The first annual Aerial Photography Awards wrapped up last week, with four photos taken in Vietnam leading a pack of outstanding entries submitted from around the globe.

‘The Lady of Sea’ by photographer Duy Sinh took home the top prize in this year’s ‘Daily Life’ topic of the event’s ‘People’ category.

‘The Lady of Sea’ depicts a local fishing boat laying down a net in the ocean as waves shape its edges into the bust of a woman. 

“An accidental creating,” the photo's caption says. 

Also capturing the attention of judges was ‘We Are In It Together’ by Prabu Mohan – an image of a Vietnamese flag-laden residential apartment building meant to symbolize solidarity in the fight against COVID-19 – which ranked the highest in the ‘World In Lockdown’ topic under the ‘Editorial’ category.

Other contest highlights included photographer Thien Nguyen’s ‘Anchovy Catching’ and photographer Khanh Phan’s ‘Harvesting Grass,’ which took home second and third places, respectively, in the ‘Daily Life’ topic.

Thien Nguyen also took home the first prize for Awarded Photographers in the ‘People’ category.

“I'm thankful and delighted to be recognized as the top winner of the 'People' category this year, together with two awarded photos,” Thien Nguyen said in his award speech published on the contest’s website.

“This is a great honor to be involved in such a vibrant and talented photographic community."

Thien’s two award-wining photos were the aforementioned 'Anchovy Catching' along with 'Mu Cang Chai Paddy Terraced Fields,' which won the fourth prize in the ‘Landscape’ topic of the contest’s ‘Nature’ category.

Entries from Vietnam were also honored in the contest’s ‘Special Mentions’ category, including 'Herding ducks,' a photo by Thien Nguyen which depicts duck farming on the Da Rang River in the south-central province of Phu Yen and 'Paddy Terraces' by Khanh Phan which shows farmers reclaiming land to prepare for cultivation on a terraced field.

In an interview with Aerial Photos of the Year 2020 published on the contest’s website, Khanh Phan excitedly shared that Vietnam is “a beautiful country with a diverse culture.”

“Each region has its own unique cultural features with traditional villages that are hundreds of years old,” she said.

According to the organizing board, the contest received thousands of submissions from 65 countries.

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