These haunting images make history as Bangladesh's first student photographer wins global honor at Sony World Photography Awards

The fish belong in the river, but the river is gone. A man stands in the water, while balloons shaped like dolphins float above, a parody of joy.

"The fish belong in the river – but the river is gone." A man who was once a fisherman stands in the remaining shallow water in Dhaka, Bangladesh – now selling plastic imitations of fish that can no longer be caught here.

It's a stark, visually striking scene – one that points to a wider reality where nature is replaced by replicas. The image captures the impact of urbanization, a theme central to Jubair Ahmed Arnob's series The Place Where I Used To Play, which visually narrates the changing landscape of Green Model Town – a process reshaping daily life and the suburban typography.

Now, the work has earned Arnob the Student Photographer of the Year title at the Sony World Photography Awards 2026, which this year invited students globally to submit to the theme Together. It marks the first time in the competition's 19-year history that a photographer from Bangladesh has received the honor.

Where the Water Once Was – the Balu River is now a makeshift playground. This image opens the series, reflecting how communities preserve memory, even as urbanization erases the past (Image credit: © Jubair Ahmed Arnob, Bangladesh, Student Photographer of the Year, Student Competition, Sony World Photography Awards 2026)

Arnob is a documentary photographer based in Bangladesh, working on socio-environmental change and quiet, often overlooked narratives.

He developed his practice at Counter Foto, an institution that has been shaping Bangladesh's contemporary photography scene. Its approach emphasizes locally, rooted, socially engaged education – using photography as a tool "for pleasure but also as a weapon to change society for good."

Arnob's series reflects this ethos. He uses photography as a tool for observation, resistance, and reflection. What begins as a personal memory of place becomes a broader metaphor for loss and adaptation, where lived experience is gradually replaced by representation.

The Migration of Dreams – The image evokes resilience and tenderness amid vanishing nature and advancing concrete. Arnob notes, "the parents embody adaptation and migration, while their children's innocence contrasts with looming towers, hinting at hope and uncertain futures" (Image credit: © Jubair Ahmed Arnob, Bangladesh, Student Photographer of the Year, Student Competition, Sony World Photography Awards 2026)

SWPA's exhibition in London

The Sony World Photography Awards 2026 exhibition is on display at Somerset House, London, from April 17 to May 4, presenting over 300 prints and hundreds of images in digital displays, as well as a special presentation by Joel Meyerowitz.

For more information and to discover the full list of winners and shortlisted entries, visit the official Sony World Photography Awards website.

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