Stories That Matter: Meet the Winners of Our Documentary Photo Contest

In our Documentary Photography Contest, photographers from all over the world submitted remarkable images that reflect diverse cultures, social issues, personal narratives, and unforgettable moments. This annual competition celebrates not just visual skill, but also meaning—the ability of a photographer to bring viewers closer to a story worth telling. In this magazine, we present the winning photographs along with the stories behind them. These are the artists who captured truth in its purest form, offering us glimpses into the lives, emotions, and realities that often go unseen. Their voices—and their images—remind us why documentary photography remains one of the most impactful genres in the field.

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SYED MAHABUBUL KADER

How did you get interested in photography?

I am Syed Mahabubul Kader, born in Dhaka. My journey began as a hobby with a film camera and mobile phone. Seeing powerful works in photo exhibitions inspired me to take photography seriously.In 2010, I bought a point-and-shoot camera and won first place in a competition, receiving my first DSLR as a prize. This motivated me to pursue photography professionally. Since then, I have been working as a freelance photographer with various photo agencies, focusing on the vibrant life and stories of Dhaka.

What is your favorite type of photography?

My favorite genre is photojournalism.I also enjoy travel and street photography, especially capturing candid moments of everyday life.

What are your aspirations as a photographer?

I want to travel more, experience diverse cultures, and strengthen my storytelling.My long-term goal is to expand my work globally, learn continuously, and refine my visual voice.I’ve received more than 50+ national and international photography awards, and I aim to keep developing my craft.

For you, what is photography? What are you thinking when you are shooting?

Photography is how I understand and express life—its joy, sorrow, struggle, and emotion. The camera feels like an extension of my mind.

As a photojournalist, my subjects are ordinary people, and their real emotions influence me deeply. I try to capture and share those raw feelings honestly.

I rarely shoot with a preconceived plan—my subjects and the situation guide my thinking and storytelling.

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MATTHEW HOLLOWAY

I got interested in photography when I was around 12 years old. I was incredibly bored one afternoon, picked up the family Canon camera and began photographing the world around me. My love and passion for it has only grown since. My favourite type of photography is black and white. Although colour holds rich information, black and white strips a scene back to its essential emotional depth. It suspends an image somewhere between light and dark, which reflects much of what I photograph.

Photography has always made sense to me. I’ve always felt it could become a vehicle for change. Beyond photography, I’ve been practising storytelling through multimedia and audio. After graduating next year, I hope to work in a humanitarian NGO or charity, using visual stories to advocate for others.

Photography, for me, is a way to see people and to let them know they are being seen. Photographs are the outcome of a relationship built between me and the subject. Often, the images are simply by-products of real conversations, encounters and shared space. I am drawn to shifting reality into something symbolic, bending it slightly so my perception becomes visible. When I’m making photographs, I’m rarely thinking consciously. It’s instinctive, almost automatic now, after so many years of doing it. That quiet, intuitive response is central to my process.

If anyone would like to connect or see more of my work, please visit my website: www.matthollophoto.com or Instagram: @matthollophoto.

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ANTOINE WEIS

Antoine Weis is a 72 year old citizen of Luxembourg and Switzerland. He has been an active photographer for 60+ years, ever since he was offered his first SLR camera, a Zeiss Ikon Contaflex, at age 9.

The many different facets of light and color in nature have been at the center of his professional life as researcher and teacher in the fields of laser spectroscopy and quantum optics.

For many years, his photographic interests were focused on street and travel photography. Two decades ago, he started to delve deeper into catching and illustrating the beauty of nature, with a particular emphasis on bird photography.

The advent of digital photography has forced Antoine – like so many other photographers - to acquire new skills, skills which turned out to be a blessing since the numerical editing of photos has opened a realm of novel creative possibilities.

Antoine’s photographic work has been honored by several international and national awards, among which a Category Win and an Honorary Mention at Sony WPO contests. Antoine is recipient of AFIAP, EFIAP, EFIAP/b, and EFIAP/s distinctions.

Since his college days, he has been fascinated by the night sky and in the spring od 2025 he has acquired a smart telescope that allows him to photograph deep sky objects from home. The fascination triggered by the quality of those shots has turned him now into an utterly passionate astrophotographer.

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Don't forget to take a look to our other open photo contests for more opportunities to showcase your skills and creativity. Explore them here: www.theartistgallery.art/open-contests.