Here are the outstanding winning photos of the Siena International Photo Awards 2023. Siena proudly announced the Photographer of the year and winners in the twelve captivating categories during the prestigious awards ceremony held at Siena’s Teatro dei Rinnovati. This event marks the official opening of Siena Awards 2023, a visual arts festival that promises to breathe life into Siena and its surroundings until November 19th 2023.
A powerful tribute to peace amidst the harrowing realities of war has earned Salwan Georges, an esteemed Iraqi-American photographer and journalist, the prestigious title of the overall winner in the 2023 Siena International Photo Awards. The winning photograph, titled “Georgy,” captures a profoundly moving moment as Georgy Keburia bids farewell to his family, compelled to abandon their home in Odesa, Ukraine, amidst the devastating conflict between Russia and Ukraine, which erupted in March 2022. Salwan Georges, with his exceptional skills as a photographer-journalist, beautifully captures the heart-wrenching essence of the conflict, as a mother and daughter confront the bewildering fear of leaving behind their husband and father to seek refuge in safer surroundings. Simultaneously, the profound sorrow and trepidation of a father forced to part ways with his loved ones while staying to defend his homeland becomes unmistakably evident.
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#1 Photo Of The Year – Georgy by Salwan Georges
Georgy Keburia says goodbye to his wife Maya and children at a train station in Odesa, Ukraine, as they board a train to Lviv on March 5, 2022. The situation in Easter Ukraine has become extremely critical as the fighting intensifies. Hundreds of women and children who escaped cities like Mariupol, Kherson, and Mykolaiv, are trying desperately to catch a train and leave for a safe place before the violence of the war reaches the city. Meanwhile, men like Georgy must stay to fight to defend their own country and families.
#2 Journeys & Adventures: 1st Classified – Following their tradition! by Shyjith Onden Cheriyath
In Umm al Quwain, every winter camel handlers take their camels into the sea for a bath. The saltwater is believed to have medicinal properties that help rid the camels of ticks, fleas, and other parasites. Despite being an age-old Arab tradition, this practice is becoming less frequent in the region due to the development of new hotels and resorts along the coastline.
#3 Journeys & Adventures: 2nd Classified – A delicate balance by Regula Tschumi
#4 Journeys & Adventures: 3rd Classified – Roman by Chiara Felmini
#5 Journeys & Adventures: Honorable Mention – Nature’s Call by Navin Kumar
#6 Fascinating Faces And Characters: 1st Classified – Shooting Range Participant by Matt Mcclain
Aliyana Stokes, 10, and her brother Bryson Stokes, 5, participate in a gun safety class for children alongside other attendees at Choppa Community, a gun range in rural Maryland. It is a place for African American gun owners and others to assemble to learn gun safety, self-defense and have a place to target practice.
#7 Fascinating Faces And Characters: 2nd Classified – Fans by K Asad
#8 Fascinating Faces And Characters: 3rd Classified – The Cut. Kimia. by Silvia Alessi
#9 Fascinating Faces And Characters: Honorable Mention – The Crown by Mauro De Bettio
#10 The Beauty of Nature: 1st Classified – New generation by Fabio Savini
Female Northern spectacled salamanders, also known as Savi’s salamanders, lay their eggs on submerged branches in cold waters of an Apennine stream in Italy’s Foreste Casentinesi National Park.
#11 The Beauty of Nature: 2nd Classified – The awakening of a giant by Francisco Negroni
#12 The Beauty of Nature: 3rd Classified – Etna night scape moving by Dario Lo Scavo
#13 The Beauty of Nature: Honorable Mention – Ghosts by Lukáš Veselý
#14 Animals in their Environment: 1st Classified – Lions in Lines by Torie Hilley
In the African savanna, as the dry season approaches and the grass turns yellow, lions become even more elusive, blending seamlessly into their surroundings. As Torie was tracking their footprints on the ground, she was suddenly presented with a stroke of luck: a pride of lions appeared in front of her, walking in a line and following the tire tracks.
#15 Animals in their Environment: 2nd Classified – Blooming Dreams by Martin Gregus
#16 Animals in their Environment: 3rd Classified – Indian Wolf pack by Siddhartha Ghosh
#17 Animals in their Environment: Honorable Mention – Hippos life by Mike Korostelev
#18 Sports in Action: 1st Classified – Catch Me If You Can by Samuel Barnes
Grant Holloway of the USA team leading the field whilst competing in the men’s 60m hurdles semi-finals during day three of the World Indoor Athletics Championships at the Stark Arena in Belgrade. He completed the run in 7.29 seconds, equalling his existing world record, and went on to win the final.
#19 Sports in Action: 2nd Classified – Steeplechase Fall by Martin Rickett
#20 Sports in Action: 3rd Classified – The Cloud by Fabrice Guerin
#21 Sports in Action: Honorable Mention – Marea Humana by Pedro Luis Ajuriaguerra Saiz
#22 Documentary & Photojournalism: 1st Classified – Kherson boy by Andras D. Hajdu
On November 11, 2022, Ukrainian forces liberated Kherson from Russian occupation. In a crowded square, the crowd falls silent as President Zelensky delivers a speech. Glib, a 13-year-old boy, listens attentively in the front row: after months of fear and uncertainty, for the first time since the beginning of the war, he can finally leave his house.
#23 Documentary & Photojournalism: 2nd Classified – Child Labour in Afghanistan by Weiken Oliver
#24 Documentary & Photojournalism: 3rd Classified – Hopeless by Alvaro Herrero Lopez Beltran
#25 Documentary & Photojournalism: Honorable Mention – Revolutions Live by Debarchan Chatterjee
#26 Under 20: 1st Classified – Women’s dance by Mobin Shahvaisi
Despite the increasingly severe restrictions imposed on women in Iran, Kurdish girls choose to celebrate Nowruz, the New Year festival that falls during the spring equinox, by wearing colorful clothes and dancing traditional dances.
#27 Under 20: 2nd Classified – The Great Horned Owl by Nichole Vijayan
#28 Under 20: 3rd Classified – Bon Odori by Edmond Leong
#29 Under 20: Honorable Mention – Meal by Raffael Gunawan
#30 Street Photography: 1st Classified – A la station balneaire by Benoit Segalen
In a seaside resort town in France, a gas station is suddenly transformed into a spectacular diving board, from which some boys jump into the sea with daring and breathtaking acrobatics, creating a surprising and stunning scene.
#31 Street Photography: 2nd Classified – Mating monkeys and voyeur family by Sheli Mallick
#32 Street Photography: 3rd Classified – Timelines by Pierre Pauwels
#33 Street Photography: Honorable Mention – Split personalities by Doron Talmi
#34 Underwater Life: 1st Classified – Fish Eats Fish by Lilian Koh
In nature, it is common for fish to feed on other fish to survive, but this scene captured during a dive in Anilao, Philippines, shows extraordinary determination. The young grouper had been nearly swallowed whole by a lizardfish, but with incredible effort, it managed to break free and escape just moments after the photo was taken.