Split image: On the left, a child in a Superman costume stands indoors with arms raised, smiling. On the right, a cracked egg with a dark beak emerging lies among gray rocks.

Nikon has unveiled the winners of the Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025, one of the world’s largest photo and film competitions. The theme for this edition of the prestigious competition is “Inspire.”

Nikon has held the photo-centric competition for more than 50 years, and last year welcomed filmmakers into the fold. This year’s winners include Grand Prizes for Single Photo and Photo Story categories, and two winners in the Short Film competition for Super-Short Film and 5-minute Film categories.

Alongside the overall winners, the Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025 competition also features five special award winners for each of the two photo categories, Single Photo and Photo Story. It is the same story on the filmmaking side of the competition. Nikon says it received submissions from 180 countries and regions worldwide for the 2024-2025 competition.

“Being involved with the contest as Lead Judge again on this panel of judges was an invaluable experience,” comments Lead Judge Sarah Leen. “I was particularly impressed by how much stronger each individual entry was this year compared to the previous contest. The ‘Inspire’ theme encouraged a wide range of entries, and the diverse creativity expressed was impressive. We received many fascinating works, including beautiful landscapes and portraits, that clearly reflected this theme.”

Grand Prize Winner — Single Photo Category: Tiina Itkonen

Finnish photographer Tiina Itkonen won the overall prize in the Single Photo category for the photo, “Jonas,” seen below.

A young child wearing a Superman costume and red glasses stands indoors with arms raised in triumph. The room has boots, a toy truck, a wood stove, and a colorful towel hanging in the background.“Jonas” by Tiina Itkonen — Grand Prize Winner, Single Photo Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025

“I photographed Jonas, an Inughuit boy, in Savissivik in North West Greenland. Savissivik is one of the most remote settlements in Greenland, over thousand kilometers north of the Arctic Circle. This far north the polar night lasts four months and midnight sun shines for four months as well,” the photographer explains.

Itkonen first traveled to Greenland 30 years ago and has since returned regularly to “photograph the polar landscape and its people.”

“When visiting Savissivik I wanted to take time to get to know people. I spent 95 percent of my time socialising with the people and only 5 percent taking photographs. I am grateful for the hospitality of these people. I have been allowed to take part in their everyday life and always feel very much at home in this place,” Itkonen remarks.

Grand Prize Winner — Photo Story Category: Lei Yang

Chinese photographer Lei Yang’s award-winning photo series, “Farewell-able,” explores Yang’s experiences saying “farewell” to their hometown.

A partially cracked white egg lies among white and gray rocks, revealing a dark, glossy interior within the broken shell.Photo from the series “Farewell-able” by Lei Yang — Grand Prize Winner, Photo Story Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025 A group of people sit around a dining table in a warmly lit room with ornate chairs, sharing a meal. A chandelier hangs above, and a landscape painting decorates the wall behind them.Photo from the series “Farewell-able” by Lei Yang — Grand Prize Winner, Photo Story Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025 A round wooden stool with seven small white ceramic vases arranged on top, casting shadows on the stool and concrete floor in bright sunlight.Photo from the series “Farewell-able” by Lei Yang — Grand Prize Winner, Photo Story Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025

“This series was made before I came to Japan. At that time, I parted with people, places, and versions of myself. I realized that some separations are simple, while others are filled with sorrow — those are ‘farewells.’ Farewell-able explores the emotional scale of goodbye through what I found hardest to release,” Yang explains.

“I’m deeply grateful to Nikon for selecting this work. It has allowed a personal farewell to be seen by more people,” the photographer concludes.

Grand Prize Winner — Short Film Competition Super-short Film Category: Hamed Nobari

In the Super-short Film Category, Iranian filmmaker Hamed Nobari’s video “The Small Red, Big Blue,” took top honors.

The 40-second video shows a tiny fish inside a small water puddle on the beach while a child digs a water faucet shape into the sand, leading back to the ocean.

