Congratulations to the winners of the first annual Open Americas photography contest! We received high-quality submissions from across the hemisphere, making it difficult to select winners.
Images were judged for their ability to capture the richness of the diverse landscapes and environments of the Americas. The beautiful photos below were taken in Mexico, Brazil, the U.S., Colombia, and the Dominican Republic.
First Place
Nathaniel Morris‘s photo of a Ranchero musician playing the double bass in the Cora indigenous community of Santa Teresa Munic. del Nayar, Nayarit, captured our attention with its sense of motion and soft lighting.
The photo, taken in 2016, communicates the musician’s passion for his craft and transports the viewer to a different location.
Second Place
This photo, taken by Gabrielle Rocha Rios in Orla do Pôr do Sol in Aracaju, Sergipe, Brazil, in 2013, is simple in its composition and has a calming effect. The modern and the traditional are juxtaposed beside one another in the image. “I was captured by the contrast of the old and new boats,” said Rocha Rios.
Third Place
Eduardo Perme took this achingly beautiful photo of a Houston, Texas sunset in 2016. “It had just rained in some parts of Houston, but the location had just finished a huge downpour about 20 minutes earlier. I managed to get up on the roof of the garage and captivate the beautiful rainbow sunset tones rising on the building and amazing pink tones of the sky sunset receding behind me,” he says.
Honorable Mentions
This photo of a rural landscape in Toca, Boyacá, Colombia, was captured by Camilo Andrés Avila Manjarres and is titled “Reflection of our land.”
“I work as a graphic designer and photographer. …I decided to participate in this contest because through it, I can capture… the beautiful environment that exists in my country. I enjoy every moment I live and I think that in one way or another I capture something of my personality [in my photography],” said Manjarres.
Edelio Aviles received an honorable mention for the serene image above, taken in his native Dominican Republic.
The photo above, taken by Gabrielle Rocha Rios at the Ricardo Brennand Institute in Recife, Pernambuco, stunned us with its shadowy simplicity.
“This trip was my first time back in my home state of Pernambuco after moving to the United States in 2010. After taking this picture, I noticed how well it symbolizes the state – the hymn of Pernambuco talks about it being ‘the land of tall palm trees,'” said Rocha Rios.
Thank you to all who entered the photo contest. We loved looking at the Hemisphere through your eyes.
Open Americas 