A photo capturing a farmer surrounded by drying fish by Vietnamese photographer Khanh Phan has won the travel category of the Sony World Photography Awards.

Drying Fish by Vietnamese photographer Khánh Phan won the travel category of the internationally acclaimed Sony World Photography Awards. Photo by Khanh Phan via Sony World Photography Awards

The photo, entitled Drying Fish, was taken in Long Hải market in the central province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau on 26 July, 2020. The wooden trays viewed from above look like a giant brocade woven by the farmer.

The Sony World Photography Awards is one of the most competitive photo contests in the world, as it receives 330,000 entries from around the world, among which only the 10 best photos are selected as winners for its 10 categories of open competition.

These 10 best photos will be selected further to find the best work of the season and the photographer awarded US$5,000, plus the latest Sony digital imaging equipment. The overall winner of the competition will be announced on 15 April.

Khánh Phan is the first and only Vietnamese photographer to win the open competition of the prestigious photo contest.

Phan said winning was a memorable experience in her photography career and all winning works by Vietnamese photographers like hers are “tourism ambassadors” for Viet Nam.

Produced by the World Photography Organisation, the annual Sony World Photography Awards are one of the most important fixtures in the photographic calendar.

The awards are a global voice for photography and provide a vital insight into contemporary work today. Now in their 14^th year, the awards consist of four competitions: Professional (for photographers entering a body of work or portfolio), Open (for photographers entering a single image), Student (for academic institutions) and Youth (for 12-19 year-olds).

The jury will evaluate and award the final first prize to a single photographer with the best work.

Khanh Phan was born in Quynh Phu District in the northern province of Thai Binh, but is now based in HCM City. In 2017, she bought her first camera, sparking her passion for photography.

Khanh Phan said her journey to become a photographer was not easy. She tends to venture into difficult conditions such as climbing high mountains, swimming in mud or waiting for dawn at a graveyard to take photos.

However, the trip throughout Viet Nam over the past three years has helped Khanh Phan gain a lot of success in pursuing a career in photography and win 30 domestic and international awards.

Earlier, she won a gold award in the People/Culture category with her work entitled The Children Dancing With Gong and a silver one in the Travel/Tourism category with Drying Fish at the Tokyo International Foto Awards (TIFA) 2020. 

Source: VNS