The best reportage photos of 2025 in Europe according to World Press
The World Press Photo competition has announced the winners of the year 2025. We will show the winners in the European region. In total, there are seven winners in this segment.
For the first time since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, there are Russians among the winners. This came as a surprise after the victory of Ukrainian Yevhen Malolietka in 2023, the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers (UAPF) explains.
Photographer Florian Bachmeyer with Beyond the Trenches won in the Singles nomination
The photo shows six-year-old Angelina, who suffers from panic attacks after she had to leave her village near Kupyansk. Now the girl lives with her grandmother in Borshchivka, 95 kilometers from the city, and her mother lives and works in Kharkiv.
In this way, the photographer wanted to show children who grew up in a violent environment, but their spirit cannot be broken, because even so, they adapt to a new life.
Photographer Nanna Heitmann with her work Underground Field Hospital won the Singles nomination
The photo shows a soldier wounded near Bakhmut lying in a field hospital, which was set up in an underground winery. Later, the man’s left leg and arm were amputated. On February 22, 2022, the soldier was drafted to fight on the orders of the occupying Russian administration in the occupied Donetsk region.
The photographer Nanna Heitmann was born and raised in Germany, but now lives in Moscow. The contest website states that for the past three years, the photographer has been “documenting Russia’s wartime, full-scale invasion of Ukraine.”
Prins de Vos photographer with his robot Mika wins in the Singles nomination
21-year-old Mika waited 22 months for his first consultation at a gender clinic. During this time, the boy personally paid for a complex surgery and hormone therapy. People around the world wait a long time for their first appointment to confirm the gender they identify with.
The photographer tries to highlight these problems and encourage a more inclusive and compassionate approach to gender confirmation care.
Photographer Maria Abranchez with her photo Maria won the Stories nomination
The photo shows one of Anna Maria’s uniforms. At birth, the woman was named Uthima (meaning “heart” in the Kimbundu language), and her new name was given to her by the family who brought her to Portugal.
Ana Maria’s life as a caregiver and domestic worker in Portugal echoes the experiences of countless women across Europe. By focusing on a woman’s story, the photographer tries to encourage reflection on privilege in life and to honor the lives of Ana Maria and other women with similar fates.
Photographer Mykhailo Tereshchenko with his photo Protests in Georgia also won in the Stories category.
The photo shows the citizens of Georgia (Sakartvelo) who came out to protest in November 2024, when Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze suspended negotiations on EU accession. At that time, clashes between police and protesters occurred in Tbilisi during demonstrations of thousands.
Tereshchenko is a Russian photojournalist who covers social and political issues. Since 2017, he has been working as a staff photographer for the TASS news agency. In an interview with TASS, Tereshchenko talks about his work in Ukraine, including the occupation of Mariupol, which he calls “liberation.”
Photographer Raphael Geigster with his work Democracy Dies in Darkness is another winner in the Stories category.
The photographer captured the German political party Alternative for Germany (AfD) holding a federal party conference. The AfD, which bills itself as the “party of the little people,” made significant gains in 2024 and won 20.8% of the vote in the 2025 elections.
Throughout 2024, the photographer attended AfD rallies to explore and question how the far-right party presents itself. Opponents accuse the AfD of spreading disinformation, divisiveness, hatred, and threatening democracy.
Photographer Alyona Kardash with her work It Smells of Smoke at Home won the Long-Term Projects nomination
In this story, Alyona Kardash reflects on the loss of her home and her love for people who believe in a different version of reality, where war is called a “special operation.” The documentary photographer was born in Siberia but now lives in Hamburg, Germany.
