World Press Photo announces 2013 contest winners

Swedish photographer Paul Hansen has won the World Press Photo 2013 award for his picture of a Palestinian family carrying two children who were killed in an Israeli missile strike to their funeral. The contest also awarded prizes in eight other categories ranging from Sports to Portraits. 

Some of these images may be familiar from news coverage throughout the year, but they make a compelling and inspiring reminder of the exceptional level of photojournalism across the world.

Click here to see a gallery of the World Press Photo Contest 2013 winners

World Press Photo of the Year 2013

The World Press Photo of the Year 2013 was awarded to Swedish photographer Paul Hansen his picture of a Palestinian family carrying two children killed in an Israeli missile strike being carried to their funeral.

Category Winners

Winners of World Press Photo 2013 awards were selected from over 100,000 images. Each of the eight categories had two first, second and third place winners — one for a single image and one for a photo story series.

Rodrigo Abd’s photo of a woman recovering from severe injuries she received when her house was shelled by the Syrian Army, won the first prize singles in the General News category.	Wei Seng Chen’s photo of a jockey displaying relief and joy at the end of a dangerous run across rice fields, won first prize singles in the Sports Action category.

All the prize-winning photographs are assembled into an exhibition that travels to 45 countries over the course of a year, and will be published in a yearbook. 

Nemanja Pancic’s photo of little Milan Ponjiger who survived a fall from the sixth floor, but whose parents did not, won the first prize singles in the Observed Portraits category.

The entire collection of winning images and honorable mentions from the 56th World Press Photo Contest can be seen at the World Press Photo website and are well worth a look.

Paul Nicklen’s photo series of Emperor Penguins demonstrating high swimming speed by releasing millions of bubbles from their feathers, won the first places stories in the Nature category.	Fausto Podavini’s photo of 71-year-old Mirella who devoted her life to her ailing husband as his caregiver, won first prize stories in the Daily Life category.

Comments

The photos are excellent even if the choice of subject may not be up to everyones taste (it does seem that pain and suffering is dominating this contest more than necessary).

But what staggers me a bit is the about of PP many of these photos have – takes them far from reality and actually diminishes the impact a less processed photo may have had.

Decay of western civilization. Why am I not surprised the photo used for propaganda purposes won the World Press Photo of the Year?

Photo of the year? Really? The predictably morbid themes and processed looks of many of the photos seem…trite….

What a bizarre contest. Highly stylized, morally obvious/predictable reportage.

I agree, Digitall, when war starts to look like art or hdr…

Almost makes me long for something shot on an iPhone [ducks for cover]

grattis Paul

Congratulations Paul Hansen and DN, a daily news paper here in Sweden who focuses on good documentary photos .First the Picture of the Year and now this World Press Photo.

If propaganda equals good documentary, then two Josephs (Stalin and Goebbels) should have been sharing the Picture of the Year awards every year.

Leni Riefenstahl

Art, documentary or propaganda?

Or a combination of all three?

Frank Capra?

(Both of them awarded)

Too much PP for photojournalism pictures?

That’s an interesting observation. Here in Sweden photojournalists tend to go further with their editing than what is common in the US and UK.

Yet again, award winning images of pain, suffering, dead children, death, blood… and penguins, among others. War makes money.

Wow, check out the DR on the Palestinian photo and the pixel sharpness on the cow race and emperor penguin photos. 😀

Well played, sir 🙂

Magnificent winners!

I’d love to see the RAW files 😉

Those are the shots that aren’t taken while everyone argues pixel sharpness and dynamic range.

Excellent photos full of emotion.