This year, Siena International Photo Awards has received many submissions from several countries. It is 48,000 submissions from 156 countries. Therefore, it had been a very hard task for judges. It had been challenge for them since they have to decide the winners. Almost all the participants were equally talented. However, they have selected several winners like in 2017 and 2016. Sometimes we are not aware of how beautiful our world is, but these images show how diverse our beautiful world really is.

In every year, this completion includes a special category. Splash of Colors, seeking out exceptional color compositions is the special category which has included in this year. Totally, the entrants competed in 11 categories, ranging from stunning landscapes to subtle portraits and dramatic sports moments.

Furthermore, the first winner of this competition is a Bangladesh national person who is Mr. K M Asad. He has been documenting the plight of the persecuted Rohingya in Myanmar for six years now, and this chilling photo of a young Rohingya refugee perfectly portrays the awful human tragedy unfolding there.

Scroll down and check out the rest of the winning images.

More info: sipacontest.com

#1 El Calbuco, Chile (1st Place In The Beauty Of The Nature Category)

This photograph was taken during a violent night eruption of the Calbuco volcano in the Lagos region, Chile. An incredible dirt storm wraps the fumarole of the erupting volcano

#2 Sharing Emotion (Remarkable Award In Fascinating Faces And Characters Category)

#3 Arctic Fox, USA (3rd Place In Animals In Their Environment Category)

I encountered this fox scavenging a Caribou’s carcass on the coastal plains of Alaska’s Arctic. I spent two hours slowly approaching it until I took this picture from six feet away, as she finished her meal. It was a surreal and unforgettable experience and a rare opportunity to be accepted into a wild animal’s existence for a few special hours

#4 Rhino Silhouette, Kenya (Honorable Mention In Animals In Their Environment Category)

I was taking an early ride out from the camp in Masai Mara National Park, searching for the Great Migration, when I saw a rhino from far away standing beside a tree. The backlight from the early sun was too strong, so I took a silhouette instead

#5 Cosmic Wildflowers, Brazil (Honorable Mention In The beauty of the nature Category)

The 180º panorama, with the milky way in the background, magnifies a field of Paepalanthus wildflowers in the National Park of Veadeiros Tablelands

#6 Underwater View Of The Winter Lofoten (Remarkable Award In The Beauty Of The Nature Category)

#7 Nemo In The House (Remarkable Award In Animals In Their Environment Category)

#9 Toy Houses, Russia (1st Place In Architecture & Urban Spaces Category)

This picture of some Russian dachas near the city of Arkhangelsk is interesting thanks to the intense contrast between the colors of the houses and the white snow covering the Russian town

#10 The Wave, Antarctica Waters (3rd Place In Journeys And Adventures Category)

In the Drake Passage, between Cape Horn and Antarctica, a 12-meter wave pounds the boat’s forecastle with its enormous splashes

#11 Camels In The Desert, Mongolia (2nd Place In General Color Category)

On the evening of October 24, 2017, in Inner Mongolia, camels and their loyal dog were creating waves of dust under the sunset’s glow. This spectacular picturesque scene in the Mongolian desert was created thanks to the shadows and magnificent light cast upon the desert

#12 Run! (Remarkable Award In Animals In Their Environment Category)

#13 Joana, Dancer At The Tropicana, Sat With Her Grandmother, Cuba (Honorable Mention In Fascinating faces and characters Category)

Joana Menendez Gonzalez, a performer at the Tropicana Cabaret in Havana, sat with her maternal grandmother, proudly looking at her

#14 Love On The Rocks (Remarkable Award In Animals In Their Environment Category)

#15 Jump, Canada (Honorable Mention In Animals In Their Environment Category)

#15 Jump, Canada (Honorable Mention In Animals In Their Environment Category)

A snowy owl takes flight alarmed by the call of another female. This species gives particular care to protecting its own hunting territory

#16 Break, Indonesia (Honorable Mention In Fascinating faces and characters Category)

During heavy work at a noodle factory in Indonesia, this man had the chance to rest for a little while. His exhausted expression is a clear sign of the extremely hard working conditions these people face every day

#17 Mind The Gap, Antarctica (Honorable Mention In Animals In Their Environment Category)

A small group of Emperor Penguins huddles near a crack in an ice floe, in a pristine area of the Southern Ocean adjacent to Antarctica, known as the Ross Sea

#18 Battle Victim, Bangladesh (Photo Of The Year)

In Cox’s Bazar, Asmat Ara looks clearly traumatized after the recent violence which took place in Myanmar, on September 6th, 2017. The previous night she had entered Tenkhali Rohingya refugee camp with her family from Kumar Khali, Myanmar Rohingya state. According to the UNHCR, more than 646,000 Rohingya refugees have fled from Myanmar since August 25th, 2017, most of them trying to cross the border to reach Bangladesh

#19 Killer Whale In Polar Night, Norway (Honorable Mention In Animals In Their Environment Category)

A killer whale emerges on the surface while hunting in an Arctic Norwegian fjord during the polar night

#20 The Road Of Fortune, Vietnam (Honorable Mention in Splash of Colors category)

