The ‘Photo Of The Year’ and the winners in nine categories of the Drone Photo Awards 2023, have been released by the renowned Siena Awards festival of visual arts that organizes the competition.

The overall winning shot, ‘Must Resist’ by Israeli photographer Or Adar, depicts thousands of protesters partially concealed by three enormous billboards in Tel Aviv, during demonstrations in March against the government.

The competition is open to aerial images and videos taken from flying platforms that include fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles, balloons, blimps and dirigibles, rockets, kites and parachutes.

The Drone Awards contest, according to the organizers, is “the most important worldwide competition about aerial photography and video, dedicated to a different photographic genre deliberately separated from being compared to traditional photography.”

This winning photograph, along with the other awarded entries, were selected from thousands of submissions received from participants from around the world and will be showcased in the exhibition “Above Us Only Sky” taking place for the first time at the extraordinary San Galgano Abbey in the beautiful historical city of Siena, Italy.

The Siena Awards festival will run from September 28 to November 19.

Photo of the year

Tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets of Israeli cities in March to protest against a government plan to overhaul the country’s court system.

This aerial view was taken in Tel Aviv.

Sports

Amidst intense cold, the renowned tightrope walker Nathan Paulin successfully crossed a 200-meter-long, 2.5-centimeter-wide “highline” at Pointe d’Areu in the Aravis range in France’s Haute-Savoie at an altitude of 2,460 meters.

This incredible achievement required the dedicated efforts of a team of six individuals over the course of three days to execute this world premiere.

A group of runners at the start of the Dead Sea Marathon, racing towards the misty horizon as they appear to be crossing the sea in a manner reminiscent of the biblical story of Exodus from Egypt.

Wildlife

In the eastern province of Sri Lanka, wild elephants with their keen scavenging instincts have developed a peculiar, distressing and dangerous behavior of searching for food in a designated garbage dump near the forest.

It’s disheartening to witness these majestic creatures resorting to such destructive and unhealthy habits.

A shark gracefully glides through a dense school of menhaden fish off the coast of Southampton, New York, during the summer of 2022.

Groups of king penguin chicks congregate around a freshwater pond in Gold Harbour on the remote island of South Georgia. Both molting adults and chicks refrain from entering the water due to their non-waterproof feathers. Instead, they gather near freshwater sources to stay hydrated.

Ng snapped a bird’-eye view of a group of buffaloes dipping in a pond to cool off on a hot sunny midday. The contrasting colors of the buffaloes and their surroundings created an eye-catching, earth-toned image.

In Baja California Sur in Mexico, gray whales interact with people as if they were friends (in Spanish “amigos”).

Urban Settings

A playground full of joy hidden somewhere deep in the south of Poland shows its beauty in the first flash of sun from above. This region is known for its mines and strongly urban character of architecture, so such a colorful playground is a kind of pearl on the ground and also from the air.

The 14th-century church tower in Italy stands as a poignant reminder of the sunken village of Curon Venosta. In 1950, the entire village was submerged following the construction of a dam, resulting in the creation of the artificial basin known as Lake Resia. Today, only the church tower remains.

The human-shaped town of Centuripe in the Enna province of Sicily glows in the rainbow light of sunset.

The Taj Mahal emerges at dawn — seen here from the Yamuna River side. A layer of clouds and mist was covering the river, imparting a floating, surreal look to the timeless Mausoleum.

People category

Sun-lovers bring their brightest towels, swimsuits and umbrellas to the shores of Cascais, Portugal, creating a wonderful, vibrant wallpaper when viewed from above.

At the onset of spring, the people of Iranian Kurdistan joyfully embrace the arrival of the new year by kindling a bonfire and merrily dancing around it. This tradition, called Nowruz, is celebrated in various countries.

In a salt dune, two women and four men are working and creating patterns. It helps to soak the salts in sunlight. They work six days a week from 9:00 am to 5 pm, creating multiple patterns that impress especially from overhead.

Opening the day at the strawberry field looks from above like the opening of a theater curtain before a big show. This shot was taken at the end of winter near the Israeli city of Hadera.

Haitians wait at Dajabo to cross the border to the Dominican Republic for Friday’s binational market day.

Nature from above

The beauty of the cycle of life, as fallen trees rest gracefully in dried-up ponds amid autumn’s vibrant hues. The photo was taken in South Bohemia when the ponds dry before winter.

“I have visited this place several times before,” said Vijayan. “But last year it was disheartening to witness the sea ice melting as early as June. Our ship was able to navigate through the melted ice and reach the ice cap. However, even the ice cap had begun melting earlier than usual.”

From above, this drone photo of a geothermal pool in Iceland looks like an eye.

“When visiting the Fagradalsfjall volcano in Iceland, I never thought that I would get the best image while the volcano was dying out,” Viñé writes. “At that time, the volcano was intermittent and every 10-12 hours of eruption it would die out. One of those times I saw a skull…smoking.”

Abstract Category

The Colorado River basin has been severely impacted by a combination of poor management and prolonged drought, reaching a critical point of no return. The intricate patterns formed by the water, metaphorically resembling the lungs of the earth, have become depleted and are teetering on the edge of collapse.

An alluvial river flows like a river of fire from the mountains to the ocean on the southern shoreline of Iceland — an island country that serves as a mecca for aerial photographers.

This photo is one of a series: Thousands of vibrant red chili peppers are harvested under the scorching sun before being sorted for delivery to spice companies in Sariakandi, Bogura, Bangladesh.

More than 2,000 women work across nearly 100 chili farms in Bogura to supply local spice companies with high-quality chilies for their recipes. Among the vast quantity, they meticulously pick out any inferior chili peppers. Chilies hold great significance in Bengali cuisine, widely enjoyed in Bangladesh, and are incorporated with other spices in a variety of meat dishes, including chicken and beef.

All galleries of winning photos and series here.

Awards.Photos: Redefining Photography with Unparalleled Innovation and Prestige

To observe Lancaster’s past and present, you don’t need a time machine. In fact, a visit to Lancaster city’s Lime Street should be sufficient.

The Lancaster Museum of Art’s current exhibit, “Then & Now: Lancaster Through the Lens,” features the work of local photographers Jim Yescalis and Shelby Wormley.

Yescalis is a Lancaster photographer with decades of experience; his work dates back to 1969. Wormley, a younger artist, has selections in the show that are as recent as 2023. The exhibit juxtaposes two different views of Lancaster in separate times, yet tells a common story about the importance of community in the city.

The exhibit will be on display at the museum, located at 135 N. Lime Street, until July 9. 

‘Where the people were’

Jim Yescalis, 76, has been living in and photographing Lancaster since his college days at Franklin & Marshall College in the 1960s. He was drawn to the area after growing up in the suburbs, finding the city to be much more lively.

“Cities were where the people were,” Yescalis says.

After working as a photographer at the Sunday News, Yescalis spent 20 years as the campus photographer at Millersville University. Yescalis was “opened up to a road of color” while at Millersville, where he was first introduced to digital cameras. His work now consists of large volumes of both film and digital pieces.

Throughout his career, Yescalis has always intended to reflect life as it is, trying to blend into the crowd and not be noticed.

“It became a passion to capture people,” Yescalis says. “I always wanted to take pictures where the camera didn’t dictate the picture.”

‘Delmonico Cafe, Penn Square, 1969’

To Yescalis, one of the most intriguing aspects of “Delmonico Cafe, Penn Square” is one you might not notice at first glance.

A close look at one of the tables and you’ll see a simple, empty glass sitting on its surface. But to him, it is what sets the scene.

The photo is one of Yescalis’ favorite pieces and his earliest work featured in the exhibit.

Reminiscent of a film noir scene, Yescalis took the photograph in a small cafe once located right off of Penn Square.

“It just caught a mood. A little melancholy, not necessarily despairing or pessimistic,” Yescalis says. “You wonder what he’s thinking.”

While Yescalis had experimented with photography briefly before coming to Lancaster, he says it was around this time, in 1969, that it “just started to click” for him.

This photo, like most of his film work, was taken on a Leica camera.

‘Kool, 1982’

(See photo at top of article)

After capturing so many moments in time, Yescalis often finds himself wondering what kind of lives his subjects go on to live.

“I imagine a lot of people in these pictures are no longer with us. And the kids are grown up, and hopefully still with us,” Yescalis says.

