All 33 finalists from this year's Sony Alpha Awards photo competition
Sports category finalist: Horse Racing
A general view during race 4 The Macca's Run during Melbourne Cup Day, at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Tuesday, November 5, 2019. Category: Sports Camera: Alpha 9 II Lens: FE 70-200mm F2.8 GM OSS Focal length: 100mm Shutter speed: 1/8s Aperture: ƒ/29 ISO: 50
Scott Barbour
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1/33
Astro division finalist: Milky Way over the Wanaka Tree
When I arrived at this location near midnight, I was the only one there. It was quite a contrast compared to the normal flow of photographers during the day. I stacked together 15 images, each one being a 4 second exposure. Camera: Alpha 7R III Lens: FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Focal length: 16mm Shutter speed: 4s Aperture: ƒ/4 ISO: 12800
Douglas Thorne
2/33
Astro division finalist: Moonrise at Catherine Hill Bay
Catherine Hill Bay, NSW, Australia Camera: Alpha 7R III Lens: FE 12-24mm Ultra Wide-Angle Zoom Focal length: 12mm Shutter speed: 20s Aperture: ƒ/4 ISO: 1250
Tony Law
3/33
Astro category finalist: Mt. Taranaki Eruption
The milky way rises behind Mt Taranaki on a freezing May evening. The first photo I took after being in lockdown or restricted locally for over two months. Nothing like this display of nature to realize how lucky we are. 8 photos stacked. Camera: Alpha 7R III Lens: FE 24mm F1.4 G-Master Focal length: 24mm Shutter speed: 10s Aperture: ƒ/1.8 ISO: 6400
Laurie Winter
4/33
Seascape category finalist: Backwash
For this image I was fascinated by the current and power shown in the back of a wave and wanted to capture the force and spray of water droplets as a wave crashes towards land. I love the composition and colors in this image and it shows the power of the ocean just before it meets land. Category: Seascape Camera: Alpha 7 III Lens: FE 28-70mm F3.5-5.6 OSS Focal length: 28mm Shutter speed: 1/2500s Aperture: ƒ/3.5 ISO: 640
Oscar Hetherington
5/33
Seascape category finalist: Golden Twist
"Golden Twist" was captured just as the sun rose over the horizon, lighting up the lip as the wave spilled over. Category: Seascape Camera: Alpha 7 III Lens: FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS Focal length: 200mm Shutter speed: 1/1000s Aperture: ƒ/4 ISO: 160
Karl Dalyell
6/33
Seascape category finalist: Iceberg Serrations
Captured in East Greenland - depicts part of a large iceberg, a small floating piece of ice and its reflection. Category: Seascape Camera: Alpha 6500 Lens: Sony FE 24-105 f4 G Focal length: 105mm Shutter speed: 1/400s Aperture: ƒ/7.1 ISO: 500
Rob Weir Photography
7/33
Compact category finalist: KL Close Living
Apartment building in KL with a textured facade. Camera: RX10 Focal length: 44mm Shutter speed: 1/800s Aperture: ƒ/4 ISO: 100
Paul Regel
8/33
Compact category finalists: On The Street Vienna
Street scene in Vienna taken just before the dog breaks free and causing havoc. Camera: RX100 M3 Lens: Vario-Sonnar T* f1.8 Focal length: 8mm Shutter speed: 1/320s Aperture: ƒ/5.6 ISO: 125
Gary White
9/33
Compact category finalist: Red Crested Cardinal
The Waimea Falls made a beautifully neutral backdrop to the stunning color of this bird Camera: RX10 M4 Focal length: 163mm Shutter speed: 1/250s Aperture: ƒ/4 ISO: 100
David Miller
10/33
Creative category Finalist: Love Is A Journey
They traveled all the way from America to elope in New Zealand. Just before they said their vows, I was feeling inspired and humbled by their love story and wanted to create a photo as a gift to thank them for choosing us to photograph a part of their journey in love. Camera: Alpha 7 III Lens: FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS Focal length: 70mm Shutter speed: 1/1000s Aperture: ƒ/4 ISO: 400
Sirjana Singh
11/33
Creative category Finalist: The Arrival
Sydney skyline from Kurraba Point. Camera: a7R II Lens: FE 70-300mm F4.5-5.6 G Focal length: 194mm Shutter speed: 1s Aperture: ƒ/11 ISO: 200
Grant Galbraith
12/33
Creative category Finalist: Disposed
Documentation of illegal rubbish dumping in a forest area of Tasmania. The viewer is made to feel - as I was - that viewing the forest without seeing all the rubbish was near impossible. Camera: Alpha 7R III Lens: FE 24-105mm F4 G Focal length: 70mm Shutter speed: 1/400s Aperture: ƒ/5.6 ISO: 200
