LCE Photographer of the Year to be crowned at The Photography & Video Show 2025

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And the winner is… you'll have to wait till Sunday March 9 to find out LIVE at this year's show!

On The Lookout: A group of cats taken at a farm in Romania. I had a very short window to take this long distance, handheld, night shot when walking past a farm in the Carpathian Mountains, Romania.
(Image credit: Kevin Pamphlion / LCE Photographer of the Year 2025)

The winners of this year's prestigious London Camera Exchange (LCE) Photographer of the Year 2025 competition are to be revealed live on stage at The Photography & Video Show 2025. The big reveal is due to take place on Sunday, March 9, at 3.45pm on the Creator Stage, so make a date in your diary for what is sure to be a highlight of the show.

The LCE Photographer of the Year is open to non-professional photographers worldwide and has a prize pool of £10,000 ($12,700).

The competition has a total of 14 categories, with genres as diverse as pets, portraits, music, and macro photography. Now in its second year, the competition introduces a new category for 2025, the ‘Emerging Talent’ award for photography students, with a prize awarded to both the photographer and their university or college.

Here is a small selection of shortlisted images from the competition, but come and see them all for yourself, as once the winners and runners-up have been announced, they will be on display in an exhibition for the duration of the four-day Show.

Frosty Daisy Macro Stack: 38 image macro stack taken on a tripod during a frosty day last November. The stacking was completed using Helicon Focus and then some minor adjustments were made in Lightroom.

Frosty Daisy Macro Stack: 38 image macro stack taken on a tripod during a frosty day last November. The stacking was completed using Helicon Focus and then some minor adjustments were made in Lightroom. (Image credit: James Clarke / LCE Photographer of the Year 2025)

Swimmer: From a series of photographs taken of my son under the water in our neighbourhood pool. Capturing the joy of swimming as my son submerges. The combination of colour, distortion, and his eventual disappearance into the depths serves as a portal and signals the beginning of his journey into the wonderland found below the surface of the water. The primary focus of my artwork is to capture not only my son’s love of swimming, but also the distorted combination of colour, light and texture.

Swimmer: From a series of photographs taken of my son under the water in our neighbourhood pool. Capturing the joy of swimming as my son submerges. The combination of color, distortion, and his eventual disappearance into the depths serves as a portal and signals the beginning of his journey into the wonderland found below the surface of the water. The primary focus of my artwork is to capture not only my son’s love of swimming, but also the distorted combination of colour, light and texture. (Image credit: Shannon Maltbie-Davis / LCE Photographer of the Year 2025)

Attach: A boy with a colourful painted face taken during Holi festival. His sad-looking eyes seem to convey a sense of not being able to escape from some unknown worry or sorrows.

Attach: A boy with a colourful painted face taken during Holi festival. His sad-looking eyes seem to convey a sense of not being able to escape from some unknown worry or sorrows. (Image credit: Ye Ko Ko Kyaw / LCE Photographer of the Year 2025)

Close to Heaven: Captured in the early hours of the morning, this image showcases the breathtaking beauty of the Tuscan countryside wrapped in a soft veil of mist. Above, the sky is charged with drama as the sun battles to pierce through the dense clouds, casting a golden glow that dances across the landscape. What makes this image unique is the dramatic interplay between light and shadow. The sun, though partially obscured, cast a diffused golden glow that illuminated pockets of the landscape, creating a painterly effect reminiscent of classic Renaissance paintings.

Close to Heaven: Captured in the early hours of the morning, this image showcases the breathtaking beauty of the Tuscan countryside wrapped in a soft veil of mist. Above, the sky is charged with drama as the sun battles to pierce through the dense clouds, casting a golden glow that dances across the landscape. What makes this image unique is the dramatic interplay between light and shadow. The sun, though partially obscured, cast a diffused golden glow that illuminated pockets of the landscape, creating a painterly effect reminiscent of classic Renaissance paintings. (Image credit: Edyta Rice / LCE Photographer of the Year 2025)

Standing Out From the Crowd: This beautiful flock of Flamingos were all huddled together sleeping. I searched through the group to see if I could find one with their head up against a sea of ‘heads down’. This stunning bird lifted his head to groom and I got the shoot. I knew as soon as I took it, it would be special.Capturing the picture was quite easy as it was great photography weather - it was winter, so soft light. It just needed some patience. I processed it through Photoshop, using all the usual sliders, heal brush for bits and a light gradient layer to really bring out the subject from the rest.

Standing Out From the Crowd: This beautiful flock of Flamingos were all huddled together sleeping. I searched through the group to see if I could find one with their head up against a sea of ‘heads down’. This stunning bird lifted his head to groom and I got the shoot. I knew as soon as I took it, it would be special.Capturing the picture was quite easy as it was great photography weather - it was winter, so soft light. It just needed some patience. I processed it through Photoshop, using all the usual sliders, heal brush for bits and a light gradient layer to really bring out the subject from the rest. (Image credit: Melanie Sharp / LCE Photographer of the Year 2025)

More than 10,000 images were entered into the competition, wowing the judges with their creativity and diversity of content – from high-velocity action shots to sublime portraits and vivid wildlife scenes. The panel of judges revealing the award winners comprises Digital Camera World's very own content director Chris George, professional photojournalist Peter Dench, SheClicks founder and journalist Angela Nicholson, and LCE's managing director Lee Harasyn.

Each of the category winners receives a trophy and £500 ($635) of vouchers to spend at LCE, while the winner takes home a £3,000 ($3,815) voucher – and they'd be wise to take it straight across to the LCE's stand at location D100 to use it to secure one or two of the retailer's famous show bargains!

On The Lookout: A group of cats taken at a farm in Romania. I had a very short window to take this long distance, handheld, night shot when walking past a farm in the Carpathian Mountains, Romania.

(Image credit: Kevin Pamphlion / LCE Photographer of the Year 2025)

Established in Guildford in 1956, London Camera Exchange has grown to be the UK’s premier specialist photographic retailer, with 26 nationwide high street locations. It will be one of three retailers onsite offering special show deals on cameras, lenses, and accessories at this year's Photography & Video Show.

The Photography & Video Show 2025 is at the Excel London exhibition center and runs March 8-11, 2025, open 10:00-17:00 daily.

• SAVE 20% OFF TICKETS TO THE PHOTOGRAPHY & VIDEO SHOW (discount ends March 5)

See our exhaustive show guide for everything you need to know about The Photography & Video Show 2025, including a comprehensive guide to what's on, a full exhibitors' list, must-see speakers, and the free talks and demos you can attend.

The Photography & Video Show is presented by Future plc, which is also the parent company of Digital Camera World.

Adam Waring
Adam Waring
Guides Editor

Prior to joining digitalcameraworld.com as Guides Editor, Adam was the editor of N-Photo: The Nikon Magazine for seven years, and as such is one of Digital Camera World's leading experts when it comes to all things Nikon-related.

Whether it’s reviews and hands-on tests of the latest Nikon cameras and lenses, sharing his skills using filters, tripods, lighting, L brackets and other photography equipment, or trading tips and techniques on shooting landscapes, wildlife and almost any genre of photography, Adam is always on hand to provide his insights.

Prior to his tenure on N-Photo, Adam was also a veteran of publications such as PhotoPlus: The Canon Magazine, so his wealth of photographic knowledge isn’t solely limited to the Big N.

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