2025 Winners Gallery

2025 Open Photographer Of The Year

Alex Wides, Italy

Alex Wides (Alessandro Cantarelli) is an Italian fine-art landscape photographer known worldwide for his pioneering work in extreme panoramic landscapes. His journey began over a decade ago with the goal of showing the planet in its full 360° beauty. Through years of experimentation and fieldwork, he developed a unique panoramic technique capable of merging multiple perspectives into a single immersive vision.

Dedicated to crafting exclusive panoramic works that inspire and reveal the vastness of our world, Alex has led expeditions and phototours across deserts, mountains, glaciers, and remote coastlines. He is recognized as one of the leading innovators in 360° startrail panoramas, and after years of trials, he succeeded in creating a unique technique that now inspires thousands of photographers worldwide.

His photographs have been exhibited internationally, including a personal gallery at Xposure Photo Festival and at the Royal Greenwich Museum in London, and have received recognition at major awards such as the Siena Photography Awards, Memorial Maria Luisa Photo Festival, CVCE and Astronomy Photographer of the Year.

For Alex, extreme panoramic landscapes are a constant challenge with himself to push his limits, spend nights in tents in remote locations, and gift those who cannot travel a small journey with him, immersed in his virtual tours.

Instagram | Facebook

Jackpot, Norway (2024)

360° panorama captured in Northern Norway.

I first discovered this location about four years ago through a photo that completely captivated me… a suspended lake spilling into a valley, where an epic river carved a perfect serpent of water through the landscape. I told myself: one day, I have to photograph this place.

In 2022 I passed not far from it, but my work took the Lofoten Islands and I missed the chance, for two more years the dream remained on hold.

In the summer of 2024 I was finally close again, but the weather was brutal… ten straight days with no clear window to hike up.

After finishing my tours on Senja Island, I decided to try once more. The first attempt gave me only fog, grey skies, and disappointment. Still, I couldn’t give up. The next evening, I hiked back up with fresh supplies, hoping for a good weather window.

When I opened the tent… “Jackpot”.

The sky exploded in a spectacular half hour of Northern Lights. I captured the full 360° panorama using a Sony A7 IV with a fisheye lens at f/3.5, for 4 seconds, ISO 16000… This was a perfect reward after years of waiting. In that moment, everything came together: the place, the light, my satisfaction.

This is Norway… tough, unpredictable, but when it gives, it gives in style.

Mann, Italy (2022)

270° panorama captured in the Dolomites, Italy.

Like the planet from Interstellar, this scene felt otherworldly.

Shot on January 8, 2022, in my home mountains, the Dolomites, under a strong winter moonlight, it offered a very different view from the classic Milky Way nights. I took the Lagazuoi cable car up to one of my favorite places, surrounded by peaks, silence, and snow.

After a colorful sunset, I waited for the moon to rise. For years I’ve been fascinated by the way lunar light reveals every texture of the snow, every pattern shaped by the wind.

To bring this vision to life, I worked through the night at -15°C, using a Sony A6600 with a fisheye lens at 10mm, f/5.6, 10 seconds, ISO 1250, building a 270° panorama in the freezing wind.

There was no room at the refuge, so I descended alone in the dark, through snow and silence, guided only by the moonlight and my headlamp.

It was a tough night, but one of the most meaningful memories I keep from my mountains.

Wildebeest, Kenya

I’ve been to many places across Africa, but Kenya still remains one of my favourites. Although I’ve witnessed the wildebeest migration countless times, it never ceases to amaze me. Last year, I found myself back in Kenya once again. Photographing the migration is never easy — it demands lots of patience and of cos a touch of luck.

After several hours of waiting, we finally saw the wildebeests moving. It’s always a breathtaking moment to witness the crossing. As a photographer, you have to pace yourself, stay calm amid the chaos, and think carefully about how to frame the story unfolds before you. For this image, what caught my attention was a lone wildebeest turning back amidst the frenzy. In that instant, I knew that was the shot I wanted.

