A flock of thousands of pink-footed geese flying over snow-covered ground, immortalized by the Norwegian photographer Terje Kolaas, is the overall winner of the Drone Awards 2021, the main international contest of aerial photography. The image, titled Pink-Footed Geese Meeting the Winter, was shot in central Norway and portrays geese flying towards Svalbard, in the Arctic, with the landscape still covered with snow. The birds’ early arrival is likely linked to climate change. The photo was selected from tens of thousands of images submitted by photographers from 102 countries and, together with the first-place shots classified in the eight categories of the Drone Photo Awards, will be showcased in the "Above Us Only Sky" exhibition, scheduled in Siena from October 23rd to December 5th as part of the Siena Awards festival dedicated to the visual arts.
#1 Duoyishu Terraces By Ran Tian (Highly Commended In Abstract Category)
"A spectacular aerial view of the famous Duoyishu terraces where rice is grown. The shades of colors of the different levels of the rice fields create a unique effect."
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181points
#2 Back To Adventure By Qasim Al Farsi (1st Place In Wildlife Category)
"A green turtle heading back to the water after laying down eggs in her peaceful nest at Oman coastline between Ras Al Jinz and Rashad turtle reserve."
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172points
#3 Passaggio Sospeso By Paolo Crocetta (Highly Commended In Urban Category)
"The Vaccanonesa is a small train that connects the city of Trento with the villages of Val di Non and Val di Sole in Trentino. During its ride through the apple orchards, the train makes this breathtaking passage above a gorge over 150 meters high."
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154points
#4 Pure Power By Phil De Glanville (Highly Commended In Nature Category)
"Like people, each wave has a unique journey with the power to inspire. Photo captured off the southwest coast of Western Australia."
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138points
#5 Colorful Terraces By Tuan Nguyen Tan (Highly Commended In Series Category)
"Every year in May, during the pouring season in the terraced rice fields, the water pours from one field to another, merging with the color of the earth and the clouds in the sky. The light reflections that are created on the surface of the water mix together to create colorful images."
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132points
#6 Camel Shadows At Sunset By Jim Picôt (Highly Commended In Nature Category)
"Flying the drone over the ocean, I spotted the approaching camels, with human guests on board, and noticed the beautiful light, and shadows, and also the eloquent wave patterns on the shoreline."
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122points
#7 Pray For Souls By Phu Khanh Bui (Highly Commended In People Category)
"In the full moon of July, as part of the Vietnamese culture, women put on the traditional costumes called "Ao Dai" to join the colored lantern and flower-garland releasing festival on the river to pray for happiness and good luck to their families. May the souls of their dead relatives and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in peace in heaven."
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117points
#8 Hippopotamus Group From Above By Talib Almarri (Highly Commended In Wildlife Category)
"Hippopotamus group from above creating an amazing pattern. All hippos are adults except one baby who is in the center."
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113points
#9 Extragalactic By Martin Sanchez (1st Place In Nature Category)
"The intense and glorious moments during an erupting volcano with an exclusive view from the inside. Captured in Iceland."
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103points
#10 Gold At The End Of The Rainbow By Phil De Glanville (1st Place In Sports Category)
"I found gold at the end of this rainbow as a surfer, Ollie Henry, escapes a monster wave off the coast of South West Western Australia."
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92points
#11 Metaphorical Statement About City And Winter By Sergei Poletaev (1st In Urban Category)
"A 500-year-old monastery in the Moscow region and a large power plant in the background. The steam from the cooling towers is particularly dense due to severe frost."
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90points
#12 The Great Divide By Janessa Anderson (Runner-Up In Nature Category)
"Ice sheets drift apart on a glacial-fed lake providing a brief opportunity for exploration. With one path to continue moving forward, moving towards hope, this vast expanse of ice provides a look into the power and grandeur that nature possesses."
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87points
#13 Buddhists Are Praying By Khanh Phan (Highly Commended In People Category)
"Thousands of Buddhists are praying on the occasion of the New Year at Hoang Phap pagoda in Hoc Mon District. They light thousands of candles and pray in the night."
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86points
#14 Henningsvær By Nando Harmsen (Highly Commended In Urban Category)
"The football field of the fishing town called Henningsvær at Lofoten is a special one. The green artificial grass stands out from the winter landscape. Would you dare to play here?"
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85points
#15 Polar Bear Hunting By Florian Ledoux (Highly Commended In Wildlife Category)
"Polar bear hunting seal from an iceberg in Svalbard during the summer while the sea ice is gone all the way north to 83°N."
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85points
#16 Collecting Water From Driedout Riverbeds By Sujon Adhikary (Highly Commended In People Category)
"Around 263 million people globally have access to water sources that are considered safe, but need to spend at least 30 minutes walking or queuing to collect their water. And the task of providing water for households falls disproportionately to women and girls, especially in rural areas."
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81points
#17 One-Shot By Lampson Karmin Yip (Highly Commended In Sports Category)
"Hong Kong basketball player Hui Huen Hang Hyman practicing his shoot during Siu Hei sports ground opening event on July 4, 2020."
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80points
#18 Habitat By Henrique Murta (Highly Commended In Series Category)
"This series is about human architecture rising up from the wild. Nature, in its finest shape, with a human touch that ends up adding balance to the scene. Places where humans live inside dream lands. I am essentially a nature photographer, and the search for pure nature’s beauty has been one of my main life goals for more than ten years. Along this search path, I got surprised a few times by getting driven into a deep state of joy when finding balance between the natural landscape and human elements. That is usually not very common, and when it happens, it is worth taking some time to contemplate. And that is the idea of this series: I would like to invite your eyes to perceive all the elements of these complex compositions, and the way they fit to one another."
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78points
#19 Poisoned River By Gheorghe Popa (1st In Abstract Category)
"This is a detailed photograph of one of the small rivers filled with poison. 'Poisoned Beauty' is a personal project that tells the story of the natural disaster in the Apuseni Mountains, but in a beautifully abstract way. This abstract colorful pattern is created by nature combined with the chemical waste resulted from the copper and gold mining process."
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70points
#20 Pink-Footed Geese Meeting The Winter By Terje Kolaas (Photo Of The Year)
"Thousands of pink-footed geese roost in central Norway in spring, on their way to the breeding grounds on Svalbard in the Arctics. Probably because of climate change, they arrive earlier every year and often the ground and the fields where they feed are covered by snow when they arrive. The geese tend to use the same paths, so when waiting for them in the air with a drone, photos like this one are possible."
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65points