The winners of the 2025 Epson International Pano awards have been announced, showcasing photographs of our great, big, beautiful world in ultra-wide glory. Italy’s Alex Wides (Alessandro Cantarelli) won the Open Photographer of the Year and the Nature/Landscape category for his fine-art landscapes (seen above and below). Among this year’s 3,423 entries, there were more photographs of the Northern Lights than usual, coinciding with the 11-year solar cycle maximum.
‘Last Fireworks’ is the first place category and open competition overall winner. Describing Last Fireworks, Wides said, “As the sun went down, the sky literally exploded. Layer after layer of clouds lit up, painting the desert with fire and gold. Using my Sony A7 IV with a fisheye lens on a tripod, I captured a full multi exposure sequence at f/8 and ISO 100, rotating carefully around the nodal point to create a seamless 360° panorama.” Image: Alex Wides (Alessandro Cantarelli) / The 16th Epson International Pano Awards.
“The Pano Awards entries are always exceptional and this year the creativity has truly been taken to the next level,” Epson Australia Managing Director Craig Heckenberg said in a press release. “It’s great to see so many more wide and ultra-wide panoramic shots this year, a format close to our hearts, as they are able to be truly and properly represented by Epson wide-format photo printers. The Pano awards entrants are an inspiration for all photographers of all skill levels. At Epson we pride ourselves on embodying innovation and creativity, hence why we continue to support and sponsor these unique awards.”
Additional category winners and other awe-inspiring panoramic images are below. (Click to expand images to full screen.)
Kevin Nyun won Amateur Photographer of the Year for three entries including, ‘The Altiplano Landscape taken in Bolivia. Image: Kevin Nyun / The 16th Epson International Pano Awards.‘Hverarönd Aurora’ won first place in the VR/360 photography category. Christoph Simon of Germany snapped this image of the aurora borealis over the Hverarönd geothermal area in Iceland. Image: Christoph Simon / The 16th Epson International Pano Awards. Daniel Viñé Garcia from Spain won the Epson Digital Art Prize with ‘Tides of Tradition’ taken in Hoi An, Vietnam. Commenting on his image, Viñé says , “In this coastal village of Vietnam, survival is woven in silence. These women, working in morning shade and salt-laden air, are the unseen guardians of sustenance. The nets they mend are not mere tools, but lifelines binding sea and community together.” Image: Daniel Viñé Garcia/ The 16th Epson International Pano Awards.Vitaly Golovatyuk was awarded the best aerial pano for this photo of Hong Kong called ‘Not A Tiny HK Island.’ Image: Vitaly Golovatyuk /The 16th Epson International Pano Awards.In ‘Various Flowers,’ patterns captured by polarized light after hydrolysis and crystallization. Image: Yuan Ji / The 16th Epson International Pano Awards. A small lizard with a large lion in the Serengeti of Tanzania in ‘The Lion Whisperer.’ Image: Marina Cano/ The 16th Epson International Pano Awards.Chris Byrne won the Curator’s Award for this peaceful image of Mount Rainier in Washington State titled ‘Elysium.’ Image: Chris Byrne/ The 16th Epson International Pano AwardsA humpback whale in Tonga swims by an island in ‘The Whales Welcome.’Image: Matthew Smith/ The 16th Epson International Pano Awards.In ‘Shining in the Silence,’ fireflies glow in Taiwan. Image: Shirley Wung/ The 16th Epson International Pano Awards.The sun rises over Lofoten, Norway alongside a colorful rainbow in ‘Lofoten Sunrise.’ Image: Stefan Liebermann/ The 16th Epson International Pano Awards.‘Forest of Yellow’ features a close-up of pollination in action in Idaho. Image:Brian Clopp / The 16th Epson International Pano Awards.‘Jackpot’ was taken in Rago National Park, Norway. Alex says, “After finishing tours on Senja Island, I hiked up to the shoot location hoping for a good weather window. When I opened the tent on the last try, I hit the Jackpot. The sky exploded in a spectacular half hour of Northern Lights. This was a perfect reward after years of waiting.” Image: Alex Wides (Alessandro Cantarelli) / The 16th Epson International Pano Awards.
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