Matt Palmer
13/33
Sports category finalist: Sunrise Bokeh Barrel
A warm water, early morning, backlit bokeh barrel, shooting fast moving subjects with such a shallow depth of field is not easy, the A7III tracked focus like a boss! Category: Sports Camera: Alpha 7 III Lens: FE 85mm F1.8 Lens Focal length: 85mm Shutter speed: 1/2500s Aperture: ƒ/4.5 ISO: 100
Ryan Williams @ryzphoto
14/33
Sports category finalist: Fire on the Horizon
A group of skydivers at sunset lit with the sun behind them Camera: a7R III with 35mm full-frame image sensor Lens: Sonnar T* Full Frame E-Mount FE 35mm F2.8 ZA Lens Focal length: 35mm Shutter speed: 1/500s Aperture: ƒ/9 ISO: 500
Kian Bullock
15/33
Sports category finalist: Horse Racing
A general view during race 4 The Macca's Run during Melbourne Cup Day, at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Tuesday, November 5, 2019. Category: Sports Camera: Alpha 9 II Lens: FE 70-200mm F2.8 GM OSS Focal length: 100mm Shutter speed: 1/8s Aperture: ƒ/29 ISO: 50
Scott Barbour
16/33
Editorial category finalist: Mahboula
Backstreets of Mahboula, where the migrant's workforce of Kuwait spends their free time. Category: Editorial Camera: Alpha 6000 Lens: PZ 16-50mm F3.5-5.6 OSS Focal length: 18mm Shutter speed: 1/3000s Aperture: ƒ/8 ISO: 1600
Jomel Bartolome
17/33
Editorial category finalist: Timid
This portrait is part of the series: From here to Africa - The Maasai People. Category: Editorial Camera: Alpha 7R III Lens: FE 24-105mm F4 G Focal length: 77mm Shutter speed: 1/160s Aperture: ƒ/4 ISO: 1600
Ilan Wittenberg
18/33
Editorial category finalist: Joyful Mayhem
Image captured during Samaj Holi Festival in Nandgaon, India March 5th 2020. Camera: Alpha 7R III Lens: FE 70-200mm F2.8 GM OSS Focal length: 200mm Shutter speed: 200s Aperture: ƒ/6.7 ISO: 320
Frank Romano
19/33
City Street category finalist: Street Party Before Sydney Mardi Gras
Camera: Alpha 7S Lens: FE 35mm F2.8 ZA Focal length: 35mm Shutter speed: 1/320s Aperture: ƒ/8 ISO: 6400
Stephen Godfrey
20/33
City Street category finalist: Meditation
On the streets of Tiruvannamalai, India, a market worker takes a break, as does his hardworking cow. Camera: Alpha 7R III Lens: FE 35mm F2.8 ZA Focal length: 35mm Shutter speed: 1/400s Aperture: ƒ/5.6 ISO: 800
David Symonds
21/33
City Street category finalist: The Dog and The Lady
Sometimes, I imagine myself as a dog looking at the world from a lower angle. It is very different. It gives me a feeling of observing the world from a third person’s point of view. Shot in Jaipur India. Camera: Alpha 7R II Lens: FE 24-105mm F4 G Focal length: 30mm Shutter speed: 1/125s Aperture: ƒ/8 ISO: 500
Alex Shang
22/33
Landscape category finalist: Golden Glow - Annapurna South, Nepal
Arriving at our final sunrise location we were disappointed to find morning fog had cut visibility to zero. As we were starting to joke about the anti-climatic end to our incredible 18 day journey, the clouds lifted allowing the gorgeous golden morning light through beaming onto Annapurna South. Camera: Alpha 7R III Lens: FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS Lens Focal length: 74mm Shutter speed: 1/80s Aperture: ƒ/9 ISO: 100
Jesse Little
23/33
Landscape category finalist: Deserted
Sossusvlei, Namibia Camera: Sony A7III Lens: Sony SEL2470GM Focal length: 70mm Shutter speed: 1/1000s Aperture: ƒ/10 ISO: 200
Alan Coligado
24/33
Landscape category finalist: Enchanted Forest
Light streams through moss clad Beech forest atop the Tararuas. Category: Landscape Camera: Alpha 7R III Lens: FE 16-35mm F4 ZA OSS Focal length: 35mm Shutter speed: 2s Aperture: ƒ/11 ISO: 100
Michael McGee
25/33
Nature category finalist: Into The Light
A large female manta ray performs a feeding maneuver known as "barrel rolling" on the Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia. These large rays are known to congregate on the Ningaloo due to the vast quantities of plankton brought up from deep water upwellings offshore. Camera: a6500 Premium Digital E-Mount Camera with APS-C Sensor Lens: E-Mount 20mm F2.8 Lens Focal length: 16mm Shutter speed: 1/1000s Aperture: ƒ/8 ISO: 800
Lewis Burnett
26/33
Nature category finalist: If You Run, You Will Die
