Tom Landry says: “A winner never stops trying.”
We are honored to share the winners from our 2017-2018 Best in Travel Photo Award.
Thank you to everyone who participated.
We had nearly 500 entries for our very first award.
AND THE WINNERS ARE:
FIRST PLACE: Azim Khan Ronnie, Red Chilies Pickers in Bangladesh
![Azim Khan Ronnie Bangladesh Red Chillies](https://wesaidgotravel.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Red-1-1024x683.jpg)
Azim Khan Ronnie was born in Dhaka and brought up in Bogra, Bangladesh. He has an utter passion for photography and photography has been his passion. As a photographer, his essential aim is to capture the moments of life and give them significance by making them static in time. He loves to travel and be in different places, meet new people, and enjoy the experience that photography offers, which is to capture Earth’s beautiful and awe-inspiring moments. He also loves to experiment with his photos.
SECOND PLACE: Jan Skwara, The Space in Norway
![Photo by Jan Skwara, The Space in Norway](https://wesaidgotravel.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Jan-Norway1-1024x682.jpg)
Jan Skwara: I’m a traveler and photographer based in Poland. I love to explore new locations, learn about cultures and meet people.
THIRD PLACE: Piers van der Merwe, Majestic Grand Mosque Abu Dhabi
![Grand Mosque by Piers van der Merwe](https://wesaidgotravel.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/grandmosquesml-1024x669.jpg)
Photo by Piers van der Merwe
Piers van Der Merwe: Born in Zimbabwe, educated in Cape Town (UCT), now living in Knoxville, USA. I travel a lot for work, to a wide variety of venues that affords me the opportunity for taking interesting and varied photos. Hobbies, other than photography, include cycling and reading.
Honorable Mention:
Nafis Ameen, Bangladesh Through My Eye
Adonis Villanueva, The Horse in the Carpathians
Dipesh Bhatt, Cormorant Fisherman in China
2017 Photo Award Finalists: Part 1 and Part 2
“There are always new, grander challenges to confront, and a true winner will embrace each one.” —Mia Hamm
We hope you will choose to enter a photo in our 2018-2019 Best in Travel Photo Award which is now open.
JUDGES
Our two judges from our first award will be joined by two new judges. All four of them bring travel and photo expertise and we are honored to have them all participate.
Eve Boissonnault
Eve Boissonnault has been a leader in the international sports and travel industry for over 15 years. She started her career as a journalist at Ski Presse Magazine in Canada for which she became Editor-in-Chief. During her 10-year tenure, she was one of the very few female Editor-in-Chiefs in the North American snow sports industry. She travelled the globe reporting on luxury travel and world-class skiing events such as the Olympics. Starting 2012, she traded the mountain for the beach and set out to write a series of eight travel books about California. Her articles have been published in ELLE Magazine, BMW Experience Magazine and Air Canada’s award-winning publication EnRoute. Eve has received international recognition as one of the Top Sports Writers in the world by the Laureus Sports Organization. Since 2007, she has been acting as jury member for the Laureus World Sports Awards. Eve holds a Master’s Degree in Communication and Semiotics and is currently participating in a Continuing Learning program at Stanford University.
Gary Arndt
Gary is a self-taught travel photographer who was named Travel Photographer of the Year by both the Society of American Travel Writers and the North American Travel Journalists Association. Join his Travel Photography Academy! See his influencer interview on We Said Go Travel.
Jeana
Travel / Lifestyle Blogger | Geeky Mom (the cool kind, of course)
North American Travel Journalists Association
International Travel Writers Alliance
Huffington Post / Surf and Sunshine
Research lab rat turned travel mom, Jeana writes about fashion, beauty, gadgets, food, entertainment, crafts and of course, travel at her lifestyle blogazine SurfandSunshine.com. Recently named by Social Media Week asone of eight people who have more social influence than some large travel brands, Jeana is also consistently listed in Klout’s top 10 Travel influencers as well as the top 5 of Rise Global’s Top 1000 Travel Blogs. When she’s not using her powers for social good, she enjoys photography, cooking and building LEGOs with her son. On occasion, you may also find her crocheting cute things to hide in her husband’s underwear drawer.
Matt Payne
Matt Payne is an Emmy-nominated filmmaker, an award-winning travel photographer and writer, public speaker and adventurer. He is the travel editor for 405 Magazine, the producer of the television show Mosaic Oklahoma and is a contributing writer and photographer to Travel Age West, themanual.com, vagabondish.com, Communities Digital News and many other travel publications. Matt is an adjunct professor at Oklahoma City University and travels the Midwest, inspiring audiences with talks covering a range of topics from travel writing and photography to screenwriting. Matt, his wife, his daughter and two dogs live on a farm outside Oklahoma City along with several horses, two donkeys, three chickens and a temperamental rooster named Wayne.
http://www.mattpaynewriter.com/writing/