39 Stunning Winning Photos From The 2026 World Food Photography Awards

I wanted to capture this image in a minimal and moody style, showing the quiet drama of this classic dessert. I was inspired by the way the light filters through the jelly like a jewel, and used a shadowed and geometric background to show beauty in the ordinary.

I had planned this image for six to seven years but kept postponing it, feeling unworthy of capturing them. Now, because of their age, I couldn’t wait. Grandma went to the hairdresser, Grandpa shaved, and I filled their kitchen with studio gear. When she saw the photograph, my grandmother called me an artist.

In this whimsical family portrait, a white eggplant and a deep purple eggplant pose as mother and father behind an ornate gilded antique frame. Three striped offspring stand proudly before them. Bathed in dramatic warm lighting, the scene rests on a rustic wooden table against a weathered, peeling wall, evoking a sense of nostalgia.

The Khoja Obi Garm sanatorium (health hotel), Tajikistan, is a brutalist concrete monstrosity built on hot radon gas-infused springs in the mountains. During Soviet times, communist workers were given two weeks annual holiday here. Today its low price - $28 per day including full board and treatments - attracts ordinary Tajiks plus tourists from the neighbouring 'Stans' and the odd backpacker. Treatments include hot pools and steam rooms, wax wraps and tanning barrels, plus hearty healthy meals.

Dark, moody noodles with texture that you can almost feel. Mysterious, bold and irresistible.

This image creates a cinematic mid-century mood with high contrast, warm tones and textures. The cake is the centrepiece with symmetrical lines and buttercream swirls glowing in firelight. The scene is filled with hidden vintage surprises, family heirlooms and trinkets. A nod to the era and a moment in time.

During the cleaning of the underground tanks, Pedro goes down and cleans the walls and floor of the remains of the previous wine with pressurised water. Once clean, his partner lowers a small bucket with a sponge inside to collect the remains that are left in the lower corner.

This vineyard is just beside a main road but you can't see it unless you stop. It is sort of hidden. This image was taken while Mount Pleasant Wines picked their Semillon grapes. I stopped to shoot the ground action but the drone gave me a great perspective and nature did its best to help me.

Point-of-view shot from inside a traditional kvevri during the 2025 grape harvest in Georgia.

A moment of respite from the line at Hadja Marley, an authentic Senegalese eatery in Brooklyn. This portrait captures the daily rhythm of life on Fulton Street, focusing on the steady presence of the staff and the traditional West African flavours that bring the local community together. A study of neighbourhood service.

Wine pairing is usually shown through prepared plates. This image approaches it differently: by composing the raw ingredients that define the pairing. Spice, earthiness and freshness are balanced visually to reflect how flavour combinations determine which wine works with a dish.

A towering stack of pancakes becomes a study in balance and excess. Suspended toppings and syrup emphasise height, gravity and indulgence. The image transforms a familiar breakfast into a playful yet precise exploration of structure and anticipation.

Every morning, hundreds of sheep arrive in the village from the high pastures of Mount Nemrut for milking. After the milking is completed, at sunset, the sheep set out once again toward Mount Nemrut, and their dusty journey begins.

Little Asilbek touching the hot bread, straight out of the family tandoor. In Samarkand (Uzbekistan) the 'non' is unlike any other: round, dense, with a thick, chewy crust, and always marked in its centre with black sesame seeds.

Portrait of a female miller after processing grains into cornmeal. At Vocational Training Center Irebero, single women are trained as millers.

I wanted to capture the simple act of dipping bread into a bowl of fresh, warm lentil stew, a moment of comfort and indulgence. The composition highlights the warmth, cosiness, and soulfulness of the scene, as well as the intimacy of a shared, home-cooked moment.

This image captures the process of making granola bars, highlighting the warm afternoon light spilling across a rustic setting dominated by browns and blues. The human element grounds the quiet mood of the scene. Sometimes a story isn't told in the finished dish, but in the act of making it.

This image captures food in a traditional context. It speaks of family dinners, the quiet ritual of serving. A reminder that comfort is often found not in extravagance, but in the simple rustic things like a warm lentil stew.

An image taken during a personal just-for-fun photography project. Experimenting with light and motion, capturing a single burst of flour, revealing the unseen labour of baking. Flour, usually passive and powdery, becomes dynamic.

In Mahasthangarh, Bogra, a large vegetable market comes alive each morning. Farmers bring in their freshly harvested cabbages, usually transported by rickshaw vans, and gather for the daily cabbage market. Traders buy the produce here and supply it to Dhaka and other major cities.

