The Canarian Photo Awards is new photography competition, ostensibly founded to promote the magestic natural landscapes of the Canary Islands, the winning images also span the entire globe, delivering an epic assortment of spectacular shots.
The contest spans a straightforward five categories, focusing on Drone, Landscapes, Wildlife and Night Photography. Only the fifth category, "Canary World", requires images to have been taken in the Canary Islands.
This year's overall grand prize went to Santiago Leonardo Rodriguez, for a truly extraordinary shot of a volcano eruption generating its own burst of lightning. Titled 'La Hoz y el Martillo' (The Hammer and the Sickle), the photo won Rodriguez a €4,000 prize (US$4,300).
For a small, new photo contest the celebrated images are all incredible. With decent prize money attached the contest attracted impressively stunning entries, from a gorgeous Landcsape-winning shot from Luka Vunduk to some remarkable wildlife imagery.
Perhaps the most novel category in the contest focuses on imagery specifically from the Canary Islands. Here the contest delivers another collection of photographs that could match the best from any other photo competition. Wilmer Valdez Hinojosa's Gold-Medal-winning image of a burst of lava offers a fantastically unique volcanic perspective, while other honorable mentions highlight the truly magnificent sights of the islands.
Take a look through our gallery at more shots from this strong photography contest.
Source: Canarian Photo Awards