In a world filled with an onslaught of constant imagery and so much of it AI generated, it was soothing to look through the winners and finalists of the World Food Photography Awards sponsored by Tenderstem®. We selected a few that spoke to us to share with you, the reminded us of how we feel when we walk into our favourite cafes, or a quiet moment of reflection with a cup of our favourite beverage. A reminder that the captured image can have something meaningful to say. What do they have to do with coffee culture? Well, they inspired us. And perhaps they will inspire the coffee photographers to make their mark on a global stage.
Overall Winner - A Woman Eats in the Canteen of the Soviet-era Sanatorium
Jo Kearney/World Food Photography Awards sponsored by Tenderstem®
"The Khoja Obi Garm sanatorium (health hotel), Tajikistan, is a brutalist concrete monstrosity built on hot radon gas-infused springs in the mountains. During Soviet times, communist workers were given two weeks annual holiday here. Today its low price - $28 per day including full board and treatments - attracts ordinary Tajiks plus tourists from the neighbouring 'Stans' and the odd backpacker. Treatments include hot pools and steam rooms, wax wraps and tanning barrels, plus hearty healthy meals." - Jo Kearney
Sadia Sikandar/World Food Photography Awards sponsored by Tenderstem®
“While living in the UK, away from home for seven years, “home” no longer represents a geographical space for me. It is a place I go to where I feel welcome, valued, and able to make good memories. This is a place I pass by whenever I have time; I sit with the restaurant owner, and we gossip and laugh a lot. The place and the people make me feel at home.” - Sadia Sikandar
Sadia Sikandar/World Food Photography Awards sponsored by Tenderstem®
"An elderly man walked into the restaurant and sat alone by the window, sunlight spilling across his table. I didn’t photograph his face - everything felt already there, in the gentle rest of his hand on the coffee cup. I was absorbed, wondering why he was alone, what memories he held, and the quiet stories he told." - Carla Barber
A photographer from South Africa rose triumphant from nearly 9,000 entries submitted from over 50 countries around the world. Louhani Els was Highly Commended in the Cake Award category with her capture ‘Food Altar - Sardines and my Dad’. “This artwork translates Tori Derricotte’s poem (My Dad and Sardines) through food photography, portraying a daughter’s reconciliation with the memory of her deceased father,” says Louhani. “A damaged cake symbolises her brokenness, forming a healing food altar with his sardine, cracker, and onion ritual, uniting father and daughter through remembrance and peace.”
