His work, Adrift in the Sea of Weeds, won first prize in the National Awards category for Vietnam. The image, taken from above, shows a small boat drifting through floating seaweed, highlighting the fragility of humans against vast nature.
Linh, who works at a technology investment fund in Hanoi and pursues photography as a personal passion, said he was surprised by the win. The photo was taken during a family trip to Dam Tre Bay in Con Dao in May 2025.
Originally planning to dive to see coral reefs, he had to change course when conditions did not meet expectations and instead explored seaweed fields.
“I was quite lucky because the seaweed area was truly beautiful,” he said.
The shot was taken using a drone to achieve a near vertical angle from above. However, the process was not without risk, as Linh operated from a small boat at sea. A mistake could have caused the drone to fall into the water, resulting in the loss of all image data.
In post production, he made minimal adjustments. Due to mild colour blindness, he avoids heavy colour editing to prevent distorting natural tones, focusing mainly on reducing water reflections.
Interestingly, Linh said this was not the image he had the highest expectations for among his submissions, as he considered its composition relatively simple. Nevertheless, it became the winning entry in his first time entering the competition.
Following the award, he plans to pursue photography more seriously while continuing his career in technology. His long term focus will be on nature and wildlife photography, particularly endangered species.
“If we do not capture them early, there may be fewer opportunities in the future. I also want to travel across Vietnam to document landscapes and share them with international audiences,” he said.
Previously, Hieu Linh also gained attention for a photograph of Hanoi's sky before a thunderstorm in June 2025.
The impressive moment of Hanoi sky before a thunderstorm captured by Nguyen Hieu Linh in June 2025 (Photo: Nguyen Hieu Linh).
The Sony World Photography Awards, organised annually by the World Photography Organisation, is one of the world’s most prestigious photography competitions.
This year’s edition attracted more than 430,000 entries from over 200 countries and territories.
