Silver Winner

Wings of Courage

Photographer

Fenqiang Liu

Category

Nature Photography - Natural Art

Company

Submission Group

Amateur

Year

2022

Country / Region

United States

On one perfect spring morning in Central Florida, I captured the moment a Great Egret took off decisively and beautifully from an ancient oak tree draped in Spanish moss. That was in 2020, and for nearly two years, I did not feel an urgent need to process that image. Then, when the war in Ukraine broke out in February, I began to see my photo in a different light—it had come to symbolize, for me, the Ukrainian spirit and bravery that I so much admired. After that, I immersed myself in processing it with genuine enthusiasm.



The original capture of the image was in bright sunlight and a blue sky. During post-processing, I selected the sky in Photoshop to make it darker before painting the light, using the digital brush to create a more dramatic and artistic impression. This photograph is my tribute to the brave Ukrainians and their military, as well as all the international volunteers in this ongoing war.

Professional
2022
Playing with myself - Photography Winner

Photographer / Company

Laura Benvenuti

Category

Fine Art Photography - Fine Art / Other

Country / Region

France

Amateur
2022
Museo de Artes y Costumbres Populares de Sevilla - Photography Winner

Photographer / Company

Judith Kuhn

Category

Architecture Photography - Building

Country / Region

Germany

Professional
2022
Half doll and half human. - Photography Winner

Photographer / Company

Eduardo Moreno

Category

Black & White Photography - Photojournalism

Country / Region

Kenya

Amateur
2022
Organised Chaos - Photography Winner

Photographer / Company

Vinayak Shankar

Category

Nature Photography - Wildlife

Country / Region

India