Food with friends proves a winning recipe for Chinese photographer

The winner of the top prize at this year’s World Food Photography Awards says the enduring vibrancy of China’s culinary heritage is the key to her success and that of the other Chinese photographers who won awards this year and in previous competitions.

Li Xiaoling won the Food for the Family category with the image The Elderly Having Delicious Food, which was also announced as the competition’s overall top prize-winning image at an awards ceremony in London.

Several other Chinese entrants picked up category wins or commendations at the awards, which were sponsored by Bimi, maintaining a record of Chinese success in the competition going back several years.

“China’s excellence in this competition stems from its profound culinary heritage and effective multimedia promotion, such as CCTV’s Food Channel, short video platforms like RedNote, and TikTok,” said Li.

“Behind every dish lies a touching cultural story — an extraordinary experience. To me, it’s not just about the taste, but also the rich history, inherited traditions, and people’s wisdom of life, which inspire me to explore deeper.”

This year’s competition was divided into 25 categories and drew nearly 10,000 entries from 70 countries, with several other Chinese entrants enjoying success in addition to the overall winning image.

Chang Jiangbin, who was a category winner at the competition in 2022, won the Bring Home the Harvest category with Net Fish in Water Fields, an action shot featuring children leaping to catch fish in post-harvest paddy fields.

“I am truly thrilled to win this award,” said Chang. “This honour further strengthens my dedication to photography, ignites greater passion, and serves as a new starting point for continuous learning. For a photographer, the journey to better perfect the craft never ends; we’re always on the road!”

In the same category, Zeng Xiaojian was highly commended for Aroma of Pressed Salted Duck, which depicts ducks being air-dried, and received the same honour in the Food in Action class with Traditional Sugar Making, taken in East China’s Jiangxi province, which shows water being boiled out of sugar cane juice.

Su Shaolong had three images in the finals, taking third place in Food for the Family category with Village Big Pot of Meat, taken in the Yi ethnic area of Daliangshan, Southwest China’s Sichuan province, and another third place in the Street Food category with Warm Atmosphere at Winter Street, a picture of a street vendor in the run-up to Spring Festival.

Su was also highly commended for Food Temptation, a picture of grilled fish, which was entered in the Food for Sale category.

Yu Chunshui was also highly commended in the Food for the Family category, for The Taste of Home, which depicts an elderly couple cooking on an antique stovetop in an age-old hidden mountain village in Wuyuan.

Li’s overall winning image of a group of elderly women eating and laughing together in Shuangliu Ancient Town, Sichuan province, was described by awards founder Caroline Kenyon as “a perfect winning image for our times … colour, composition, the variety of expressions while one determinedly ploughs on with their food. I defy anyone not to be uplifted by this photograph”.

“The joy they have in each other’s company is palpable, a powerful rebuke to those who would divide us,” Kenyon said.

Li said she had specifically practised food photography before entering the competition, and had taken numerous shots to capture exactly the right moment, but the finished product was one of her personal favourite images.

She explained that the picture shows how “food makes people happy, they enjoy a beautiful and joyful life”, and also contained a cultural reference, which may elude non-Chinese audiences.

“They are setting up a Dragon Gate formation, an expression used in China to refer to neighbourhood friends coming together to chat, gossip and share stories,” she added.

“What I love most is how they happily eat while chatting and reminiscing about childhood memories.

“Despite their age, they remain energetic and convey optimism through food, embracing a youthful lifestyle and showcasing the warmth of neighbourly bonds. They relish family joy and spend each day with warmth and delight, accompanied by good food in peaceful times.”