35 Remarkable People Photos From The 2025 Chromatic Awards That Capture Real Lives

2nd Place Winner in the People Category, Amateur Division

Location: South Sudan

Description: “In the Mundari cattle camps, kids are doing most of the daily work. Kids collect the fresh cow dung and put it into piles which are then set on fire. Those fire are useful as they repel the (extremely) numerous and voracious flies and mosquitoes of the South Sudanese countryside.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Location: Oprtalj, Istria, Croatia

Description: “From the ashes rises a phoenix. A photo taken on fire festival in Oprtalj, Istria.”

1st Place Winner in the People Category, Professional Division

Description: “The morning mist has not yet dissipated, and the tea leaves stretch into jade ripples on the bamboo plaque. The old tea master's calloused palm gently strokes the tea cake, kneading the rhythm of time's sedimentation into every leaf vein. The young apprentice tiptoed to adjust the tea formation, his clothes stained with the fragrance of the mountains, and the light and shadow flowed between the tea ridges, frozen into a poetic line intertwined with inheritance and time.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Professional Division

Description: “My first Holi fest had just ended and in her eyes, I saw other universes, a vastness of emotions that cannot be explained in words.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Description: “Skyladder, a memorable sculpture from Burning Man 2025 by Franziska Agrawal & Transitionzone Collective. Much more precarious than it looks!”

Honorable mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Description: “Let's see what the new Day brings if you feel lost today. Until the last rays of Sun disappear above the Clouds, it feels like Heaven. The image conveys a quiet message of hope and new beginnings. It speaks to those who feel lost, reminding them that each new day holds fresh possibilities.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Professional Division

Description: “From a high altitude, a group of workers riding electric bicycles converge like a flowing ant colony, creating a spectacular scene. The sunlight poured down from above, casting a golden glow over these hardworking builders. They are dressed in various work clothes and wearing safety helmets. Although their figures appear small in the camera, their strength cannot be ignored. Every electric bicycle carries their hopes and dreams, shuttling through every corner of the city, watering the prosperity of the city with sweat. This picture is the best interpretation of the workers' strength and resilience, as they use their own hands to write the glorious chapter of this era.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Professional Division

Location: Mayorga, Spain

Description: “Villagers hold torches made of wine skins during the El Vitor Civic procession in Mayorga, Spain.
It is a festival where the people of the town wear old clothes and cover their heads to remember Saint Toribio, a missionary born there who became a saint in the 18th century”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Location: Chad

Description: “It is more than just an annual date in the calendar. They sing, they compete with smiles and gaze. Their voices turn into a single one. It is a celebration of beauty and identity.
Once a year in Chad, at the end of the rainy season, the nomadic Wodaabe tribe (Mbororo) gahter in a festival - the Gerewol.
It is women's choice. Young girls of the tribe select the men. The men paint their faces with colors, often so that the whites of the eye and teeth are prominent. Their outfits are in a huge diversity of colors. From a western cultural perspective, the men's appearance with makeup and outfits can only be described as feminine. They dance like male birds in order to attract females. Their male beauty ideal highlights white eyes and teeth; the men will often roll their eyes and show their teeth to stress these characteristics.”

1st Place Winner in the People Category, Amateur Division

Location: Mount Ijen, East Java, Indonesia

Description: “Mount Ijen in East Java, is an active volcano that contains the biggest acidic lake in the world and a sulfur mine.

Sulfur mining here is one of the hardest jobs because of the thick, toxic volcanic gases coming out of the active vents inside the crater. Besides this, miners have to carry big baskets full of sulfur blocks all the way up the crater through a steep path and then walk for miles to unload them at the checkpoint. Usually, they are able to do this no more than 2-3 times a day for a paycheck of about 10 dollars.

Although the scenery is breathtaking, being here is the only way to get an idea of what it is like to move around and breathe sulfuric volcanic gases.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Location: Singapore

Description: “Crowd gathered at a political party rally in Singapore.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Description: “What would the person depicted have worn if they had cancer and chemo existed at that time? My niece and I started from that question when we took these photos. They also contribute to my niece's acceptance process.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Location: Mongolia

Description: “In Mongolia’s Altai Mountains, Kazakh eagle hunters form lifelong bonds with golden eagles weighing up to 7kg. Passed down through generations, this tradition survived Soviet-era repression and remains a powerful symbol of resilience, pride, and harmony between human and animal. Hunters ride with their eagles across vast, unforgiving terrain, showcasing their heritage each year at the Golden Eagle Festival in Ölgii—a vibrant tribute to identity and survival.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Professional Division

Location: Mumbai, India

Description: “In the heart of Mumbai, where the Arabian Sea meets the city, a young man sits amidst the monsoon storm. His umbrella, turned inside out, mirrors the chaos around him. This boundary wall is more than just a line between land and sea; it is a border between dreams and reality, between the haves and the have-nots. This is where the spirit of humanity is tested and forged. It is a place where dreams are both born and battered, reminding us that even in the face of life’s storms, our dreams are worth holding onto, for they are the essence of our hope and resilience.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Professional Division

