Absolute Prize Winner: “Fearless” by Christoph Fischer, Canada
The winners of the 2026 Memorial Maria Luisa Awards have been revealed, and the collection is breathtaking.
Now in its 36th edition, this prestigious global competition continues to celebrate the raw magnificence of mountains, nature, and adventure through extraordinary photography. This year’s event attracted an impressive 18,059 photos and 182 videos from 1,450 photographers spanning 78 countries. After a meticulous selection process, only the most powerful and visually striking works were chosen. Among them, Canadian photographer Christoph Fischer earned the Absolute Prize for his dramatic image “Fearless,” depicting two antelopes braving a violent desert storm. The Young Photographer Award went to France’s Lubin Godin for “Dermoeres Lueurs,” a poetic shot of a lone mountain goat illuminated by gentle light. With 15 major awards and many honorable mentions, the competition once again proves that nature photography is as immersive as it is inspiring. These images don’t just document the natural world; they transform our perception of it. Spend some time with this year’s winning works, and you may find they stay with you long after you’ve looked away.
More: Memorial Maria Luisa Awards, Instagram
Young Photographer Winner: “Dermoeres Lueurs” by Lubin Godin, France
Mountain Landscapes – Winner: “Thunderstorm” by Filip Hrebenda
Mountain Landscapes – Honorable Mention: “Alpamayo” by Harry Lichtman
Alpinism – Winner: “Colin Haley Soloing Cerro Torre” by Tyler Lekki
Alpinism – Honorable Mention: “Mordor” by Julia Roger-Veyer
Climbing – Winner: “Ridge” by Sam Bie
Climbing – Honorable Mention: “Perfect Climb” by Sam Bie
Adventure and extreme sports – Winner: “Vuelo Faraonico” by Marc Marco Ripoll
Adventure and extreme sports – Honorable Mention: “Magic in Motion” by Dileep SS
Man in the Mountain and/or Nature – Winner: “Praying with Fire” by Azim Khan Ronnie
Man in the Mountain and/or Nature – Honorable Mention: “Local Bus-Uyuni Salt Lake, Bolivia” by Gary Latham
Animal World – Honorable Mention: “Nose Up” by Michelle Valberg
Animal World – Honorable Mention: “In Mother Arms” by Dvir Barkay
The world of birds – Winner: “Angel of Death” by Andy Parkinson
The world of birds – Honorable Mention: “Golden Waves” by Zakariya Omran
Vegetal world – Winner: “Trasnparencias Otonales” by José Luis Gigirey González
Vegetal world – Honorable Mention: “Chosen One” by Andrey Kuznetsov
Submerged World – Winner: “Neon Lights” by Pietro Formis
Submerged World – Winner: “Neon Lights” by Pietro Formis
Biodiversity and Geodiversity – Winner: “Moonlight” by Imre Potyó
Biodiversity and Geodiversity – Honorable Mention: “Animal World” by Shengfu Jiao
Nature Landscapes – Winner: “Beings of Light” by Maxime Daviron
Nature Landscapes – Honorable Mention: “Olas Contra El Acantilado” by Luis Manuel Vilariño López
Creative Photo – Winner: “Eclipse Outlaw Chase” by Noah Wetzel
Creative Photo – Honorable Mention: “La Volpe” by Stanislao Basileo
Macro Picture – Winner: “The Flying Engineer” by Bidyut Kalita
Macro Picture – Honorable Mention: “Snail Enjoying Sporulation” by Anirban Dutta
Topic of the year: Rural World – Winner: “Vietnam” by Juan Zas
Topic of the year: Rural World – Honorable Mention: “Monsoon Moods in Rural Bengal” by Pranab Basak
Young Photographers – Honorable Mention: “Peleas En Las Atlas Cumbres” by Diego Moreno Carballo
Young Photographers – Honorable Mention: “Woodbird” by Andrés Luis Domínguez Blanco