William Chua is a Fujifilm ambassador for over 10 years. He is based in Singapore and does predominantly weddings, portraits, travels and wildlife photography. His passion in travels and wildlife photography started over 20 years ago, and all these years, he has been constantly exploring new destinations in search of more unique pictures. Having led photography workshops globally, and given numerous talks on photography, he hopes to be able to help photo enthusiasts take their photography to the next level.

Instagram1   |   Instagram2   |   Facebook   |   Tiktok

“This year marks the second edition that Epson Southeast Asia has sponsored The Epson International Pano Awards, and we’re delighted to see strong participation from Southeast Asian photographers, including this year’s winner from Singapore,” said Siew Jin Kiat, Regional Managing Director, Epson Southeast Asia. “Their involvement reflects the creativity and growing influence of our region’s visual storytellers, and Epson Southeast Asia is proud to support this thriving community of creatives by championing the power of print to preserve artistry in its truest form.”

2025 Amateur Photographer Of The Year

Kevin Nyun, USA

My name is Kevin Nyun. I have been a hobbyist landscape photographer and an avid adventurer based in San Francisco, United States. I began my photography journey back in 2021 when a friend of mine sold me his Sony A6100 camera. Even before I owned a camera, I have always been inspired by nature and the moments that occurred within our environment such as the sea of fog in my local city, the burning skies during sunrises and sunsets, the alpine glow on top of the mountain peaks, or the Auroras dancing above the sky. Each of the surreal moments to me is like an escape from reality, and now I use photography to freeze time.

My Post Processing style is to have a natural feel but with a tad play with my imagination. I learned a lot from photographers like Daniel Kordan, Albert Dros, and Jose Riqueleme. As the years go on, I continue to develop my style.

Photography is also a great excuse to travel. From 2022 to present days, I have been traveling whenever I have time off of work both within the US and International. Sometimes I do feel I am late to the game where places I am barely exploring, other photographers have explored the area and the compositions have been shot gazillion times. Therefore, when I am on the field I do my best to find unique ways to portray my compositions, and now I am even researching places less traveled. At the end of the day my goal is always the same, chase where the conditions align and wherever the light shines.

Instagram  |  Youtube  |   kevinnyunphoto.com

Frozen, USA

This image was shot during New Years Eve of 2024 on my first ever snowshoeing trip. I invited a photographer friend of mine to a spontaneous trip to the PNW in search of trees covered in snow just like Finland. We had just bought our snowshoes literally the night before, and because it was my first time snow shoeing, the hike was quite difficult and we were extremely slow. We started off our hike at 3 AM praying we would reach the summit by blue hour, and the temperature was at 8°F that morning. As the light reached the horizon, the scenery was breathtaking. We were surrounded not only by the frozen trees but also by the Cascade Volcanic range of the Pacific Northwest. The burning sky and alpine glow was about to happen. Right when I was about to shoot, I faced another difficulty; my drone was completely frozen and I could not properly use any of my primary functions. The cold was rushing through my fingers, so I did my best and managed to shoot a row of panos just as the glow reached the peak. This was a horizontal panorama shot in 6 single exposure images stitched with Lightroom and processed through Lightroom and Photoshop. A morning, I will never forget!

Remnants, Bolivia

This image was shot in the Bolivia Highland. We were already driving back to Uyuni this morning, and our tour guide wanted a cinematic video of our cars driving down what used to be a super volcano in the past. The guide volunteered me to use my drone. While I was shooting the video I was able to scout out these amazing remnants of the volcanoes. The red desert of the Altiplano is like a painting even during midday lighting. As soon as we were done with the video shots, I requested the drivers to wait for me so I could fly back to the volcano to capture this panorama. The dappled light piercing through the midday clouds was a great compliment to the composition. The total number of images in this composition is 21 images single exposure stitched in Lightroom and processed through Lightroom and Photoshop.

Hverarönd Aurora, Hverarönd geothermal area, Iceland

This panorama was taken on a freezing March night in the high-temperature region of Hverarönd in northern Iceland. It was an awe-inspiring experience to stand alone in this surreal lunar landscape, surrounded by the hissing and sulphurous scent of the solfataras and fumaroles, as the delicate green of a single aurora arc transformed into a powerful substorm within minutes, and the Northern Lights danced above and around me in intense colors.

To achieve the highest possible image quality despite the wide aperture, I photographed a relatively tight pattern with large overlaps (2×6+N+Z) with a 15mm fisheye lens. It was important to be quick to minimize stitching errors between the individual images. On the one hand, the aurora borealis was noticeably moving, and on the other, the vapor columns of the solfataras were constantly rotating due to the constantly changing wind direction. Despite the somewhat challenging conditions, I was able to capture several 360° images during this overwhelming light show. An experience of a lifetime!

I’m a freelance video editor and panoramic photographer from Germany. I’ve been running a small business for around 15 years, creating interactive 360° and VR projects for a wide variety of clients. However, I’ve been involved with panoramic photography for much longer – it’s become more than just a job, it’s my passion. Outside of my commissioned work, I regularly realize my own 360° landscape projects.

Besides my home mountains, the sandstone cliffs of Saxon Switzerland, I’m particularly fascinated by Iceland and its spectacular natural scenery. That’s why I’ve been regularly traveling to the island in winter for several years to capture the Northern Lights in 360°. Hardly any other form of photography captures the magic of the Aurora Borealis so impressively – when the colorful curtains of light descend from the zenith and fill the sky in all directions, it creates an immersive experience that you can literally feel.

Facebook1  |  Facebook2  |  Blog  |  360-grad-sachsen.de

In this coastal village of Vietnam, survival is woven in silence. These women, working in morning shade and salt-laden air, are the unseen guardians of sustenance. The nets they mend are not mere tools, but lifelines binding sea and community together.

Their anonymity turns them from individuals into archetypes — the enduring backbone of a tradition that predates memory. What the ocean tears apart, they restore, ensuring that each tide can return with promise. They do not face the waves, yet the sea depends on their hands.

Instagram  |  danielvgphoto.com

The Epson Digital Art Prize is decided by the executive team at Epson Australia from the top 50 entries in the Open competition. The entries must show excellence in digital post processing as well as exceptional photographic technique

Epson Australia MD, Craig Heckenberg, said,

The Pano Awards entries are always exceptional and this year the creativity has truly been taken to the next level. It’s great to see so many more wide and ultra-wide panoramic shots this year, a format close to our hearts, as they are able to be truly and properly represented by Epson wide-format photo printers. The Pano awards entrants are an inspiration for all photographers of all skill levels. At Epson we pride ourselves on embodying innovation and creativity, hence why we continue to support and sponsor these unique awards.

Elysium, USA

During the late summer months of August the high alpine areas of Mount Rainier in Washington come alive with wildflowers. Starting at the lower elevations and then working into bloom at higher elevations as the days go on. This particular year I had quite a bit of time to explore this park and made three or four hikes on separate occasions up to this location with my main purpose to photograph a tarn that had a perfect reflection of this glorious mountain. And each time that I did that hike, this field of lupine just kept getting better and better. On my final trek up there for the season with a very good friend of mine, we were all alone breathing in the fresh mountain air and listening to the birds watching this scene of a perfect meadow and mountain unfold before our eyes. As some storm clouds started blowing out to the east I knew that there would be a gap on the horizon and purposefully waited until the very last rays of the sun gave the field of flowers that beautiful side and back light for the depth that I wanted in the image. Just a minute after pressing the shutter the light and drama was gone.

Instagram  |  Facebook  |  chrisbyrnephotography.com

Cathedral of Shadows, Utah 

The day I captured this image, the desert felt endless. During our journey through the American Southwest, one place had always fascinated me—Factory Butte, an isolated monolith surrounded by a labyrinth of badlands. I launched my drone into the still evening air, exploring the textures and lines carved by centuries of erosion. Then, just as the sun dipped low, the summit cast its immense shadow across the land. I realized I was witnessing a fleeting alignment of light and form, so I captured a full 360° panorama—revealing the sun blazing on one side, the vast shadow stretching on the other, and the raw, timeless silence of Utah in between.

Instagram  |  danielvgphoto.com