The Epson International Pano Awards is an extraordinarily spectacular showcase for the world's best photographic panoramas. With entries from over 70 countries, this year's winning images serve up a sublime array of striking shots affirming the vivid immersive capacity of panoramic photography.
Unlike many other photographic competitions, the Pano Awards are relatively simple in scope, with just two main categories: Nature/Landscape and Built Environment/Architecture. Entries are submitted in either the Amateur competition or the Open Competition, and the only major stipulation is they must be presented in at least a 2:1 or 1:2 aspect ratio.
The overall Open competition winner this year was Bulgarian photographer Veselin Atanasov, with one specifically highlighted image featuring a gorgeous sunrise in Tuscany, Italy. Nathaniel Merz, based in South Korea, took the top prize in the Amateur competition with a series of amazingly composed tree-focused vistas.
While the competition allows for a small degree of post-manipulation in general entries, there are two extra awards specifically geared towards celebrating both digital post-processing, and untouched images composed in-camera. The Carolyn Mitchum Award homes in on images that are mostly created in camera, and this year's award went to an astounding shot from Australian photographer Anastasia Woolmington featuring the Wedded Rocks in Japan.
The Epson Digital Art Prize sits at the other end of the spectrum, with no limitations on the level of retouching, this award focuses on digital post-processing skills. Colin Sillerud, from the United States, snagged the top prize here with a truly surreal shot of lightning blasting down over the Grand Canyon.
Take a look through our gallery for more stunning shots from the 2018 Pano Awards.
Source: Pano Awards