2025 Photography Competition – Winners & Highly Commended

We had a fantastic response with 195 entries from across the UK, thank you to all the photographers who entered, the standard was exceptionally high.

We are most grateful to our 3 judges who did a brilliant job.

The competition & prizes are generously sponsored by Photographer Peter Martin who has a gallery in Stow on the Wold, and by Creative Picture Framing in Cheltenham and Cirencester.

Prize winners and those highly commended will form an exhibition in St Michael’s All Angels Church in Broadway during the Broadway Arts Festival 6-15 June 2025, open daily with free entry.

Introducing our 2025 Prizewinners

Best Photo Essay £500

 Mike Glyde (Stourport on Severn)

‘A Bird in the Hand – A Study of Worcestershire Bird Ringing Group’

‘In the summer of 2024, I began a photo study documenting the work of a group of bird ringers in Worcestershire, UK. A key element of the narrative I wanted to share is the care given to these small fragile creatures in the hands of the ringers while they record the biometrics before ringing and releasing. By using mono images, the birds do not wholly steal the image, the focus being on the ringers’ hands. The wider study contains many more images; however this short sequence neatly illustrates the key processes they follow.’

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Highly Commended – Photo Essay

 Richard Plummer (Chipping Campden) ‘Hart of Campden’

CR Ashbee, pioneering the Arts & Crafts Movement, established the Guild Handicraft in Campden in 1902. George Hart was appointed the resident metalsmith and his direct descendants continue to this day. Harts of Campden is the last remnant of the Guild.
These images reveal a hidden world of glorious idiosyncrasies & accretions accumulated over 123 years. My aim is to display skilful techniques in hammered silver & copper, flowing wirework & coloured stones in simple settings and the extraordinary premises. All reveal a uniquely English atelier from the past, preserving Ashby’s vision for the future.

Highly Commended – Photo Essay

 Thuy Tien Dinh (Milton Keynes) ‘Seen and Unseen’

Milton Keynes is known for its roundabouts and shopping hubs, but beyond that lies a city of contrast and hidden depth. These eight photos capture glimpses of the place I’ve called home for three years—from Centre:mk and Campbell Park to historic Bletchley, Wolverton, and Stony Stratford. I’ve wandered these streets in every season. It may not be a typical street photography hotspot, but there are always stories to tell. Here, light and shadow, strangers and connection, nature and concrete all coexist. Milton Keynes is more than a grid; it’s a place of quiet stories.