“The fish belong in the river – but the river is gone.” A person who was as soon as a fisherman stands within the remaining shallow water in Dhaka, Bangladesh – now promoting plastic imitations of fish that may now not be caught right here.
It’s a stark, visually hanging scene – one which factors to a wider actuality the place nature is changed by replicas. The picture captures the affect of urbanization, a theme central to Jubair Ahmed Arnob‘s collection The Place Where I Used To Play, which visually narrates the altering panorama of Green Model Town – a course of reshaping every day life and the suburban typography.
Now, the work has earned Arnob the Student Photographer of the Year title on the Sony World Photography Awards 2026, which this 12 months invited college students globally to undergo the theme Together. It marks the primary time within the competitors’s 19-year historical past {that a} photographer from Bangladesh has obtained the consideration.
Article continues beneath
Arnob is a documentary photographer based in Bangladesh, working on socio-environmental change and quiet, often overlooked narratives.
He developed his practice at Counter Foto, an establishment that has been shaping Bangladesh’s up to date images scene. Its strategy emphasizes regionally, rooted, socially engaged schooling – utilizing images as a software “for pleasure but also as a weapon to change society for good.”
Arnob’s collection displays this ethos. He makes use of images as a software for statement, resistance, and reflection. What begins as a private reminiscence of place turns into a broader metaphor for loss and adaptation, the place lived expertise is steadily changed by illustration.
SWPA’s exhibition in London
The Sony World Photography Awards 2026 exhibition is on display at Somerset House, London, from April 17 to May 4, presenting over 300 prints and hundreds of images in digital displays, as well as a special presentation by Joel Meyerowitz.
For more information and to discover the full list of winners and shortlisted entries, visit the official Sony World Photography Awards website.
You would possibly like…
Check out our guides for a breakdown of the best Sony cameras and best Sony lenses.
Looking for competitions to enter? Here are 10 global photo contests now open for entries from April to July.