In a world drowning in color, the 2025 One Exposure Awards Nature Photography Contest hit pause and went full monochrome—and wow, it hits different. These black & white nature photos don’t just show the wild; they feel it. Stripped of color, every shadow gets louder, every texture feels sharper, and every moment lands straight in your chest. This year’s winning images prove that when color steps aside, emotion takes center stage.
The One Exposure Awards celebrated nature in its rawest form, showcasing powerful work across multiple categories—from wildlife and landscapes to experimental fine art. Each category delivered its own visual punch, but the overall winners stood tall as unforgettable storytellers.
Taking 1st Place, Lidija Novković stunned the jury with “Začudno,” a low-angle black & white portrait of a giraffe that feels almost mythical. Shot from below, the image flips perspective, turning a familiar animal into something towering, surreal, and quietly powerful.
2nd Place went to Mark Fernley for “Crowned in Dust and Shadow.” A young male lion moves through a glowing cloud of dust at a Kenyan waterhole in Shompole Conservancy. Backlit and bold, the image freezes a rare, intimate moment—strength forming in silence, muscle and myth colliding in the dark.
Claiming 3rd Place, Thomas Brummett delivered “The Murmur of a Thousand Suns,” a poetic multiple-exposure forest scene. Trees blur, light multiplies, and suddenly the forest feels alive—breathing, whispering, and endless.
Together, these 30 black & white winners prove one thing loud and clear: nature doesn’t need color to be powerful. Sometimes, removing it reveals the truth even more.
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#1. 1st Place Winner: "Začudno" by Lidija Novković
#2. 2nd Place Winner: "Crowned in Dust and Shadow" by Mark Fernley
"A young male lion steps through a cloud of dust lifted by his own movement and caught in the back light. The night around him stays silent, but the glow reveals every contour of rising strength. A rare, intimate moment from the waterhole here in the Shompole Conservancy, southern Kenya."
#3. 3rd Place Winner: "The Murmur of a Thousand Suns" by Thomas Brummett
"Multiple exposures in the Forest"
#4. Abstract – Gold: "Ripple Effect" by RJ Muna
"The subtle patterns of water."
#5. Abstract – Silver: "Headin’ Home" by Bayliss Ward
#6. Aerial – Gold: "Flight Lines" by Holly Kirkland
"Photographed above Lake Magadi, flamingos lift off, their bodies forming loose diagonals across dark water. In flight, the flock becomes a study in rhythm—wings catching light in brief, alternating intervals crossing the frame. Movement becomes pattern, rendered in stark contrast from the air."
#7. Aerial – Silver: "The Road of Serenity" by Yu Hsuan Su
"Captured in the high mountains of Taiwan, this image shows a winding road fading into the mist, where monochrome tones highlight the contrast between nature’s rough textures and the smooth curve of the asphalt."
#8. Animals – Gold: "Under a veil of algae" by Jana Hejzlarova
#9. Animals – Bronze: "Majesty in Focus" by Saleh Alshamali
"A striking black and white portrait of a falcon, symbolizing power and grace. The sharp contrast of light and shadow highlights every feather detail, capturing the bird’s regal presence and untamed spirit."
#10. Earth’s Textures – Gold: "Whispers of the Forest" by Alex Aldaco
"Mist weaves between the trees, softening their outlines and turning the forest into a fleeting vision suspended in silence."
#11. Earth’s Textures – Silver: "Drink it In" by Christina Ford
"An intimate dialogue of vein and droplet, shadow and shine—a still moment suspended between storm and silence."
#12. Humans & Nature – Gold: "Stairway into Fog" by Alan Lemire
#13. Humans & Nature – Silver: "A walk in Paris" by Veronique Vial
#14. Land – Gold: "Naturally Unfolding" by Michael Paul
"At the foot of Wyoming’s Tetons the waning day brings a cast of characters together to mingle for a moment of refreshingly untouched nature."
