Aerial Photography Takes Flight as the Epson International Pano Awards Names its 2026 winners
Spanish photographers took both of the top honors at the 17th Epson International Pano Awards. Daniel Viñé Garcia was named Open Photographer of the Year, and Tomás Sánchez Ruiz was named Amateur Photographer of the Year.
The world’s largest competition devoted to panoramic photography drew 4,084 entries from 1,037 photographers in 93 countries, up 19 percent on 2025. The Open competition received 2,122 entries and the Amateur competition 1,962. Another 31 came in the VR/360 category. The year’s big change was the introduction of dedicated Aerial categories, which drew about 680 entries.
“Never has a request from entrants been stronger than the addition of a dedicated Aerial category,” said Pano Awards founder and curator David Evans. He said the aerial view opens up “so much of the world above tripod level” and suits the panoramic format well. Epson Australia and New Zealand Managing Director Craig Heckenberg said the category shows the competition responding to “what photographers are actually doing”.
Open Photographer of the Year. ‘The Sleeping Giant’ by Daniel Viñé Garcia.
Open Photographer of the Year: Daniel Viñé Garcia
Viñé Garcia won the top Open prize, and the Open Aerial category, with The Sleeping Giant. The image shows Parinacota Volcano in Chile, which rises above 6,300 meters, alongside neighboring Pomerape, at more than 6,200 meters. After acclimatising, he spent three days and nights at about 4,500 meters to give himself the best chance at ideal conditions.
“After one last burst of light, the landscape gradually took on magenta tones, wrapping the volcanoes and the high-altitude lakes in a particularly special atmosphere,” he said. The image began as a 360-degree aerial panorama of 33 exposures, which he later reframed to concentrate on “the volcanoes, the light, and the shapes of the landscape.”
‘Cathedral of Starlight’ by Daniel Viñé Garcia. El Peñón, Argentina.
He also collected the RAW Planet Award, and placed in Open Nature and Landscape with two-night panoramas from the Argentine Puna: Cathedral of Starlight and My Perfect Night. Shooting the first, he stayed out so late that police came looking for him. The owner of his accommodation had grown worried. “I suppose she had not imagined quite how late,” he said.
‘Cathedral of Starlight’ by Daniel Viñé Garcia. Antofalla, Argentina.
Open category winners
Mikel Iraeta (Spain) won Open Nature and Landscape with Double arch on Milford Sound, which combines 107 photographs and shows a double arc of the Milky Way. “It is very difficult to have an entire clear night with no rain, no clouds, no moon,” he said, noting that Milford Sound sees rain about 300 days a year and the access road had been closed by avalanche risk the day before. He calls it “an almost impossible photo”.
Winner of the Open Nature and Landscape category. ‘Double arch on Milford Sound’ by Mikel Iraeta.
Xuecheng Liu (USA) won Open Built Environment with Center of the Cosmos, a 25-frame aerial panorama of Times Square. “Times Square is one of the most photographed places in the world, so my challenge was to find a perspective that could make such a familiar place feel unfamiliar again,” he said.
Winner of the Open Built Environment category. ‘Center of the Cosmos’ by Xuecheng Liu.
Francesco Dall’Olmo (Italy) placed second in Open Aerial with Boreal Wings, photographed in the Lofoten Islands.
“Boreal Wings” by Francesco Dall’Olmo.
Wutimet Bunyasirisith (Thailand) was named Southeast Asia Open Photographer of the Year for The Emerald Arch Over Lofoten, shot at Skagsanden Beach in Norway. The aurora was so vast that even his 12mm lens could not take it in at once. “My only choice was to shoot a panorama,” he said. “The conditions that night were brutal, freezing cold, biting winds and I had to wade into the icy seawater to get the shot.” It was only on stitching the frames that he saw the aurora had formed a complete arch around the peak.
Southeast Asia Open Photographer of the Year. ‘The Emerald Arch Over Lofoten’ by Wutimet Bunyasirisith of Thailand
Hattori Tai, Regional Director of Commercial and Industrial Inkjet Products at Epson Southeast Asia, said the company was “thrilled to celebrate the exceptional talent emerging from Southeast Asia for the third year running”.
