Spaceflight, astronomy, pollution and industrial decline. These are just some of the themes explored by this year’s Sony World Photography Awards (SWPA) line-up. The renowned competition has just announced the finalists and shortlisted photographers in the 2025 Professional category. Now in its 18th year, SWPA rewards “outstanding series of work for their compelling approach to narrative and their photographic execution.” Over 419,000 images from over 200 countries and territories were submitted to the 2025 edition, which will culminate in an exhibition at London’s Somerset House this spring. The prestigious Photographer of the Year award will be announced on 16 April. Here are five projects to discover:
Rhiannon Adam | Preflight, Baikonur Cosmodrome, from Rhi-Entry
“Throughout history, 117 billion humans have gazed at the same moon, yet only 24 people – all American men – have seen its surface up close.” In 2021, Rhiannon Adam was chosen as the only female crew member of dearMoon, an art residency set up in 2018 by Japanese billionaire and art collector Yusaku Maezawa. It was a global search for eight artists to take part in week-long lunar mission aboard SpaceX’s Starship – the first civilian mission to deep space. Adam, chosen from one million applicants, immersed herself in the space industry for three years until, in June 2024, Maezawa abruptly cancelled the mission, leaving the crew in limbo. Rhi-Entry is a record of the artist’s personal recalibration following the news.
Seido Kino | Depopulation
Seido Kino overlays archival Japanese photographs, taken between the 1940s and 1960s, within contemporary pictures of the same location. The series, which includes images of former schools and railways, is a response to the period of rapid economic growth experienced by Japan during 1945-1973. In many regions, the trade-off for affluence was pollution and an uneven population distribution, as land and resource constraints tightened and people from small towns moved to cities. The project invites viewers to consider what it means for a country to grow, and the advantages and disadvantages that can bring.
Miku Yokoyama | Midnight Factory Light Parade
Miku Yokoyama memorialises Japan’s industrial landscapes using a telephoto lens and a tripod. The long exposure photographs in this series were taken over approximately three years, from June 2020 to March 2023, at factories in various prefectures including Osaka, Wakayama, Mie, Okayama, Hiroshima and Kanagawa. In 2020, the plant in Takaishi City, the starting point of the project, ceased operations. As of 2024, it has been dismantled and no longer exists. There are three nightscapes of this factory included in the series. They are, as the photographer says: “precious images that can never be captured again.”
Matthew Joseph | This Sport Belongs to Them
Matthew Joseph spotlights Munirah Abdiwahid, a British-Somali female taekwondo athlete from London whose eyes are set on the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. Joseph, inspired by Abdiwahid’s grit, determination and focus, decided to produce a short film about her journey. The Sony World Photography Awards-selected images accompany the film, titled This Sport Belongs To Them, which was shot in the church hall where Munirah’s taekwondo club regularly trains. This is a project about empowerment, community and dedication, with a powerful message that everyone has a right to pursue their dreams.
Cristóbal Olivares | Dark Embrace: Light Pollution that Affects Chilean Astronomy
Chile’s Atacama Desert has been a point of interest for astronomers for decades. Its exceptionally clear skies have revealed profound discoveries, including potentially hazardous asteroids drifting close to Earth and evidence that the universe’s expansion is accelerating. However, light pollution – caused by cities and the mining industry – is now affecting this vital work. Cristóbal Olivares’ series comes at a time when the extraction of copper and lithium ramps up to meet soaring global demand, and astronomers working in the area are worried that the Chilean desert’s status as the “eyes of the world” could be in jeopardy.
A selection of works by finalists and shortlisted photographers is on view as part of the Sony World Photography Awards 2025 exhibition at Somerset House, London, from 17 April – 5 May 2025.
Image Credits:
1. © Miku Yokoyama, Japan, Shortlist, Japan Professional Award, Sony World Photography Awards 2025
2. © Rhiannon Adam, United Kingdom, Finalist, Professional competition, Creative, 2025 Sony World Photography Awards
3. © Seido Kino, Japan, Shortlist, Japan Professional Award, Sony World Photography Awards 2025
4. © Miku Yokoyama, Japan, Shortlist, Japan Professional Award, Sony World Photography Awards 2025
5. © Matthew Joseph, United Kingdom, Shortlist, Professional competition, Sport, 2025 Sony World Photography Awards
6. © Cristóbal Olivares, Chile, Finalist, Professional competition, Environment, 2025 Sony World Photography Awards
