Breathtaking photos: the best works of Sony World Photography Awards 2019

The Sony World Photography Awards jury has already announced a shortlist of finalists in two categories - "Open Competition" and "Youth Competition". The contenders for the victory in the "Professional" and "Student" nominations will be announced on March 26. This year, more than 326,000 applications from photographers from all over the world took part in the competition — this is the highest figure in history. The award ceremony will be held on April 17.

Here are some works of the finalists of the Open Competition.

Penguin chicks. Nadia Ali (USA), category "Wildlife", Open competition According to the photographer, the picture was taken on an "incredibly cold, snowy and windy day" in the Snow Hill area in Antarctica.

"These little chicks were patiently waiting for their parents to return with food. They hid behind an ice floe to hide from the cold wind," she says.

The circle of eagle power. Sandy Little (Canada), Wildlife category, Open Contest Sandy Little said that she attended the feeding of eagles in Sheffield Mills (Nova Scotia), along with dozens of other photographers.

That's when she took this amazing photo.

The red River of faith. Lifeng Chen (China), category "Culture", Open contestant Lifeng Chen from China photographed a procession of thousands of Buddhists walking down a hill in Sichuan during a divine service.

Fog in the Alps. Kuo Zey Yang (Taiwan), An outdoor competitor, Kuo Zey Yang captured the fog hanging over the peaks of Tre Cime di Lavaredo in the Italian Alps at night.

A tent under the stars. Lauren Hook (Australia), An open competitor Lauren Hook from Australia photographed a large tent set up under the starry sky on the banks of the Colo River in New South Wales.

Train at the Tongi station. Ahlas Uddin (Bangladesh), category "Street Photography", An open competition photographer took a picture of a crowded train entering the railway station of Tonga (Bangladesh), and said that this image was taken during a Muslim gathering, when about a million believers gathered.

Portrait of a grey seal. Greg Lecker (France), category "Wildlife", Open contest Greg Lecker made this close-up portrait on the archipelago of Farne Island off the coast of Northumberland (England).

He says that the seal population has seriously declined due to pollution and poaching, despite the protective measures taken.

The protest of the "yellow vests" in Paris. Arnaud Guillard (France), category "Street Photography", An open contestant Guillard took this picture during the protests of the "yellow vests" in Paris on the Champs-Elysees.

He said that when he got closer to the fire, he saw this man dressed in a "surreal outfit" that struck him.

Balloons over Cappadocia. Poramin Kaniakul (Thailand), category "Travel", An open competition photographer traveled to Turkey and could not help but make this frame of fantastic beauty.

Balloons on the background of the morning sun are what Cappadocia is famous for.

Collecting honey from wild bees in the Himalayas. Dikpal Thapa (Nepal), category "Culture", An open competition Dikpal Thapa decided to show how locals in Nepal collect honey from wild Himalayan bees.

They use fire to smoke out insects. Honey is collected twice a year.

Mount Bromo. Roslan Nazir (Malaysia), Landscape category, Open competition In this picture you can see Mount Bromo on the island of East Java, Indonesia.

Roslan Nasir said that she took this shot at 4 o'clock in the morning, when the sun rose.

Spring Festival "Noruz". Alimohammad Karami (Iran), category "Culture", The open competition Traditional Iranian spring holiday Noruz is considered the beginning of the new year and is celebrated at the end of March.

In this photo we can see how people are going to celebrate.

The Kölnbrain Dam. Dean Grossmith (UK), Architecture category, an open contest to take this impressive black-and-white picture, British photographer Dean Grossmith went to the Kölnbrain Dam in Austria.

He says that the structure was designed back in the 30s, but was built only in the 70s. This is the highest dam in Austria — 200 meters high.

Harmony of Tokyo. Chun Kit Kevin So (Great Britain), Landscape category, Open Competition photographer says he wanted to show the "unique harmony" of Tokyo and the "coexistence of the city and nature."

He took this picture in Chidorigafuchi during the cherry blossom season.

Football in the fog. Denis Borisov (Ukraine), category "Street Photography", Open contest Ukrainian photographer Denis Borisov says that he always tries to carry a camera with him to catch interesting moments.

After all, they can meet literally at every step — as he met this football match in a thick fog on the way to work.

Underwater feast. Tracey Land (Great Britain), Wildlife category, Open Competition British photographer Tracey Land took this picture of boobies during a trip to the most remote headlands of Shetland.

She described the meeting as an "incredible experience" that she "will never forget."

Owl. Jeroen Bikelaar (Netherlands), An open contest Just a lonely owl sitting on a lantern.

Scale. Daniel Porch (Great Britain), An open competitor Daniel Porch photographed a scooter driver near the Zaha Hadid-designed Aquatics Center in London to give the building a sense of scale.

Milking a goat. Georgios Papapostolou (Greece), category "Culture", Open competition in the picture — father and son milking a goat.

According to the photographer, on the small island of Astypalea in the southern part of the Aegean Sea, "they are still being milked in the same way as they were milked centuries ago."

City hike. Zhou Dainan (China), Street Photography category, Open competition Chinese photographer Zhou Dainan took this family photo in Guangzhou city.

Police training. Qin Fan (China), category "Movement", Open Contest Qin Fan from China photographed a special police brigade in Hunan Province taking part in "extreme physical training".