RIVER DEEP, MOUNTAIN HIGH

The winners of the 2014 international Travel Photographer of the Year awards are revealed

Philip Lee Harvey (UK), Lalibela, EthiopiaFrom pilgrims making perilous progress 14,000 ft. up in the Himalayas to cave divers exploring the cenotes of Mexico, from the bleak beauty of skeletal trees to the warm tones of Himba jewelry and colourful bands of rock in Northumberland, and from bicycle adventures in Norway to the lives of honey-hunters in Bangladesh, the winning images in the 2014 international Travel Photographer of the Year awards give a glorious view of life on this planet.

The winning images and short films can be viewed on www.tpoty.com and will be displayed in a magnificent exhibition at London’s Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) from July 24th- September 5th 2015.

British photographer Philip Lee Harvey took the overall prize – and title of Travel Photographer of the Year 2014 – for elegant portfolios depicting the rock-hewn churches of Lalibela, Ethiopia and the Himba of Namibia.

The title of Young Travel Photographer of the Year 2014 went to 17 year-old Samuel Fisch of the USA. He is the first person to win this title twice, having also won it back in 2012. His latest set of winning images – graphic blocks of colour showing details in Burano, Italy – were very different to those from 2012, showing his diversity. Young TPOTY 15-18 was won by 18 year-old Georgia Mulholland of Australia with vivid shots of the Greek islands, while Michael Theodric of Indonesia (age 12) won the 14 and under category with an atmospheric black & white portfolio of Java.

Samuel Fisch (USA), Burano, ItalyItalian amateur photographer Massimiliano Fabrizi was voted winner of the New Talent category for his subtle and understated images of Cuba. Rufus Blackwell’s quirky, short timelapse film of Kumhb Mela, the largest gathering of people on Planet Earth, was a vivid and colourful contrast to Fabrizi’s portfolio. Comprising more than 80,000 individual images, it secured the British photographer first prize in the HD Video category.

Malaysian oral implantologist, Nick Ng Yeow Kee, won the Tribes portfolio category with his intimate black & white portraits of elderly people in China, while Dutch photographer Marsel van Oosten took top honours in the Earth, Air, Fire, Water category, with his eerie images of dead camelthorn trees in the fog in Namibia. And the Spirit of Adventure category was won by Poland’s Piotr Trybalski with a portfolio depicting an epic cycle trip along the Norwegian coast.

Johnny Haglund of Norway scored not one but two first places in the single image categories, winning Monochromal with a wonderfully sympathetic portrait of an elderly woman in Colombia, and One Moment with a striking image of ‘Les Sapeurs’ in the Democratic Republic of Congo. And Joshua Holko’s winning image in Wild & Vibrant was both suitably wild and vibrant. The Australian photographer had captured the moment a polar bear looked up from consuming a recent seal kill, its bloodied face and the seal carcass standing out vividly against the white fur and snow.

Entries were received from professional and amateur photographers from over 100 countries, and the awards were judged by a hugely respected international panel, including Daria Bonera (Italy), photo agency director and photo editor and editorial coordinator for ‘Touring’ - National Geographic Traveler Italy - internationally renowned portrait, fashion and fine art photographer, Barbara Bordnick (USA), award-winning photographer and picture editor Eamonn McCabe (UK), wildlife photographer Chris Weston (UK), and Manfred Zollner (Germany), deputy Editor in Chief of FOTOmagazin.

Awards and prizes in detail Travel Photographer of the Year 2014 Philip Lee Harvey will receive £2,500 and a Plastic Sandwich personalised leather print book or iPad case. In addition, a private showcase of his travel photography will be staged within the Travel Photographer of the Year exhibition.

Samuel Fisch, the Young Travel Photographer of the Year 2014, wins £250, a Plastic Sandwich iPad case or print portfolio and a place on a Young Photographers Alliance mentoring programme, while Michael Theodric and Georgia Mulholland, the winners of the 14 and under and 15-18 age groups receive £100 plus a Photo Iconic imaging critique session, to help them develop their photographic skills. Three young British photographers - 16 year-old George Warr, 11 year-old Will Jenkins and 10 year-old Arthur Allen - who were Runners-up in their categories, each receive a bundle of goodies from the Travel Photographer of the Year Collection of books and cards.

For winning the Tribes portfolio category, Nick Ng Yeow Kee will go to the hugely photogenic Indian festival of Holi with luxury travel specialist cazenove+loyd. Niko Vavdinoudis (Greece) was Runner-up, Arne Strømme (Norway) Highly Commended, and Tim Gerard Barker (Australia) Commended.

Tim Gerard Barker (AUS), Bangladesh

As winner of Earth, Air, Fire, Water Marsel van Oosten receives £1,000 plus 12 bottles of Cutty Sark Storm blended Scotch whisky. Peter Karry (UK) was Runner-up, while Ignacio Palacios (Spain/Australia) was Highly Commended and Thomas Haney (USA) and Nicolas Lotsos (Greece) Commended.

Piotr Trybalski receives a suitably adventurous prize for Spirit of Adventure - the use of a splendid Harley-Davidson® motorcycle for a weekend, plus a magnificent, and valuable, Harley-Davidson® leather jacket, courtesy of Warr's Harley-Davidson® of London. Terry Steeley (UK) was Runner-up, Marsel van Oosten (Netherlands) Highly Commended and Gonçalo Barriga (Portugal) and Barbara Dall’Angelo (Italy) Commended.

Timothy Allen (UK), a former overall winner of the awards, took the judges’ Best Single Image award in the Tribes and Spirit of Adventure portfolio categories, while Jakub Rybicki (Poland) received the same award in Earth, Air, Fire, Water. They will each receive a 24" exhibition quality Giclée print from Genesis Imaging.

As his reward for winning the New Talent category, Massimiliano Fabrizi will spend a day being mentored by a TPOTY judge – a superb learning experience for any would-be professional photographer – plus receive £500 and a personalised Plastic Sandwich leather portfolio book or iPad case. Adam Balcy (Poland) was Runner-Up, Wupeng Lu (China) Highly Commended and Felicia Simion (Romania) Commended.

For winning Monohromal and One Moment, Johnny Haglund will go on European city breaks to Paris and Bruges with Railbookers, and receive a Giclée print from Genesis Imaging. Joshua Holka will go on a city Break to Cologne for his success in Wild & Vibrant. In Monochromal, Sue O’Connell (UK) was Runner-up, Nicole Cambre (Belgium) Highly Commended and Neil Buchan-Grant and Philip Field (both UK) were Commended. Marco Urso (Italy) was Runner-up in Wild & Vibrant and Commended for a second image, Mike Reyfman (USA) Highly Commended, and Andrew Newey (UK), Tim Bird (UK), and Jason Freeman (Australia) were Commended. In One Moment, Ly Hoang Long (Vietnam) was Runner-up, Germán Gutiérrez (Spain) Highly Commended and Marco Urso, Ming Ong (Singapore), Bruna Brandão (Brazil) and Beniamino Pisati (Italy) all Commended.

Rufus Blackwell receives £500 for winning the HD Video category, Travel Shorts. Olivia Rutherford (UK) was Runner-up and Eric Nathan (South Africa) was Commended.

For further information on the awards, please visit www.tpoty.com.

Artists' Bill of Rights is proud to have International Travel Photographer of the Year as a supporter of our principles.