The Minimalist Photography Awards has announced the winners of its 2026 edition, celebrating photographers from around the world who demonstrate how simplicity, space, light, and careful composition can create powerful and memorable images.
This year’s competition received more than 6,200 images from 66 countries, bringing together a diverse range of approaches to minimalist photography across 12 categories. From abstract forms and architectural geometry to landscapes, portraits, night photography, and conceptual work, the 2026 winners demonstrate the extraordinary variety that can exist within the minimalist approach.
At the center of this year’s selection is Polish photographer Marcin Giba, who has been named Minimalist Photographer of the Year 2026 for his series The Last Winter.
Marcin Giba — The Last Winter
Created in Giba’s hometown of Rybnik, Poland, The Last Winter presents frozen lakes from above, photographed using a drone.
At first glance, the photographs appear to be abstract compositions of ice, snow, and texture. But as the viewer looks more closely, unexpected forms begin to emerge , an eye, lips, a heart, and fragments that resemble a human face.
These shapes were not created or imposed by the photographer. Instead, they were discovered within the natural landscape, creating a fascinating relationship between nature, abstraction, and human perception.
The series also carries a deeply personal meaning for Giba. He remembers the winters of his childhood as cold, frosty, and covered in snow. Today, those conditions are becoming increasingly rare in his hometown. When the weather finally allows him to fly his drone over the frozen lakes, he feels that he is documenting a form of beauty that may eventually exist only in memory.
This sense of impermanence gives The Last Winter another layer of meaning. The frozen landscapes are temporary, as are the shapes revealed within them. For a brief moment, the ice becomes a canvas, before the changing seasons erase what was there.
Giba was also awarded 1st Place in the Aerial Photography category, making The Last Winter the defining series of this year’s competition. He receives the competition’s €2,000 Grand Prize.
“Minimalism continues to remind us that an image doesn’t have to be complex to be powerful. The 2026 edition brings together photographers from around the world who find beauty and meaning in simplicity, space, light and silence. What I love about this year’s selection is how different each photographer’s approach is. Together, these images show how much minimalist photography has grown and how relevant and inspiring it continues to be today.” –Milad Safabakhsh, Founder of Minimalist Photography Awards & Jury Member
Explore the 2026 Winners
The complete collection of winning and recognized photographs from the Minimalist Photography Awards 2026 is now available in the official Winners’ Gallery.
From Marcin Giba’s disappearing winter landscapes to the abstract geometry, architecture, conceptual work, and fine art photography selected across the other categories, the 2026 edition offers a broad look at how photographers around the world continue to interpret the idea that less can truly be more.
Explore the complete Minimalist Photography Awards 2026 Winners’ Gallery:
