These are the stunning winning images of the 2018 Sony World Photography Awards.
The shortlist contains an array of compositions, from gorgeous natural landscapes to harsh human environments.
The coveted Photographer of the Year title was presented to British artist Alys Tomlinson for her series Ex-Voto, winning the photographer $25,000.
She was selected from the 10 category winners of the professional competition who were announced today, alongside those in second and third place in each category.
The 11th edition of the competition saw a record breaking 320,000 submissions by photographers from more than 200 countries and territories.
Scroll down to see some of the winning entries, which are also on show at Somerset House in London until May 6. Which is your favourite?
The overall winner in the Sony Photography awards is Alys Tomlinson, who snapped a series of powerful images at Christian pilgrimage sites around the world
![Another image snapped by Alys. She recently completed an MA (Distinction) in Anthropology of Travel, Tourism and Pilgrimage and has been recognised by a number of photography prizes](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE5D000000578-0-image-a-88_1524147534588.jpg)
Another image snapped by Alys. She recently completed an MA (Distinction) in Anthropology of Travel, Tourism and Pilgrimage and has been recognised by a number of photography prizes
![American photographer Mitch Dobrowner earned second place in the landscape category for dramatic shots of storm clouds](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE45100000578-0-image-a-117_1524147816016.jpg)
American photographer Mitch Dobrowner earned second place in the landscape category for dramatic shots of storm clouds
![Mitch explained: 'Words are inadequate to describe the experience of photographing this immense power and beauty'](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE46200000578-0-image-a-119_1524147823918.jpg)
Mitch explained: ‘Words are inadequate to describe the experience of photographing this immense power and beauty’
![Photographer Antonio Gibotta was recognised for his snaps showing the festival of Els Enfarinat, or ¿The floured war¿, which takes place in Alicante, Spain, each year](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE65000000578-0-image-a-69_1524147339835.jpg)
Photographer Antonio Gibotta was recognised for his snaps showing the festival of Els Enfarinat, or ‘The floured war’, which takes place in Alicante, Spain, each year
![The teams play with flour, water, eggs and coloured smoke bombs during the festival, which has been taking place for over 200 years](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE2EB00000578-0-image-a-153_1524148240801.jpg)
The teams play with flour, water, eggs and coloured smoke bombs during the festival, which has been taking place for over 200 years
![Swiss photographer Alfio Tommasini won praise for his series of images that show milk farmers in Switzerland and how they survive on the mountainous lands](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE63800000578-0-image-a-72_1524147352570.jpg)
Swiss photographer Alfio Tommasini won praise for his series of images that show milk farmers in Switzerland and how they survive on the mountainous lands
![Another of Tommasini's shots. His images showing the dairy farmers earned him third place in the contest's 'contemporary issues' category](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE64000000578-0-image-a-73_1524147369054.jpg)
Another of Tommasini’s shots. His images showing the dairy farmers earned him third place in the contest’s ‘contemporary issues’ category
![Megan Johnson was awarded the Young Photographer award for her image Still. Shot on the cliffs near her house in Connecticut, the black-and-white image captures the complex and intricate solitude the photographer faces in everyday life](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE62800000578-0-image-a-75_1524147465963.jpg)
Megan Johnson was awarded the Young Photographer award for her image Still. Shot on the cliffs near her house in Connecticut, the black-and-white image captures the complex and intricate solitude the photographer faces in everyday life
![Veselin Atanasov from Bulgaria took this ethereal shot during a woodland walk in the Balkans](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE62D00000578-0-image-a-77_1524147476378.jpg)
Veselin Atanasov from Bulgaria took this ethereal shot during a woodland walk in the Balkans
!['When people ask me why I am photographing horses I usually respond: "Because I adore their beauty and magnificent grace!'' says Wiebke Hass, who snapped stallion Hafid and earned a place on the Sony World Photography Awards shortlist](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE5E400000578-0-image-m-83_1524147505142.jpg)
![The photographer added: 'The most difficult part was to keep the horses straight to the camera'](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE5F800000578-0-image-a-84_1524147513870.jpg)
‘When people ask me why I am photographing horses I usually respond: “Because I adore their beauty and magnificent grace!” says Wiebke Hass, who snapped stallion Hafid. The photographer added: ‘The most difficult part was to keep the horses straight to the camera’
![This stark black-and-white shot captures a boy from Au Bala, a town in the Fuladi Valley, near Bamiyan, Afghanistan. Taken in March 2017, the boy is ready for the Afghan Ski Challenge, an annual cross-country race that passes by the town](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE60500000578-0-image-a-85_1524147524688.jpg)
This stark black-and-white shot captures a boy from Au Bala, a town in the Fuladi Valley, near Bamiyan, Afghanistan. Taken in March 2017, the boy is ready for the Afghan Ski Challenge, an annual cross-country race that passes by the town
![Winning first place in the portrait category is Tom Oldham, depicting the people visiting the East End of London's most famous pubs](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE5A800000578-0-image-a-90_1524147546007.jpg)
Winning first place in the portrait category is Tom Oldham, depicting the people visiting the East End of London’s most famous pubs
![Most of Tom's pictures were shot in the Palm Tree in Bow, which is world famous for maintaining its original East End atmosphere despite the impact of gentrification](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE59700000578-0-image-a-91_1524147559756.jpg)
Most of Tom’s pictures were shot in the Palm Tree in Bow, which is world famous for maintaining its original East End atmosphere despite the impact of gentrification
![Dramatic pictures snapped in Sicily earned photographer Roselena Ramistella first prize in the landscape category](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE58900000578-0-image-a-93_1524147572105.jpg)
Dramatic pictures snapped in Sicily earned photographer Roselena Ramistella first prize in the landscape category
![Two young farm workers lead two small horses across the snowy ground in another snap by Roselena, showing Sicilian farmers](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE57800000578-0-image-a-95_1524147586599.jpg)
Two young farm workers lead two small horses across the snowy ground in another snap by Roselena, showing Sicilian farmers
![Irish photographer Rohan Reilly won second place in the landscape category for his series showing fishing huts built on stilts on the Venetian lagoon](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE56200000578-0-image-a-97_1524147596458.jpg)
Irish photographer Rohan Reilly won second place in the landscape category for his series showing fishing huts built on stilts on the Venetian lagoon
![Rasmus Flindt Pedersen shot this series over 16 days during two separate trips to Mosul, Iraq, in January and February last year. He returned in June and July to document the war to liberate Mosul from ISIS](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE55800000578-0-image-a-99_1524147607769.jpg)
Rasmus Flindt Pedersen shot this series over 16 days during two separate trips to Mosul, Iraq, in January and February last year. He returned in June and July to document the war to liberate Mosul from ISIS
![An AP report estimates that upwards of 11,000 civilians have been killed during the war that the photographer covered](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE47800000578-0-image-a-121_1524147834267.jpg)
An AP report estimates that upwards of 11,000 civilians have been killed during the war that the photographer covered
![The Student Photographer of the Year was named as 20-year-old Canadian Samuel Bolduc, who was chosen by the judges from students worldwide for his photographic series The Burden, pictured](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE2DF00000578-0-image-m-147_1524148204874.jpg)
The Student Photographer of the Year was named as 20-year-old Canadian Samuel Bolduc, who was chosen by the judges from students worldwide for his photographic series The Burden, pictured
![Samuel hopes his work illustrates the physical burden of plastic waste in the environment to highlight the urgent need to halt plastic pollution](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/16/4B4FE53E00000578-5634705-image-m-166_1524150717077.jpg)
Samuel hopes his work illustrates the physical burden of plastic waste in the environment to highlight the urgent need to halt plastic pollution
![Italian photographer Matteo Armellini gained third place in the sport category for chronicling a blind baseball team that are based in Rome](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE52C00000578-0-image-a-104_1524147628134.jpg)
Italian photographer Matteo Armellini gained third place in the sport category for chronicling a blind baseball team that are based in Rome
![Matteo said: 'The most precious thing we learn is to believe again we can run fast with no fear, reach the base and run again home'](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE42900000578-0-image-a-129_1524147879584.jpg)
Matteo said: ‘The most precious thing we learn is to believe again we can run fast with no fear, reach the base and run again home’
![Margaret Mitchell was runner-up in the contemporary issues category for her series called This Place, which is described as a personal yet universally relatable story of family and love, loss and survival](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE52000000578-0-image-m-107_1524147646363.jpg)
Margaret Mitchell was runner-up in the contemporary issues category for her series called This Place, which is described as a personal yet universally relatable story of family and love, loss and survival
![Margaret's pictures show everyday life set within a wider socio-economic context on the housing estates of Stirling, Scotland](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/16/4B4FE51200000578-5634705-Margaret_s_pictures_show_everyday_life_set_wihting_a-a-167_1524150979372.jpg)
Margaret’s pictures show everyday life set within a wider socio-economic context on the housing estates of Stirling, Scotland
![Maria Petrenko from Ukraine was third in the discovery category with her photo series about the breakdown of her social relationships](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE4FE00000578-0-image-a-110_1524147790876.jpg)
Maria Petrenko from Ukraine was third in the discovery category with her photo series about the breakdown of her social relationships
![Maria said: 'In my own home I felt comfortable, but going outside caused anxiety. When I realised that it was abnormal, I started to come up with reasons to go out'](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE4E400000578-0-image-a-113_1524147801211.jpg)
Maria said: ‘In my own home I felt comfortable, but going outside caused anxiety. When I realised that it was abnormal, I started to come up with reasons to go out’
![In Italy's most marble-rich area, known as the Apuan Alps, the abundance is surreal. Hundreds of quarries have operated there since the days of ancient Rome and Michelangelo sculpted most of his statues from this stone. Now the trade is booming due to the demand in Saudi Arabia and other gulf states. The photographs of this area's majestic quarries reveal their own isolated world: beautiful, bizarre and severe](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE4D100000578-0-image-a-115_1524147806791.jpg)
In Italy’s most marble-rich area, known as the Apuan Alps, the abundance is surreal. Hundreds of quarries have operated there since the days of ancient Rome and Michelangelo sculpted most of his statues from this stone. Now the trade is booming due to the demand in Saudi Arabia and other gulf states. The photographs of this area’s majestic quarries reveal their own isolated world: beautiful, bizarre and severe
![In the news and current affairs category, Mohd Samsul Mohd Said scooped prizes for his pictures showing the plight of ethnic Rohingya people being forced to flee Rakhine state, Myanmar](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE44000000578-0-image-a-125_1524147855683.jpg)
In the news and current affairs category, Mohd Samsul Mohd Said scooped prizes for his pictures showing the plight of ethnic Rohingya people being forced to flee Rakhine state, Myanmar
![Over 400,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled from Myanmar into Bangladesh since violence erupted in the Rakhine state. This picture shows their life inside the Balukhali camp in Cox's Bazaar, Bangladesh](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/17/4B4FE43500000578-5634705-Over_400_000_Rohingya_Muslims_have_fled_from_Myanmar_into_Bangla-a-38_1524153673058.jpg)
Over 400,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled from Myanmar into Bangladesh since violence erupted in the Rakhine state. This picture shows their life inside the Balukhali camp in Cox’s Bazaar, Bangladesh
![Every Wednesday at Spurgeons Academy, a school in the middle of the indecipherable maze of Kibera's narrow streets and alleys, students take the chairs and benches out of a classroom and sweep the floor. Then they dance. Their ballet class is part of Annos Africa and One Fine Day's charity activity in slum areas around Kenya](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE3EC00000578-0-image-a-130_1524148013956.jpg)
Every Wednesday at Spurgeons Academy, a school in the middle of the indecipherable maze of Kibera’s narrow streets and alleys, students take the chairs and benches out of a classroom and sweep the floor. Then they dance. Their ballet class is part of Annos Africa and One Fine Day’s charity activity in slum areas around Kenya
![Thousands of Palestinian workers spend up to four hours trying to cross Checkpoint 300 every day. The crossing divides Bethlehem and Jerusalem and they must pass over to go to work. This image, taken by Eduardo Castaldo, was created from 30 different shots and, he says, is intended to represent oppression](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE3A000000578-0-image-a-138_1524148069480.jpg)
Thousands of Palestinian workers spend up to four hours trying to cross Checkpoint 300 every day. The crossing divides Bethlehem and Jerusalem and they must pass over to go to work. This image, taken by Eduardo Castaldo, was created from 30 different shots and, he says, is intended to represent oppression
![It is a centuries old belief in several West African countries that twins have spiritual and mystical powers. When in need, people often come to twins seeking a blessing. At Koumassi Grande Mosque people visit these two girls who were captured on camera by Anush Babajanyan](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE30300000578-0-image-a-150_1524148232320.jpg)
It is a centuries old belief in several West African countries that twins have spiritual and mystical powers. When in need, people often come to twins seeking a blessing. At Koumassi Grande Mosque people visit these two girls who were captured on camera by Anush Babajanyan
![People hope that the power of the twins will help their wishes come true. This image was taken in central Abidjan on the Ivory Coast](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE31B00000578-0-image-a-148_1524148220532.jpg)
People hope that the power of the twins will help their wishes come true. This image was taken in central Abidjan on the Ivory Coast
![First in the sport category is Balaz Gardi with his snaps showing buzhazi, a sport in Afghanistan that sees riders battle for control of an animal corpse that they carry toward a goal](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE33C00000578-0-image-a-157_1524148259301.jpg)
First in the sport category is Balaz Gardi with his snaps showing buzhazi, a sport in Afghanistan that sees riders battle for control of an animal corpse that they carry toward a goal
![More than 16 years after the U.S.-led invasion that ousted the Taliban, the sport is dominated by rival warlords who will do anything to maintain power in a turbulent country that once again is up for grabs](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE32C00000578-0-image-a-154_1524148249428.jpg)
More than 16 years after the U.S.-led invasion that ousted the Taliban, the sport is dominated by rival warlords who will do anything to maintain power in a turbulent country that once again is up for grabs
![Behnam Sahvi's entry to the competition was shot at the Child Disability Swimming Championships at the Disability Swimming pool in the Tehran Province of Iran](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/15/4B4FE34F00000578-0-image-a-159_1524148475101.jpg)
Behnam Sahvi’s entry to the competition was shot at the Child Disability Swimming Championships at the Disability Swimming pool in the Tehran Province of Iran
![This bright and breezy shot was captured by photographer Corentin Fohlen in Haiti last October and depicts schoolgirls traipsing to class](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/04/19/17/4B4FE35D00000578-5634705-This_bright_and_breezy_shot_was_captured_by_photographer_Corenti-a-37_1524153673030.jpg)
This bright and breezy shot was captured by photographer Corentin Fohlen in Haiti last October and depicts schoolgirls traipsing to class