photo: © Athanasios Maloukos, Greece - Zamora, Spain, Night of Sorrows, Travel Photographer of the Year 2025, winner/TPOTY.com
Greek photographer Athanasios Maloukos has been named International Travel Photographer of the Year 2025 (TPOTY). Amateur and professional photographers from 160 countries submitted more than 20.000 photographs to TPOTY 2025.
Athanasios is an amateur photographer with a passion for photographing people and culture. His photographs show us a number of highly atmospheric and intense images of whirling devotion in Konya, Turkey, and the Night of Sorrows: the 'Yacente' procession in Zamora, Spain.
intentional motion blur became a visual metaphor for the inner intensity of devotion ~ Athanasios Maloukos
Chris Coe, founder of TPOTY: "These photographs, taken in low light, require tremendous skill to get right. Photographing at the limits of what is possible requires extremely careful use of shutter speed to selectively freeze and blur movement in these two ceremonies. The subtle motion combined with the frozen elements heightens the atmosphere and drama in Athanasios' photographs. This was all achieved in-camera, without excessive post-processing, and conveys the depth and intensity of each moment."
Athanasios Maloukos - Zamora, Spain, Night of Sorrows
Zamora's 'Yacente' procession on Holy Thursday. Shoulders bowed, two penitents move through the twilight carrying heavy wooden crosses. Their silent sacrifice of endurance and humility forms part of the 'Yacente' procession, one of the most profound rituals of Holy Week in Zamora. The movement is not so much hurried as it is a quiet struggle of devotion, with the weight of the wood symbolizing shared human suffering and faith. (Canon R5, 15-35mm lens, f2.8, 0.4s, ISO 4000)
Athanasios Maloukos: "Both of my award-winning portfolios—on the Sufi rituals of Anatolia and the Yacente procession in Zamora—reflect my commitment to capturing spiritual traditions with sensitivity and depth. Working in environments defined by silence, reverence, and subdued light required not only technical precision, but also emotional restraint."
Athanasios Maloukos - Konya, Turkey, Whirling Devotion
Two dervishes whirl in disciplined rhythm around and frame the imposing figure of the Şeyh, the ceremonial axis and center of the ritual presence. Through graceful movement and restraint, his presence adds greater drama to a simple image. (Canon R5, 15-35mm lens, f10, 0,13s, ISO 200)
The Young Travel Photographer of the Yearawards spotlight the potential stars of the future. In 2024 , 9-year-old Jamie Smart placed second in the age 14 and under category. This year, at just 10 years old, she is the overall prize winner with an impressive portfolio featuring photographs of fruit bats, or flying foxes, both being cared for at the zoo wildlife hospital in Beerwah, Queensland, Australia, and flying in the wild.
Katy Gomez Catalina, Spain - Altai Mountains, Mongolia
We are surrounded by the vastness of the Altai Mountains, a remote corner of Mongolia where Russia, China, and Kazakhstan meet, and where Kazakh nomadic herders have forged a unique bond with majestic golden eagles for centuries. More than a tradition, this relationship is a symbiosis between human and animal, an ancestral heritage passed down from generation to generation. Her name is Erbod, and she proudly holds the eagle she inherited from her recently deceased father. (Fujifilm X-H2, 17-70mm lens, f4, 1/60s, ISO 400)
The 15-year-old Romanian photographer Matei Mărăcineanu won the top prize in the Young TPOTY 15-18 category with a series of beautiful photographs of birds at Lake Morii in Bucharest, Romania. The Young TPOTY age 14 and under category was won by 11-year-old Czech photographer Naomi Cech for her delicate and creative photographs of forest mushrooms near the town of Kraliky in her native Czech Republic and during a trip to Africa.
Athanasios Maloukos's prize consists of £1000 in cash from TPOTY, a seven-day trip to Sri Lanka offered by the Sri Lanka Tourism Bureau and Jetwing Hotels, Radiant Photo image-editing software, and a portfolio review by leading New York agent Frank Meo.
Young TPOTY winner Jamie Smart receives £500 from TPOTY, plus Radiant Photo image-editing software. Naomi Cech and Matei Mărăcineanu each receive £250. All three young winners also win a place in an Eye for the Light photography workshop or a photo critique.
Ponlawat Thaipinnarong - Huai Chorakhe Mak Reservoir, Ban Bua, Meung Buriram, Buriram, Thailand
During the breeding season, a pair of Sarus cranes built a nest in rice fields and taught their chicks to walk. I lay waiting for a few hours each day to find the right angle for photographs and to help them grow calm. In the evening, they rested on the nest. They cared for and cleaned their chick. I saw the bird lower its head toward a chick and make beak-to-beak contact. Only then did I truly understand how intimate a Sarus crane is with its chicks. (Sony A1, 400mm lens, f5.6, 1/320s, ISO 1600)
Together, the winning and placed entries form an exceptional collection of contemporary travel photography. The winning photographs, all of which can be viewed in the Winners’ Gallery at tpoty.com, will be exhibited. Dates and venue details will be announced soon.
Thibault Gerbaldi, France - East Bali, Indonesia
On a quiet country road, a boy leaps in the morning light as he chases his homemade kite. Far from screens and traffic, his play follows a slower rhythm shaped by nature and his imagination. In these quiet corners of Bali, time seems to move differently, revealing a world where simplicity and joy follow their own pace. (Leica SL3, 24-90mm lens, f5.6, 1/640s, ISO 200)