Yescalis says he often considers this when reflecting on the two young boys depicted in his 1982 image, “Kool.”

He is drawn to the photograph because of how playful and carefree they are, despite whatever situation they found themselves in at the time.

Kool was photographed right off Lemon and Concord streets. Zengari’s Pizza Shop was once located there, Yescalis says, which was a favorite of his since his college years.

‘Quarry Tree – Excavation, January, 2017’

Some of Yescalis’ fondest memories come from when he lived near a quarry, located where The Shoppes at Belmont now stand. At the time, he would often take his dog on walks there, looking for geese or new animal tracks in the snow.

Bringing his camera along, Yescalis was drawn to a specific tree in the quarry. From various perspectives and in varying weather conditions, Yescalis accumulated many photos of the tree, recording how the area changed with the seasons.

Usually, his photos depicted the quarry’s “magical” landscape, lively foliage and reflective waters. However, “Quarry Tree- Excavation,” provided a new view, one where construction for The Shoppes at Belmont had taken over.

Yescalis says that there is now a small pond behind the shops, however nothing that compares to the habitat that used to thrive there.

‘Evidence that we were here’

Shelby Wormley, 32, has been a photographer since her early 20s, with a focus on Lancaster since moving here in 2016. Originally from York, Wormley was struck by how much art was embraced in Lancaster.

Throughout the years, Wormley’s intended for her photography to tell the stories of people who live in the Lancaster area.

“There’s a sacredness when someone shares a story,” Wormley says. “They want their stories told with respect and dignity, and they want it handled with care.”

Documenting communities of color is particularly important in her work. She considers how, historically, these communities have not always had access to such means of communication and expression.

“I like to say that the collection of everything you see is just evidence that we were here,” Wormley says.

‘Tuesday Night, 2020’

Wormley was working as a photojournalist for ABC27 when she shot “Tuesday Night,” which was taken as Black Lives Matter protests began across the country in June 2020. She happened to be assigned a night shift that day and ended up catching one of her most memorable pieces.

Wormley remembers the time vividly, describing how impactful it was to experience so many people rallying around a common sentiment.

“It was turbulent, it was powerful, there was this collective feeling,” Wormley says. “Everyone came out, no matter your background.”

Wormley says being present to photograph the protests allowed her to help preserve history. She felt called to use her camera as a voice and says that capturing the events unfold changed her life “in every way possible.”

“I think it’s also important for a community’s history to be preserved not just through action, but visually,” Wormley says.

Wormley thought it was crucial to include photos of the 2020 protests in the exhibit to serve as a reminder of those whose lives were affected and that there is still much work to be done towards equality.

‘Bonita’

To Wormley, storytelling through art is a connecting force, and she hopes that people feel seen by the stories her subjects share.

“Through our individuality is where we find a lot of our commonality,” Wormley says, reflecting on her photo, “Bonita.”

“Bonita” was taken as part of a series in partnership with BLK Voices Magazine in 2022. The series, called “They Said,” represented how people are impacted by negative things said about them, yet how they manage to rise above and thrive.

Wormley said that the photo’s subject, a young woman named Bonita, had endured many obstacles throughout her life. Yet smiling in the grass and enjoying the sunny day around her, she is a reminder that it is possible to preserve joy through hardship.

“We all have a ‘they said’ story,” Wormley says. “You never know anyone’s full story, but when someone does share it with you, it’s a privilege.”

‘5th Ward’

After moving to Lancaster, Wormley was drawn to the southeast region of the city, the area she says most closely resembled her hometown in York. Curious about its community, Wormley set out to learn more about its history and the people that lived there.

“I was able to talk with a lot of people from the southeast that shared with me the beauty of it,” Wormley says.

Photographing two kids riding by on their bicycles, “5th Ward” was a part of a project she’d been working on aimed at capturing the authenticity of the area.

It was important to Wormley to go and experience life in the neighborhood first-hand rather than base her understanding on how the area has been represented and perceived over the years.

“You have to be able to witness [it] just to see how it naturally evolves, without having your own idea or agenda behind it,” Wormley says. “You can’t capture the essence of a community if you only see it from that certain angle.”