Australian photojournalist named overall winner at Sony World Photo Awards

13 April 2022

Australian photojournalist Adam Ferguson has taken out top honours at the 2022 Sony World Photo Awards, being named Photographer of the Year and taking home the US$25,000 (AU$33,000) cash prize.

Victor Roman Castro (41) and Gertrudis Ortega Ramirez (38), take a portrait with their one-month-old daughter at the El Buen Samaritano migrants’ shelter in Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico on 28 April, 2021. Photo by Gertrudis Ortega Ramirez and Adam Ferguson.

Ferguson's winning entry, Migrantes, is a series of black and white self-portraits of migrants in Mexico, taken as they waited to cross the border into the United States.

Stephanie Solano, age 17, from Zacapa, Guatemala. She takes a portrait of herself at an informal migrant camp at a municipal park in Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico on 3 May 2021. © Adam Ferguson, Australia, Photographer of the Year, Professional, Portraiture, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards.

Photographed in collaboration with the subjects, Ferguson said he set-up the scene for each image, mounting a medium format camera on a tripod with a cable release, and then stepped back, allowing the individuals to choose the moment of capture and participate in the process of documenting their lives.

Edwardo Benavides, age 40 and his son Jonathon Benavides Reyes, age 9, are migrants from La Union, El Salvador. They took a portrait at an informal migrant camp at a municipal park in Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico on 5 May 2021. © Adam Ferguson, Australia, Photographer of the Year, Professional, Portraiture, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards. — Edwardo Benavides, age 40 and his son Jonathon Benavides Reyes, age 9, are migrants from La Union, El Salvador. They took a portrait at an informal migrant camp at a municipal park in Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico on 5 May 2021.
© Adam Ferguson, Australia, Photographer of the Year, Professional, Portraiture,
2022 Sony World Photography Awards.

"Through collaborating with migrants, this series of photographs was an attempt to make images that inspired empathy, rather than sympathy," said Ferguson.

"By surrendering the control of capture and giving each migrant agency in the process of their representation, I hoped to subvert the narrative of marginalization and create a story that felt more human, relatable and honest."

Doris Maria Lara Caballero, age 31, is a migrant from Department Cortés, Honduras. She takes a portrait of herself at the Enrique Romero Municipal Gymnasium in Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico on 30 April 2021. © Adam Ferguson, Australia, Photographer of the Year, Professional, Portraiture, 2022 Sony World Photography Awards. — Doris Maria Lara Caballero, age 31, is a migrant from Department Cortés, Honduras. She takes a portrait of herself at the Enrique Romero Municipal Gymnasium in Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico on 30 April 2021.
© Adam Ferguson, Australia, Photographer of the Year, Professional, Portraiture,
2022 Sony World Photography Awards.

Speaking to 9 News, Ferguson said he travelled to Mexico during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Upon arriving at his first destination in Ciudad Juárez, on the Rio Grande, he found the entire city in lockdown.

"It made it difficult for me to access the migrants because a lot of the migrant shelters put in very strict rules around access. They were trying to keep COVID out of their establishments and out of their shelters," he said.

Ferguson worked alongside two Mexican journalists, who he said made the project possible. "Mexico is the most dangerous country on the planet to work in as a local journalist," said Ferguson. "I worked with two very good journalists in Mexico that really made my job possible, helping me find migrants and translate. I’m grateful to the brave and resilient individuals who agreed to work with me, and receive this award on behalf of them also. Winning the Photographer of the Year award gives this story another life. It allows a new audience to connect with the important stories of the individuals who shared their story with me."

As well as the cash prize, Ferguson wins a selection of Sony photography gear.

Top placegetters the various categories appears below. Australian photographer Adam Pretty took our second place in the Sport category.