Location: Namib Desert

Description: “A young couple shares a special moment at Deadvlei in the Namib Desert. It's almost impossible to avoid people when photographing at Deadvlei these days as it has become such a popular spot for tourists visiting Namibia. I first saw the remarkable natural phenomena in 2002 and I had the place to myself then but this image was captured in 2025 as hundreds of people descended on the now famous salt pan. I was composing this shot of the dead tree skeletons with a telephoto lens but the young couple walked into the scene and embraced. They were dressed in white in what must have been a special occasion for them - perhaps an engagement celebration? I snapped off a couple of frames regardless and was pleasantly surprised on reviewing the photos on how much they added to the mood and feel of my intended image. Not only did they provide a sense of scale, but they added emotion and intrigue. The brightly clad, embracing couple contrasted with the dark and ominous shapes of the twin trees. The living vs the dead. The red hue of the dunes (slightly enhanced) convey a feeling of love and connection between the pictured man and woman and their presumed love for the natural world in which they are celebrating.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Description: “Tien meditating after following the path to inner introspection.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Location: Jodhpur, India

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Professional Division

Description: “Model image taken backstage before the Adlib Ibiza fashion show at the 2025 edition of Madrid es Moda.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Location: Lake Titicaca, Bolivia

Description: “An elderly Bolivian woman, dressed in colorful traditional clothing and wearing a bowler hat, stands beside her white llama in a small village on the shores of Lake Titicaca.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Location: Havana, Cuba

Description: “In Havana, people are always out and about, especially in the late afternoon when the sunlight fills the streets with vibrant colors and intense light.”

3rd Place Winner in the People Category, Amateur Division

Location: Bangladesh

Description: “Jobbarer Boli Khela is a traditional and very old wrestling game in Bangladesh. It’s a lively and exciting event that brings energy to both the wrestlers and the audience. People from all over the country—and even from abroad—come to watch it. The game includes strong throws and intense grappling that create a thrilling atmosphere. As the wrestlers use force and smart moves in the ring, the crowd gets more and more excited, cheering loudly with every action.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Professional Division

Location: India

Description: “During the 2025 Maha Kumbh Mela, the largest spiritual gathering ever recorded by mankind, in India, on the banks of sacred rivers I captured this shot, where two eyes, before dawn, emerge from an incredible chaos of people.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Professional Division

Location: Maharashtra, India

Description: “Pravin Mali (12) while sleeping on the floor and around Gangavesh Talim's pit. Maharashtra, India.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Professional Division

Location: San Diego, California, USA

Description: “Captured during the San Diego Pride Parade, Pride Domination portrays a group of participants wearing pup masks and harnesses beneath the bright California sky. The image freezes a moment of intensity and play, where desire and defiance coexist. Through their vibrant masks and confident stances, these figures transform the public space into a stage of empowerment and self-determination.

The photograph explores how visibility can become a political act — one that celebrates difference while confronting the boundaries of normativity. The dog masks, a symbol often misunderstood or fetishized, here become expressions of identity, vulnerability, and belonging. Under the umbrella’s blue reflection, they appear simultaneously shielded and exposed, echoing the tension between protection and openness that defines much of queer existence.

Color plays a crucial role in the narrative. The dominant blues evoke both serenity and resistance, while the reds inject a pulse of vitality and provocation. The photograph’s composition — balanced between symmetry and spontaneity — invites the viewer to engage with these bodies not as spectacle, but as subjects reclaiming their right to visibility and expression.

Pride Domination belongs to an ongoing photographic series documenting the performative dimensions of Pride parades in California and Mexico. The project seeks to reveal how gestures, costumes, and public presence create a collective choreography of identity — one that extends beyond celebration to assert dignity, intimacy, and resilience.

Ultimately, this image is a tribute to those who inhabit their truth without compromise, transforming the street into a living archive of freedom, desire, and color.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Professional Division

Description: “The Spanish lady is the keeper of a lifetime, surrounded by memories of love, loss, and joy. The flowers hint at small pleasures, the cigarette a quiet defiance. In the portrait from decades past, her youthful beauty lingers, a reminder of who she was and who she has become. Her room is more than a space—it is a testament to a life fully lived.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Professional Division

Description: Model image taken during the backstage before the Adlib Ibiza fashion show at the 2025 edition of Madrid es Moda.

3rd Place Winner in the People Category, Professional Division

Description: “Hutsuls, personifying the strength, pride and originality of their people. Their images are living evidence of a deep connection with the roots, traditions and nature of the Carpathians, which has withstood the storms of history. In every look - the wisdom of generations, respect for culture and ancestors. These people are a symbol of the continuity of the Hutsul spirit, which is passed down through generations.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Description: Photo taken during a competition for young rescuers on the Baltic Sea.

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Amateur Division

Location: Havana, Cuba

Description: “In 2013, UNESCO recognized the cultural significance of Cuban dominoes by inscribing it on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This acknowledgment highlighted the game's role in fostering social bonds, preserving traditions, and promoting a sense of identity and continuity among the Cuban people.
Today, dominoes remain an integral part of Cuban life, with the distinct sound of shuffling tiles and lively banter echoing through the streets. It serves as a reminder of the resilience, camaraderie, and cultural pride that define the Cuban spirit.”

Honorable Mention in the People Category, Professional Division

2nd Place Winner in the People Category, Professional Division

Description: “Children from Bnei Brak, and ultra orthodox city in Israel, looking out from the window of their school.”