Amateur Photographer of the Year: Tomás Sánchez Ruiz
Sánchez Ruiz, born in Madrid, won Amateur Nature and Landscape with Double Arch Over Stokksnes, shot beneath Iceland’s Vestrahorn mountains. “On the night I took this photograph, the aurora forecast was not particularly promising,” he said. Then he pulled back the curtain of his hotel room and saw a green glow. The black sand was covered in fresh, untouched snow. Despite visiting almost every trip for ten years, it was the first time he had seen the aurora there. “And there I was, finally taking the photograph I had been waiting for, with a smile on my face.”
Amateur Photographer of the Year Tomás Sánchez Ruiz. “Double Arch Over Stokksnes” Vestrahorn Beach, Iceland.
He was also recognized in Amateur Built Environment for Westminster Abbey, a panorama of the vaulted ceiling of the Henry VII Chapel. “As soon as I entered the chapel and saw its enormous stained-glass windows… I knew I had to get my camera out,” he said.
“Westminster Abbey” by Tomás Sánchez Ruiz
Other Amateur winners
Xuejun Long (China) won Amateur Aerial with Journey of Life, shot at Lake Magadi in Kenya as the lake dried out and exposed interconnected chemical patterns that usually last only a few days. “I was lucky to catch this moment, and a flock of flamingos flew in, adding life and bringing a dreamy, magical scene from the sky,” she said. Mildred Lai (Hong Kong) placed second with The Devil’s Gaze.
Winner of the Amateur Aerial category. “Journey of Life” by Xuejun Long
“The Devil’s Gaze” by Mildred Lai
Sebastián Cantos Navalon (Spain) won Amateur Built Environment with Stairs from Earth to Heaven and placed second with Sphere, both made at the City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia. He built the winner from eight shots, “aiming for the curved lines of the staircase to guide the eye from the ground towards the sky”, creating a double S-shaped spiral.
Winner of the Amateur Built Environment category. “Stairs from Earth to Heaven” by Sebastián Cantos Navalon.
“Sphere” by Sebastián Cantos Navalon.
Special awards
VR/360 Photographer of the Year went to Marcio Esteves Cabral (Brazil) for Diving in a Blue Dream, made in Cenote El Edén, Mexico. He said the greatest challenge was rotating the camera in a tight, clear-water chamber without letting gear or fins stir up the delicate clay floor. Luis García Márquez (Spain) placed second with Harvest of Light.
VR/360 Photographer of the Year Marcio Esteves Cabral. “Diving in a Blue Dream”
The Epson Digital Art Prize, decided by Epson Australia’s executive team for excellence in post-processing and technique, went to Preeti and Prashant Chacko (India) for The Rugby Players. The monochrome image shows five southern white rhinos breaking into a run at Solio Game Reserve in Kenya, with cattle egrets scattering ahead. “Neither of us has ever played rugby, but from the point of view of the egrets this is how we imagine a forward pack must look, heads down and all that weight already committed,” the couple said.
Winner of the Epson Digital Art Prize. ‘The Rugby Players’ by Preeti and Prashant Chacko.
The Curator’s Award went to Max Terwindt (The Netherlands) for Antarctic Nights, a drone panorama from the Antarctic Peninsula. “As it never becomes dark in the Antarctic summer, the sunset slowly faded into the sunrise, so it went from golden hour to blue hour to golden hour again,” he said. Humpback whales and penguins surrounded his group’s two sailing ships. “I remember I only slept for like an hour, but the lack of sleep was definitely worth it.”
Winner of the Curator’s Award. “Antarctic Nights” by Max Terwindt.
Highest Scoring Vertical Image went to Szabi Nemeth (Australia) for Between Giants, photographed in the Indian Ocean off Mauritius. Highest Scoring Gigapixel Image went to Vitaly Golovatyuk (China) for X marks the spot in Shanghai.
Winner of the Highest Scoring Vertical Image category. “Between Giants” by Szabi Nemeth.
Winner of Highest Scoring Gigapixel Image category. “X marks the spot” by Vitaly Golovatyuk.
The Epson International Pano Awards is the world’s largest competition dedicated to panoramic photography and Epson Australia is the main sponsor alongside Epson Southeast Asia.
To view the full gallery of 2026 winning and runner-up images go to the 17th Epson International Pano Awards website: www.thepanoawards.com.
