Sand Country

Photographer

Jidai Matsumoto

Category

Fine Art Photography - Lifestyle

Company

Mauritania

Submission Group

Professional

Year

2025

Country / Region:

Japan

February 2025. I spent a month traveling around the western coast of the Sahara Desert. Through the window of beat up van, I saw many houses and mosques half buried in the sand, appearing and disappearing in the passing landscape. Life in the desert isn’t for the faint hearted. On one windy day, I walked through the desert alone towards the sea. It must have taken about 4 hours. I didn’t cross paths with anyone on my way. Nearby there was only sand, and wind. When on my way back I noticed that my footprints had almost entirely disappeared, returning to the original wave pattern, I decided to make ‘sand’ the focus of this project. I thought that by focusing on the overwhelming presence of sand rather than people, I would better portray the lives of the people living with the Sahara Desert. ※All pictures taken in Mauritania and Western Sahara 2025.

Credits

Photographer
Jidai Matsumoto
More Gold Winners
Professional
2025

Photographer / Company

Gloria V Fenaroli

Category

Fine Art Photography - Conceptual

Country / Region

Italy

Professional
2025

Photographer / Company

Tomoaki Katsuba

Category

Nature Photography - Landscapes

Country / Region

Hong Kong SAR

Professional
2025

Photographer / Company

Steven Thoelen

Category

Special Category - Storytelling photography

Country / Region

Belgium

Amateur
2025

Photographer / Company

Anja Pires

Category

Nature Photography - Wildlife

Country / Region

Switzerland