2019 PEFC Photographer of the Year – winner announced!

11 November 2019 Forests in photos

We are delighted to announce the 2019 PEFC Photographer of the Year, chosen from thousands of photos entered into the Experience Forests, Experience PEFC photo contest.

The Award went to Sonia Fantini, for her beautiful image ‘Autumn colours’, taken at Lake Bordaglia in the Friuli Venezia Giulia region in Italy.

“Choosing the winning photo was not easy for the jury,” said Ben Gunneberg, PEFC International CEO. “We chose Sonia’s image as we were not only impressed by the colours and composition, but also the feeling it inspired in all of us. It is a very special image.” 

The impact of the image becomes even more stark after hearing the story behind it – it was taken just one week before most of the region’s forests were destroyed by a violent storm.

“One week after I took the photo, a storm brought down trees, flooded roads and isolated villages in the region. I will go back to Lake Bordaglia this autumn and hope to still find it in all its beauty,” said Sonia Fantini.

The contest

For the third time, our ‘Experience Forests, Experience PEFC’ photo contest invited photographers and forest lovers from around the world to show us their best forest photos – and again, we received thousands of stunning images! From trees, wildlife and landscapes to work and play in the forest – the winning photos take us on a discovery tour through the world’s forests.

National contests were run by our members in 13 countries, and the photos entered show the beauty and diversity of forests worldwide. The winners of the national contests entered the international contest to compete for the ‘2019 PEFC Photographer of the Year’ Award.

The top twelve images will star in our 2020 photo calendar and are currently on exhibition at PEFC Forest Certification Week in Würzburg, Germany.