The Mono Awards 2025 presented by Synology - the winners!

By Mike O'Connor | 17 September 2025

With more than 3,500 entries, we're delighted to announce the winners of The Mono Awards 2025 presented by Synology, showcasing the finest in black and white photography.

Now in its seventh year, the competition celebrates the diversity of monochrome imagery, and attracts photographers of all levels.

This year’s top honours went to three standout images: New Zealand’s Amy Hughes for a timeless portrait of her son hard at work in a shearing shed in the People category, Australia’s Will Eades, for a dramatic storm scene in the Places category, and Belgium’s George Dian Balan for a striking angle of a majestic elephant in the Animals category.

People Category: Winner

People Category Winner, Amy Hughes, In the shearing sheds. Amy Hughes’ People category winning image In the shearing sheds depicts her eight-year old son Kahu. For Hughes, the image tells a layered, authentic story. “The image speaks to rural life, generational roles, and the connection between humans and animals,” she says.
People Category Winner, Amy Hughes, In the shearing sheds. Amy Hughes’ People category winning image In the shearing sheds depicts her eight-year old son Kahu. For Hughes, the image tells a layered, authentic story. “The image speaks to rural life, generational roles, and the connection between humans and animals,” she says.

Animals Category: Winner

Animals category winner, George Dian Balan, When mammoths ruled the earth.The climax of over 50 million years of elephant evolution, Dian Balan’s Animals category winning image of an Asian Super Tusker sports tusks of the relative size and shape of the southern mammoth, the ancestor of the woolly mammoth. “Very few people know that Asian elephants can grow such amazing ivory, as the African big tusked elephants are better known by the public,” explains Dian Balan. It is thought that just 40 big tusked bulls from each of the two species of African and Asian elephants are left today, out of which just a handful can be considered Super Tuskers, blessed with the largest and longest ivory tusks.
Animals category winner, George Dian Balan, When mammoths ruled the earth. The climax of over 50 million years of elephant evolution, Dian Balan’s Animals category winning image of an Asian Super Tusker sports tusks of the relative size and shape of the southern mammoth, the ancestor of the woolly mammoth. “Very few people know that Asian elephants can grow such amazing ivory, as the African big tusked elephants are better known by the public,” explains Dian Balan. It is thought that just 40 big tusked bulls from each of the two species of African and Asian elephants are left today, out of which just a handful can be considered Super Tuskers, blessed with the largest and longest ivory tusks.

Places Category: Winner

Places category Winner, Will Eades, The heights of Akron. Will Eades’ Places category winning image The Heights of Akron was captured on the U.S. Plains during a storm chase through eastern Colorado. “As the storm structure matured, a violent tornado dropped in front of us, casting dramatic shadows and creating a surreal interplay of light and dust,” he says.“I knew it would be a strong image due to the sheer scale, movement, and the balance between chaos and form — all of which translate powerfully in black and white.”
Places category Winner, Will Eades, The heights of Akron. Will Eades’ Places category winning image The Heights of Akron was captured on the U.S. Plains during a storm chase through eastern Colorado. “As the storm structure matured, a violent tornado dropped in front of us, casting dramatic shadows and creating a surreal interplay of light and dust,” he says.“I knew it would be a strong image due to the sheer scale, movement, and the balance between chaos and form — all of which translate powerfully in black and white.”

Together, they led a field competing for $16,000 in cash and prizes across the three categories of the annual competition, which is run by Australian Photography and Capture magazines and sponsored by Synology.

The judging panel of Anthony McKee, Liz Ham, Paul Blackmore, Alex Frayne, Alex Cearns OAM, Chris Budgeon, Meg Hewitt, Jay Collier, Matt Palmer, Helen Whittle, Mike Langford and Jackie Ranken selected this year’s winners, runners-up and Top 40 images in each category.

“The Mono Awards is a real celebration of black and white photography,” said Mike O’Connor, Editor of Australian Photography.

“The quality of entries this year was outstanding, and proof that black and white photography continues to be hugely popular.”

The winners, runners-up and top 40 images in each of the three categories are published in the October/November issue of Australian Photography mag. It should be in newsstands and letterboxes next week.

Finally, a huge thank you to all our amazing entrants who have turned The Mono Awards into a truly special showcase of the best black and white photography, and a true celebration of the diversity of this wonderful genre. 

You can find out more about The Mono Awards here: www.themonoawards.com.au.

People category: Runner-up
'Mum Said Don't Break the Clothesline,' by Em Hacon. Runner-Up, People Category, The Mono Awards 2025.
'Mum Said Don't Break the Clothesline' by Em Hacon. Runner-up, People Category, The Mono Awards 2025.
People category: 3rd place
'Bob' by Rob Cleary, 3rd Place, People category, The Mono Awards 2025.
Places category: Runner-up
'The Opera House' by David Niu, Runner-up, Places category, The Mono Awards 2025.
Places category: 3rd place
'Varanasi rooftops' by Russell Shakespeare, 3rd Place, Places category, The Mono Awards 2025.
Animals category: Runner-up
'Henry's Nose,' by Lilly Siemon. Runner-Up, Animals Category, The Mono Awards 2025.
'Henry's Nose' by Lilly Siemon. Runner-up, Animals Category, The Mono Awards 2025.
Animals category: 3rd place
'Cockatoo vs Moon' by Rudy Kalele. 3rd Place, Animals category, The Mono Awards 2025.