We were on foot, on Safari with the legendary Stretch Ferreira when we saw the lion in the distance. "If we go on, he will charge" cautioned Stretch. "Promise me you won't run, because if you, you will die!" The lion was very angry, this was the first of 5 times that we were charged. Category: Nature Camera: a9 featuring full-frame stacked CMOS sensor Lens: FE 100-400 f/4.5-5.6 GM Focal length: 400mm Shutter speed: 1/2000s Aperture: ƒ/7.1 ISO: 320
Syd Reinhardt
27/33
Nature category finalist: A Red Billed Gull Taking a Bath
This young red billed gull was having a tremendous time bathing and throwing water all over the place. Thanks to enough light for a high shutter speed I was able to freeze the water so it's head was visible through the halo of water. Camera: Alpha 9 Lens: FE 600mm F4 G-Master Lens Focal length: 600mm Shutter speed: 1/5000s Aperture: ƒ/4 ISO: 640
Simon Runting
28/33
Portrait category finalist: Pelican Keeper
Photo taken at The entrances NSW, Australia Category: Portrait Camera: Alpha 7R III Lens: FE 12-24mm Ultra Wide-Angle Zoom Focal length: 23mm Shutter speed: 1/250s Aperture: ƒ/13 ISO: 200
Tony Law
29/33
Portrait category finalist: Split Scene
I had never tried shooting split shots with the 85mm lens, I always just assumed it would be way too hard to hit focus while bobbing around on the surface with the water line constantly moving up and down through the middle of the frame, persistence paid off with this one. This is a single shot. Category: Portrait Camera: Alpha 7 III Lens: FE 85mm F1.8 Focal length: 85mm Shutter speed: 1/800s Aperture: ƒ/3.2 ISO: 100
Ryan Williams
30/33
Portrait category finalist: Acheng
I first saw Acheng walking towards me in Rundle Mall, Adelaide. She was tall and beautiful. I spoke to her, and without hesitation, she agreed to pose for me, then and there. Category: Portrait Camera: Alpha 7R II Lens: FE 55m F1.8 ZA Focal length: 55mm Shutter speed: 1/40s Aperture: ƒ/3.5 ISO: 100
Judi Thies
31/33
Wedding category finalist: Walking on Water
Single flash behind groom and decided to have the bride take a small step forward so we could use her as a big reflector to get some light on the groom's face. Tonnes of shots and almost losing the camera, we finally got this. Camera: Alpha 7R III Focal length: 85mm Shutter speed: 1/200s Aperture: ƒ/1.4 ISO: 2000
Wenyuan Kuang
32/33
Wedding category finalist: Whispers
The bride and groom take a moment to be with each other among a crowded room of guests. Whilst moments like these only last a few seconds, what was whispered will be remembered forever. Camera: Alpha 7 III Lens: FE 24mm F1.4 G-Master Focal length: 24mm Shutter speed: 1/400s Aperture: ƒ/1.4 ISO: 250
Alex Olguin
33/33
Wedding category finalist: Wild Love
Brian and Joyce traveled out from the USA to elope together in NZ. We spent 2 amazing days with them celebrating and capturing their love throughout the South Island. We were all getting soaked for this shot. I stopped it down to bring the water droplets into focus so they would always remember it! Camera: Alpha 7 III Lens: FE 16-35mm F4 ZA OSS Focal length: 16mm Shutter speed: 1/400s Aperture: ƒ/10 ISO: 2500
The 2020 Sony Alpha Awards photo contest has announced 33 final images from this year's thousands of entries across 11 different categories, from astrophotography to weddings, creative to editorial, with every image taken on a Sony camera.
After speaking with Alpha Awards judge Robin Moon a few weeks ago, it's interesting to see the photos that have come to the fore in this year's competition, duking it out for some AU$30,000 (US$20,600) worth of camera gear. This is a contest exclusive to Australian and New Zealand-based shooters. Here are a few we particularly enjoyed.
Click through on any of these images to check out the rest in our full gallery. Winners will be announced soon.
Loz leads the New Atlas team as Editorial Director, after nearly two decades as one of our most versatile writers. He's also proven himself as a photographer, videographer, presenter, producer and podcast engineer. A graduate in Psychology, former business analyst and touring musician, he's covered just about everything for New Atlas, concentrating lately on clean energy, AI, humanoid robotics, next-gen aircraft, and the odd bit of music, motorcycles and automotive.