On 16 April, the Sony World Photography Awards announced the overall winners for 2026 at a gala ceremony in London, where leading figures from the industry honoured this year’s winners and their achievements.
The prestigious Photographer of the Year 2026 title was awarded to Citlali Fabián for the series Bilha, Stories of my Sisters. Citlali Fabián is a visual artist from Mexico’s Indigenous Yalalteca community who currently lives in London. She uses photography to explore how identity is intertwined with territory, migration and community ties.
Fabián receives a cash prize of 25,000 US dollars (USD), Sony Digital Imaging equipment and the opportunity to present additional work at the Sony World Photography Awards 2027 exhibition.
Citlali Fabián won with her project Bilha, Stories of my Sisters, which combines carefully composed photographic portraits with digital illustrations. The series tells the stories of women from Indigenous communities in Oaxaca, Mexico. Their work has a tangible impact across a wide range of fields, including law, language, art and ecology.
The project was created to inspire young girls through strong role models and was developed in close, long-term collaboration with the women portrayed. The images highlight not only their achievements, but also their personal experiences and motivations. The digital drawings added to the portraits consist of symbols and motifs that represent their journeys and celebrate their cultural heritage.
Fabián was selected from the 10 winners of the Professional competition, who were announced at the ceremony on 16 April alongside the finalists in each category. The overall winners of the Awards’ Open, Student and Youth competitions were also honoured during the gala ceremony. In addition, the Outstanding Contribution to Photography Award, received by photographer Joel Meyerowitz, was celebrated.
The winner of the Open Photographer of the Year 2026 is Elle Leontiev (Australia), who receives a cash prize of $5,000 (USD) and Sony Digital Imaging equipment.
Leontiev won with The Barefoot Volcanologist, a compelling portrait of Phillip Yamah, a self-taught and internationally recognised volcanologist. He is pictured standing on volcanic rock on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu.
The Student Photographer of the Year 2026 award goes to Jubair Ahmed Arnob (Bangladesh, Counter Foto - A Center for Visual Arts). His series The Place Where I Used To Play shows how the Green Model Town neighbourhood in Dhaka, Bangladesh, is changing as a result of urban development, and how this is affecting daily life and the landscape.
The winner of the Youth Competition 2026 is Philip Kangas (Sweden, age 16). He received the award for Saving History from the Flame, a remarkable photograph of two firefighters carrying a work of art out of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts during a fire, capturing the action and teamwork of the moment.
Now in their 19th edition, the Sony World Photography Awards set the standard for international recognition in photography. This year, more than 430,000 photographs from over 200 countries and territories were entered. Each edition brings deeply resonant stories and images to the fore, offering a global perspective on the ever-evolving medium of photography.
The Sony World Photography Awards 2026 exhibition was on view at Somerset House in London from 17 April to 4 May, alongside a special presentation by Joel Meyerowitz.
More information: www.worldphoto.org.