In Vietnam, red is the color of good luck and is traditionally considered the symbolic color of happiness. Joss sticks are offered at altars to obtain good business and good fortune

#21 Little Nenets Nedko, Russia (Honorable Mention In Journeys and Adventures Category)

The North is a fantastic region populated by extraordinary people with a distinct culture fully adjusted to the environment of the extreme North. Despite being in the 21st century, people of the North still maintain their traditional culture, reflecting the time-honored, close interaction between people and nature, demonstrating a genuinely caring attitude towards everything that surrounds them

#22 The Beakful Of The Hoopoe, Italy (Honorable Mention In Animals In Their Environment Category)

Looking, as usual, for the nests of the most beautiful bird species in Trentino, I unexpectedly saw this hoopoe and I immediately grasped the opportunity to photograph it

#23 Share (Remarkable Award In Fascinating Faces And Characters Category)

#24 Flying On The Beach, The Netherlands (Honorable Mention In General Color Category)

I was lying down in the cold water looking for the right position and took this picture at the exact moment when the dog was jumping high to catch the disc, almost flying in the sky

#25 Drink, China (Honorable Mention In Fascinating faces and characters Category)

In a small hilltop village with water shortage problems, a little boy drinks water from a water pipe

#26 Duel In The Snow (Remarkable Award In Animals In Their Environment Category)

#27 Kitten (Remarkable Award In Animals In Their Environment Category)

#28 Kid With Hand Crafts, Ethiopia (1st Place In Fascinating Faces And Characters Category)

In Ethiopia, the kids of the Suri tribe are being over-protected by their families. Imagine these metal handcrafts as a jail with a Suri kid locked inside. Young kids are the hope and inheritors of the Suri culture, but the overprotection will marginalize the new generation from the world

#29 Floating Market, Indonesia (1st Place In Splash Of Colors Category)

Early in the morning before sunrise up to a hundred boats meet at the colorful Lok Baintan Floating Market in Indonesia. It is one of the oldest markets in Asia where the inhabitants still trade from traditional wooden boats

#30 Travelers, Antarctica (3rd Place In The Beauty Of The Nature Category)

A group of Chinstrap Penguins (Pygoscelis Antarctica) is resting on an iceberg. When sailing Antarctic waters you will often see different types of icebergs. Some of these floating islands are great resting places for hunting penguins who can travel many kilometers, before jumping back into the icy water

#31 Giochi In Verde (Remarkable Award In The Beauty Of The Nature Category)

#32 Polar Trout, Norway (Honorable Mention In The beauty of the nature Category)

A brown trout spawning in a special night atmosphere as the stars and the full moonlight the scene

#33 Cold At Surface, Norway (Honorable Mention In The beauty of the nature Category)

In the waters of Tromsø, during a freezing polar night (-18°C), a killer whale is taking a breath at the cold surface gifting us this amazing photo

#34 Facing Reality, Pleneau Island, Antarctic Peninsula (1st Place In Animals In Their Environment Category)

A leopard seal got into a lagoon just before low tide. The seal was hiding, waiting to ambush young penguins as they got closer. When a penguin got close enough, the seal moved extremely fast and caught the penguin by its feet dragging it to the open water. I was following parallel to the action. The seal released the penguin twice and the terrified penguin succeeded in escaping, but the seal continued chasing after it, and on the third attempt, drowned the penguin and devoured it

#35 Migration, Saudi Arabia (2nd Place In The Beauty Of The Nature Category)

In the desert of Dahana, in the center of Saudi Arabia, Bedouins migrate with camels from place to place, searching for food and water. I took this picture while a group of nomads was passing us with their camels, creating beautiful shadows in a peaceful atmosphere

#36 Flying Fishing Nest, China (3rd Place In General Color Category)

This image is able to evoke a sense of peace, portraying a fisherman at work on the Ningde Jiuli River in Xiapu County, China, while the wind lifts his fishing nets. The special light, the sun’s rays, and the wind all add up creating a magical and striking atmosphere

#37 Redyk, Poland (Honorable Mention In Journeys and Adventures Category)

In this photo of Mizerna, in southern Poland, the traditional sheep grazing, called “Redyk”, has more than 1,500 animals. From the Low Beskid Mountains, shepherds bring back the animals to the city of Nowy Targ, where the owners will take care of them during the winter. The animals will go back to the mountains in spring

#38 Vulture And Jackal (Remarkable Award In Animals In Their Environment Category)

#39 The Window, Costa Rica (Honorable Mention In The beauty of the nature Category)

During my stay in a hotel in Costa Rica, red-eyed frogs (Agalichnis callydrias) flooded the gardens. As I approached this one, it climbed into one of the holes and I photographed the frog as if it were sticking out of a window

#40 Unity, Bangladesh (Honorable Mention In Animals In Their Environment Category)

Unity is the strength, as with teamwork and collaboration with which wonderful things can be achieved. Here this frog wanted to eat the ants, but its own life is at risk in the face of their unity

#41 School Of Barracuda (Remarkable Award In Animals In Their Environment Category)

#42 The Twins’ Gymnastics Dream, China (3rd Place In Story-Telling Category)