The Association of Photographers has unveiled the winners of its 40th annual awards ceremony, featuring exceptional work across 10 categories with additional recognition for best commissioned, best personal, and best moving image projects. This year's competition highlights diverse photographic excellence ranging from intimate cultural portraits to environmental documentation.
Tom Parker claimed the top honor with "Shape Shifting the Steppes," a striking portrait of Tsetseglen Odgerel, a 35-year-old Mongolian contortionist who ranks among Mongolia's most celebrated performers. The winning image captures Odgerel practicing Uran Nugaralt, which translates to "artistic bending" in Mongolian. Parker explained his vision: "Her physical strength is reflected in her mental fearlessness. Tsetseglen and I wanted to capture her in her home city, but not in a typical performance environment."
Environmental photography received significant recognition, with Sean Breithaupt winning gold in the environment category for "Patterns in a Floodzone." His aerial photographs document coastal regions in Ireland threatened by rising sea levels, capturing the abstract patterns created by tidal movements. The images offer a unique perspective on the complex challenges these vulnerable landscapes face due to climate change.
In the portrait category, Todd Antony secured gold with "Buzkashi - Abdulqadir," featuring a four-year-old boy during a quiet moment overlooking the traditional Central Asian sport. Buzkashi, meaning "goat pulling" in Persian, represents the wild, brutal sport of Tajikistan and neighboring countries. Antony described the scene: "Abdulqadir was setting up during a quiet hilltop moment with a match thundering away in the narrow valley below us. We were taking portraits of riders from his group of family and friends when he strolled into our makeshift hilltop studio on his biblically large horse."
The moving image category celebrated documentary excellence with Jack Margerison's "The Yard," which chronicles Wootten's Boatyard, a family-run operation on the River Thames in Marlow. Five generations of the Wootten family have built and restored wooden boats for nearly 120 years, and Margerison's film captures their delicate balance between preserving tradition and adapting to modern challenges.
Lewis Khan received the best moving image award for "Shrovetide," a mixed media project examining male identity, vulnerability, and self-worth through the historic annual tradition of the Atherstone Ball Game. This specific award celebrates inspirational moving work from all eligible 2025 finalist entries.
Other notable winners included Hugh Fox, who earned silver in the portrait category with "In Her Own Time" and gold in fashion and beauty for "Entering the Fall," a campaign image for Ash Holden's latest collection called Holt. Simon Winnall captured silver in the lifestyle category with "Six Senses," commissioned by London agency Harriman Steel for the hotel group.
The competition also recognized emerging talent, with Jack Currie winning the AOP emerging talent award for "Gangster Granny," a portrait of his own grandmother Margaret, whom he describes as "quite possibly the most gangster granny to ever live." Additionally, Ruben Davies received the AOP discovery award for "Liturgy of the Unseen."
David Clerihew earned gold in the project category with "America: Capturing America's Gun Paradox Through a Lens," which explores modern America's relationship with firearms. Clerihew offered each subject five dollars as an icebreaker, finding that "this transaction served as the perfect icebreaker, met with a mix of confusion, surprise, and amusement." His work encompasses over a hundred portraits against plain backdrops, representing the rich diversity of American society.
The awards ceremony also celebrated technical excellence, with Kai Bastard at Bad Star Studios receiving the Martin Evening excellence in digital retouching award for work on Julia Fullerton-Batten's "Rivoli Ballroom, After." The competition's comprehensive scope demonstrates the evolving landscape of contemporary photography, from traditional documentary work to innovative digital artistry.