#15. Land – Silver: "Balancing Boulders" by Alan Lemire
"Joshua Tree"
#16. Light & Shadow – Gold: "Ghost of the Savannah" by Caesar Sengupta
"In the moonlit stillness of Kenya’s Shompole wilderness, a hyena emerges from the darkness – its silhouette etched in dust and backlight. The photograph captures the raw, nocturnal spirit of the African savannah, where every sound and shadow tells a story of survival."
#17. Light & Shadows – Silver: "The Breathe Of Silence" by Pierluigi Gualano
"In a forest veiled by mist, the water falls like an ancient thought. Every drop becomes a breath, every shadow holds an echo of light. I sought to capture not the movement itself, but the stillness within it."
#18. Minimalism – Gold: "A Lone Lodgepole" by Evan Watts
"In fresh, powdery snow, a lone lodgepole pine stands. Despite being almost completely buried under snow, it is resilient to winter’s wrath."
#19. Minimalism – Silver: "Dew" by Alan Lemire
#20. Ocean – Gold: "The sardine run" by Frederico Cerdeira
"The sardine run in Mexico is a feeding frenzy, sea lions, striped marlins, whales and the list goes on and on. The ocean truly alive."
#21. Ocean – Silver: "Force" by Eduardo Esses Gritzewsky
"“Force” captures a towering wave striking a lone sea stack, revealing the raw power and contrast of nature. In black and white, the scene becomes a stark dialogue between motion and permanence, with a single bird highlighting the scale and intensity."
#22. Other – Gold: "Flower Portraits" by Stéphane Garnavault
"Flower Portraits is a quiet dialogue between my inner world and flowers. Each image isolates a single bloom in a near-sacred light, where shadow and silence reveal what usually goes unseen—fragile, intimate, yet powerful."
#23. Other – Bronze: "First Lessons" by Holly Kirkland
"A giraffe calf stands beneath its mother, learning the contours of her presence and the reassurance of her touch. In the stark midday light, their overlapping patterns reveal a fleeting moment of recognition — early lessons that will guide the calf through its earliest days on the Maasai Mara."
#24. Pattern & Form – Gold: "Lake Ice" by Robert Nowak
"Ice on Lake Twenty Two, Washington"
#25. Pattern & Form – Bronze: "Calligraphy" by Holly Kirkland
"A flock of flamingos skims the surface of Lake Natron, pulling ribbons of sediment into delicate lines behind them. Their movement becomes mark-making — strokes and curves traced by feet and wings. In this brief alignment of light, behavior, and shifting sediment, nature creates its own calligraphy."
#26. Underwater – Gold: "Holy Waters" by Chris Gug
"The iconic Christ of the Abyss statue lies in ~30′ of water off Key Largo. For decades, divers scrubbed it clean, but several years back, that became illegal, and set out for this shoot after several years of coral growth – not too much, not too little."
#27. Underwater – Silver: "Octopus hugh" by Xaime Beiro
"That exact moment when the sea wants to embrace you."
#28. Wild Portraits – Gold: "Emperors" by Risto Raunio
"Emperor penguin family together after feeding the chic."
#29. Wild Portraits – Silver: "Tight gaze" by Risto Raunio
"Japanese macaque in snowfall."
#30. Wild Portraits – Bronze: "Born to Soar" by Jason Marino
"An eagle soars among the mountain peaks of Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada."
In Summary
What is the One Exposure Nature Photography Contest?
- It’s an international competition celebrating outstanding nature photography, including wildlife, ocean, and abstract, with a strong focus on visual storytelling.
Why black & white photography?
- Black & white removes distraction, highlighting emotion, texture, light, and form—perfect for powerful nature storytelling.
Who won 1st place in 2025?
- Lidija Novković won 1st place for “Začudno,” a striking low-angle giraffe portrait.
Where was the 2nd place photo taken?
- Mark Fernley’s image was captured at a waterhole in Shompole Conservancy, southern Kenya.
What makes these photos special?
- They reveal nature’s raw power through light and shadow, proving monochrome photography still hits hard in 2025.
