#52 Not An Exit
"This photo proposes a closer examination of doorways and hallways, liminal spaces intended for a movement that somehow appears impassable. Void of cultural signifiers, belonging to no specific place or location, a universality of line and form reoccurs from image to image, offering a deeper assessment of the formal elements that make up the spaces we routinely pass through and sometimes never truly see. We are going somewhere and yet—there seems to be no way out." Photograph by: Austin Irving
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#53 The Most Modern Lantern Festival In The World
"People were celebrating the end of the lunar new year in Taiwan. There is a unique traditional festival in Chinese culture. Now we combined fashion and modern design as a cultural innovation. The atmosphere is tranquil and fantastic." Photograph by: Dennis Chang
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#54 Swoonluxe Sway With Me!
"Amyn Nasser, from Zanzibar, is among the world's leading photographers. He is a self-taught visualize shooting editorial, fashion, celebrities, advertising, travel, nudes, and fine art since 1981. His work has graced the covers and editorial pages of the finest magazines including Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, Elle, Cosmopolitan, Amica as well as prestigious advertising campaigns. From Claudia to Helena, Volvo to BMW, Zanzibar to Paris, Amyn's drive for results and understanding of the business has over the 30-year career ensured his success in each endeavor undertaken." Photographer: Amyn Nasser
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#55 In And Out
"The In and Out series is an homage to the great Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza, whose work stands out for its sensitivity and simplicity. All images were taken from the same building, the headquarters of the Iberê Camargo Foundation in Porto Alegre, Siza's only work in Brazil. Abstract fractions of the building allow accentuating the formal and rhythmic articulation between its interior and exterior spaces. Architect and photographer, José Roberto Bassul was born in Rio de Janeiro and lives in Brasilia. His photography turns to architecture and cityscape. In the attempt to shift the concrete world of buildings to the senses’ intangible territory, he explores abstraction and geometry. He has received several awards and his works have often been exposed in festivals, galleries, and museums. With two published photobooks, he has worked in important private collections, and in the public collections of the National Museum of the Republic in Brasilia and the Art Museum of Rio de Janeiro - MAR." Photographer: Jose Roberto Bassul
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
#56 I Carbonari
Photographer: Saverio Caracciolo
Image credits: budapestfotoawards
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