Grand Prize Winner — Short Film Competition 5-Minute Film Category: Ademola Falomo

Ademola Falomo of Nigeria created the winning video, “Finding Serenity,” after being inspired by musician Yamika’s poem during the COVID lockdowns. Feeling inspired, Falomo teamed up with friends to bring the poem to life through video, “exploring peace in chaos and beauty in uncertainty.”

“I am deeply grateful for the acknowledgment of this small dream that has grown into something seen around the world. Created in Lagos, Nigeria, during troubling and uncertain times, this film is a celebration for me, a testament to turning a poem into a visual artifact. What once lived only in my mind now lives on screen, and that is a gift I will always cherish,” the filmmaker says of the victory.

Other Award-Winning Photos A person in traditional attire is jumping through a large ring of fire at night, with flames dramatically illuminating the scene against a dark background.“I Am Unstoppable!” by Liew Hong Hooi — General Public Award Winner, Single Photo Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025 Three children play outdoors in front of a high brick wall at sunset, with shadows falling across the ground. One child flies a red kite, while the others walk and stand nearby. The scene is warm and peaceful.“Kite Festival” by Andre Ferreira — Excellence Award Winner, Single Photo Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025 A person dressed in black walks through a snowy landscape with frost-covered trees under a pale blue sky, creating a serene winter scene.“Hunter” by Farshid Ahmadpour — Excellence Award Winner, Single Photo Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025 Two people in suits, one seated and one standing, pose in shallow water during sunset. The background features calm water, distant trees, and a warm pink-orange sky. A small object or bird flies overhead.“We See Angels” by Emmanuel Lucky — Special Encouragement Award Winner, Single Photo Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025 Empty green train seats beside a large window, with a full moon and pink clouds visible over a hazy landscape at dusk outside.“Evening Passenger” by Stelios Tsagris — Special Encouragement Award Winner, Single Photo Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025 Four people, including two children, sit around a low table crafting or eating in a dim, arched room with decorative windows. Another woman stands by a stove, cooking. Posters cover the walls, and light enters from above.“Mom’s Scent” by Xianhui Fang — Special Encouragement Award Winner, Single Photo Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025
A person pours fresh milk from a large metal can into a white bucket, with a wooden tool resting nearby, in a dimly lit setting.Selected photo from “Nel mio sangue (In my blood)” series by Nils Böddingmeier — Excellence Award Winner, Photo Story Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025 A nurse in scrubs and a mask supports a woman in labor lying on a hospital bed. Warm light shines through a striped privacy curtain, casting soft shadows in the delivery room.Selected photo from “The Stage of Life” series by Yi Liu — Excellence Award Winner, Photo Story Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025 A large, ornate, multi-story floating building resembling a historic hotel sits on calm, foggy water with faint structures visible in the misty background.Selected photo from “Return From a Journey” series by Ximeng Tu — Special Encouragement Award Winner, Photo Story Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025 A woman stands holding a baby inside a room, viewed through an arched opening. Yellow water containers and blue plastic chairs are against the wall behind her. The setting appears modest and simple.Selected photo from “Maasai Children of Malanja” series by Kang-Chun Cheng — Special Encouragement Award Winner, Photo Story Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025 Left: An elderly woman stands in shallow ocean water, gazing at the horizon. Right: Two elderly people sit side by side on a bench near a beach hut, looking out at the sea.Two selected photos from “American Dreaming” series by Jacek Gąsiorowski — Special Encouragement Award Winner, Photo Story Category | Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025 More From the Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025

The rest of the Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025 winners are available on Nikon’s website. The award-winning entries will also be on exhibit in Japan until October 27 as part of the T3 Photo Festival Tokyo 2025 at Tokyo Square Garden. The winning works will also be shown at Nikon facilities in Kyobashi, Tokyo, and in other cities around the world.


Image credits: Nikon Film and Photo Contest 2024-2025. All winning photographers are credited in the image captions.