A poached mackerel emerging from a deep, shadowed broth. Controlled lighting sculpts texture and surface tension. The image plays with darkness and stillness, turning humble preparation into a study of depth, contrast and restrained drama.

While living in the UK, away from home for seven years, “home” no longer represents a geographical space for me. It is a place I go to where I feel welcome, valued, and able to make good memories. This is a place I pass by whenever I have time; I sit with the restaurant owner, and we gossip and laugh a lot. The place and the people make me feel at home.

A sophisticated, monochromatic study of heat and elegance. This deep crimson composition uses a precise spotlight to highlight the glass’s silhouette and create depth. Featuring a hand-crafted chilli-sugar rim, the image focuses on geometric symmetry and rich textures, translating the cocktail’s spicy character into a bold, artistic statement.

An open-air restaurant owner serves food to her customers. She sells at a low price so that daily labourers who work at Gabtoli coal station can afford it. The photograph was taken in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Shot in Kyoto, Japan in September 2025, this image was taken in a split second as I moved through the packed, sweaty crowd at Nishiki Market. With barely any space to stop, I raised the camera and captured a brief, unfiltered moment of the energy and intensity of the market at its busiest.

I wanted to create a unique image of candied fruit, and I have always been fascinated by the transparency of colours revealed through the process. I began by slicing a pear very thinly and boiling the slices in a mixture of sugar and water. Once the slices became transparent, I laid them out to dry on paper. The image was created using sugar water and a pear slice placed on a glass sheet, along with coloured plastic in front of a table lamp. I photographed the setup multiple times from different angles, and finally, I used Photoshop to combine the various images.

At sunrise beneath Howrah Bridge, a small crew hauls in their nets on the Hooghly River. River fish remain everyday food and income here: catches from boats like this are sold in nearby markets and prepared that very morning in Bengali kitchens. A quiet, collective harvest beneath the city’s busiest crossing.

May 2025. Twin bridesmaids enjoy canapés of 'Proper Crisps' at Jess & Tom's wedding. They are pictured in the gardens at The Grain Store in Devon, UK.

I feel this image portrays the power of friendship. Four women (unknown to me) having a fun day out, enjoying a sneaky bag of chips. The image was not constructed, just a spontaneous capture of a joyous moment, which they were happy to share. Taken at Beamish open-air museum, County Durham.

Instead of presenting a finished dish, this image focuses on the ingredients behind the pairing. Salt, fat and vegetal bitterness are arranged in balance, illustrating how wine pairing originates in the interaction of fundamental flavours rather than the final recipe.

A precise cross-section of a constructed sandwich reveals layers of texture, colour and repetition. Styled as a graphic portrait, the image elevates a familiar food into a study of structure and balance, where each ingredient plays a defined visual and culinary role.

This home affirms the true meaning of family. Where home is sustained by generosity, where love is expressed through making, sharing and showing up again and again. Where Granny's smile, fresh baked cookies and a cold glass of milk can make even the bleakest of days bright again.

I happened by chance to turn my attention to the local bar on the corner of Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, Camparino. The expression of the barman and the waiter dressed in white tuxedos instantly created a story I had to capture. It was one of those moments where I found myself in the right place at the right time.

Little Asilbek touching the hot bread, straight out of the family tandoor. In Samarkand (Uzbekistan) the 'non' is unlike any other: round, dense, with a thick, chewy crust, and always marked in its centre with black sesame seeds.

We go to visit Panzer's deli in St. John’s Wood on Fridays after school. I've never tried romanesco! The shape is something from another world.

Showcasing a quiet morning ritual, pouring oats into a bowl bathed in the soft light of a foggy morning. The contrasting blues and browns, together with the gentle action, evoke comfort, stillness, and the essence of a slow, intentional morning.

At the Gourmet Festival organised by China’s ‘Zouchuan Hotpot’ brand, hundreds of food enthusiasts gather around a communal banquet. The rich aroma of red broth - simmered with chilli peppers, fermented bean paste, beef tallow, Sichuan peppercorn, ginger, sugar, salt, soy sauce and spices - fills the air. Participants savour fresh ingredients like beef, beef aorta, tripe, luncheon meat and tofu, or lift their lights and phones to livestream, focusing on the bubbling pot. Through tasting, sharing, and interaction, they convey the authentic flavours and lively atmosphere of Sichuan hotpot to food lovers across China and around the world.

Wine and food pairing is traditionally presented as finished dishes. In this series we explore pairing through raw ingredients instead. Each composition balances flavours - acidity, freshness and texture - showing how a wine pairing begins with the fundamental taste relationships between ingredients.

Squids drying in the sun using the traditional Japanese technique of Himono in the fishing village of Ine, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan.