{"id":247156,"date":"2026-01-23T02:58:08","date_gmt":"2026-01-23T02:58:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/247156\/"},"modified":"2026-01-23T02:58:08","modified_gmt":"2026-01-23T02:58:08","slug":"award-winning-black-and-white-photos-celebrate-craftsmanship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/247156\/","title":{"rendered":"Award-Winning Black and White Photos Celebrate Craftsmanship"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"ADow\u2019s Black and White Photo Contest 2025 Winner | Photo by Lean Soong Hong <\/p>\n

Photography competitions arise in all sorts of places, including sometimes very unexpected ones. Portuguese wine maker Dow\u2019s recently announced the winners<\/a> of its 2025 Black and White Photography Competition that challenged photographers to capture people\u2019s dedication and patience, which Dow\u2019s says is a common thread that connects both black and white photography and winemaking. <\/p>\n

While the relationship between Dow\u2019s and black and white photography may at first seem a strange one, the trio of award-winning shots is not only exemplary examples of black and white photography, but very successfully showcases people working very hard at their craft. Photographers Lean Soong Hong, Marian Moneymaker Thieriot, and Carlos Alberto Santos Costa were very much up to the task. <\/p>\n

For their first-place image seen above, Malaysian photographer Lean Soong Hong won a new Leica D-Lux 8<\/a> camera and, of course, a bottle of port. In this case, the photographer won a magnum of Dow\u2019s 1994 Vintage Port. <\/p>\n

Hong described the photo as \u201cromance under the blade,\u201d noting it captures a tender moment in a Malaysian barbershop. <\/p>\n

\u201cLean\u2019s photo is special because it not only speaks to our theme of Craft & Tradition, but it turns the routine into something more. With a profound sense of calm, the photograph encourages us to ask questions: who are these people and what are their stories?\u201d remarks Charlotte Symington. <\/p>\n

Speaking of port, alongside the contest, Dow unveiled a new 2020 Late Bottled Vintage (LBV) Port, which the company calls a \u201ctimely release, embodying the very \u2018Craft and Tradition\u2019 celebrated by the [photo] competition.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ASecond-place Winner | Photo by Marian Moneymaker Thieriot <\/p>\n

American photographer Marian Moneymaker Thieriot finished in second place for her photo of an artisan in a traditional plaster workshop. The photographer said she was drawn to the scene due to its \u201cquiet continuity of a practice sustained by human touch.\u201d <\/p>\n

For her award, the photographer received a Leica Sofort 2 instant camera<\/a> and a bottle of Dow\u2019s 2003 Vintage Port. <\/p>\n

\"AThird-place Winner | Photo by Carlos Alberto Santos Costa <\/p>\n

Rounding out the top three is Portuguese photographer Carlos Alberto Santos Costa. Carlos\u2019 winning shot shows a potter in Tomar, Portugal, with very striking, dramatic light. The bronze winner received a bottle of port and a copy of the Leica\u2019s new \u201c100 Leica Stories\u201d book<\/a> released last year as part of the legendary photo company\u2019s centennial celebration. <\/p>\n

Image credits: Dow\u2019s Port. Individual photographers are credited in the captions. <\/p>\n