25 Award-Winning Images Show the Power of Black-and-White Photography

All About Photo (AAP) announced the winners of its Black & White Photography contest, showcasing 25 international photographers whose work explores the expressive depth and enduring relevance of monochrome imagery.

The selected works, chosen from a diverse range of global submissions, reflect black and white photography’s power to convey emotion, narrative, and abstraction without the distraction of color. From street scenes and conceptual portraits to documentary projects and experimental techniques, the finalists demonstrate the medium’s continued versatility in the digital age.

“Drawn from 11 countries across 3 continents, the selected artists offer a global perspective on the enduring power of monochrome. Whether exploring intimate portraits, stark landscapes, or candid street scenes, each photographer brings a personal narrative to life through the lens of black and white,” AAP says.

First Place was awarded to Astrid Verhoef (Netherlands) for her evocative image Balance, a striking exploration of human connection within a vast, elemental landscape. Shot on location in Fuerteventura, Spain, the photograph captures a duet of figures poised between movement and stillness, bridging the natural and artificial in Verhoef’s ongoing exploration of modern humanity’s place in nature.

“I am used to working solo to experience my personal connection to the landscape in the most profound way without any distractions. Even though I treasure that connection and it works very well for me this way, at rare occasions I do want to work with an extra model. This particular posture is the result of movement, dancing together,” Verhoef told AAP.

“It did change the experience: a dance of balance showing a connection with each other as well as with the landscape. We are one and opposites at the same time. Contrast and connection, trust and dependance. Feeling a force of nature within and around ourselves, strength and balance in the volcanic landscape where barren meets beauty. All work is lens-based and do not contain any AI generated components. Photography takes place in landscapes on location.”

Antonio Denti (Italy) earned Second Place for his series Harder Lives, part of a broader visual essay examining economic transformation and resilience in communities on the edge of the Sahara. His images offer a quiet but potent reflection on tradition, labor, and the shifting impacts of global tourism.

“Souvenir makers at work on the edge of the Sahara Desert, as in the small town near-by their families live on. Harder Lives is part of a wider project called Everything and Nothing that tries to capture the moving essence of the little lives – our little lives – in the backdrop of the global economy and of a massive new industrial revolution in very different settings. In this case a small village in Morocco that used to live off very little (dates, palms, small herding, minor caravans) and now shifted to global tourism as all kinds of people travel there from all places in the world to see the magic marvels of the Sahara,” Denti says.

In Third Place, Lynne Breitfeller (United States) presented People I Know, a portrait series from the 1990s that revisits the faces and fleeting connections of early adulthood. Her black-and-white compositions invite viewers into a personal archive of memory and familiarity.

“This image, “Stacy and Miss Kitty”, is from “People I Know”, a collection of portraits, created in the early to mid-nineties of friends, family, and acquaintances. Some are candid, and others are performative. These photos bring me back to earlier times and help me visualize my early adult years and how people come in and out of our lives, and how some stay. Each holds a place in the catalog of my memory,” Breitfeller says.

Merit Gallery

The Merit Gallery includes standout submissions from photographers across Europe, the Americas, and beyond, each offering a unique perspective through the monochrome lens. Subjects range from snowstorms in New York (Russ Rowland), to sacred rituals in Ethiopia (Lorenz Berna), to abandoned jetties on the Baltic coast (Ralf Dreier). Across styles and genres, the featured works speak to themes of solitude, resilience, spirituality, and identity.

In recognition of their work, the winning photographers will be published in the print edition of AAP Magazine, as well as featured on All About Photo’s digital platforms, reaching a broad international audience of photography professionals and enthusiasts.

Now in its 49th edition, AAP Magazine continues to serve as a platform for both emerging and established photographers. With black and white photography as its focus this time, the issue affirms the enduring appeal of simplicity and contrast in visual storytelling, a tradition that continues to evolve with each new voice and vision.

The complete list of winners and their work is available at All About Photo.

Image credits: All About Photo, Individual artists as credited.