Aerial Photographer of the Year 2026 winners: Beautiful photographs of birds, rowing and Namibia’s pink dunes revealed

A lone fowl seemingly suspended over crimson grass, a solitary rower gliding throughout Lake Zurich, and the flood-manipulated pink sand dunes of Namibia seen from 600 metres make up the starring landscapes of this 12 months’s winners of the International Aerial Photographer of the Year awards.

Now in its second 12 months, the worldwide competitors drew 1587 entries from all over the world, celebrating the patterns, shapes and geometry solely seen from the skies.

Photographer and former information journalist Azim Khan Ronnie, of Bangladesh, was named the general worldwide aerial photographer of the 12 months for his compelling four-image folio.

Ronnie, who lives in France, captured a various array of world narratives, from the quiet simplicity of rowing in Switzerland to the colourful, geometric patterns of pink chilli peppers drying in Bogura, Bangladesh.

“Behind each photograph was patience, waiting for the right light, the perfect arrangement of people, or a fleeting moment when everything came together. Those brief moments are what make aerial photography so rewarding.”

Taking out the highest spot for the {photograph} of the 12 months was Vitaly Golovatyuk of the Russian Federation. His profitable picture, captured in November 2025 at Elk Park in China’s Zhejiang Province, depicts a fowl on a tiny lake surrounded by pink grass, the place the right readability of the sky’s reflection creates the hanging phantasm of the fowl floating in mid-air.

Closer to residence, Australian photographer Barbara Brown secured third place within the prestigious photographer of the 12 months folio class together with her photographs.

Based in Perth, Brown turned her full consideration to pictures after retiring from a profession as an environmental physicist – a background that has closely influenced her photographic fashion.

“My background in mathematics provides a means to create precise and accurate visual compositions,” mentioned Brown. “I use geometric shapes and mathematical concepts such as form, space and proportion to create appealing and balanced designs.”

Brown’s profitable imagery was born from a deep, multi-decade fascination with the African continent.

“I first visited Namibia back in the early 2000s and fell in love with its landscapes and history. As a photographer, the colour, texture, and shapes of the shifting red sand dunes of Sossusvlei especially captivated me. So much so that I have visited the country seven times,” she mentioned.

To seize her hanging views, Brown took to the skies in an open-air plane in April of this 12 months. “I spent a total of four hours flying in a helicopter at about 2000 feet with the doors off, photographing dunes, salt works, and shanty towns.”

Brown has travelled to greater than 70 nations and has photographed aerial landscapes throughout Iceland, New Zealand and outback Australia.

The International Aerial Photographer of the Year awards had been established to rejoice all of the completely different features of artistic visible storytelling from above, judged by an skilled panel together with Tom Hegen, Isabella Tabacchi and Joanna Steidle.

Every entry is evaluated individually by all three judges, with a strict ban on any AI-generated content material. A complete prize pool of $US10,000 was shared among the many main winners, alongside a showcase of the competitors’s high 101 best modern aerial images.

International Aerial Photographer of the Year 2026 winners

Photographer of the 12 months
Azim Khan Ronnie, Bangladesh

Second place: Chin Leong Teo, Singapore
Third place: Barbara Brown, Australia

Photograph of the 12 months
Vitaly Golovatyuk, Russian Federation
Second place: Sanghamitra Sarkar, India
Third place: Kah-Wai Lin, United States

Special award winners
Chengming Liu, United States (Above Mountain)
Aleksandra Wilk, Germany (Above Snow)
Savadmon Avalachamveettil, Ireland (Above Water)
A.J. Rich, United States (Chairman’s Choice)