Interview of Werner Mansholt - @werner_mansholt

Hello Werner, you are the "Street Photographer" of 2025. What do you think about being selected as a winner among hundreds of other photographers ?

It´s fantastic to be awarded "Gold" as "Street Photographer of the Year 2025", I am very honored and it's wonderful news at the end of the year.

Many thanks to the jury and congratulations to all the other winners.

Can you tell us about your background and how you became a street photographer ?

I have been taking photographs for over 40 years; in addition, I am passionate about travelling and curious about new experiences.

Perhaps this is best described by quoting a text about my work by Wolfgang Zurborn, member of the executive committee of the German Photographic Academy:

"He is interested in people in their environment and their respective cultures. On his travels, he seeks out moments of experience, creating vital documents of everyday life. He does not want to “steal” images or skim off clichéd motifs. His interest in living conditions drives him to tell authentic stories that he encounters on the streets and in public places. For him, the high art is to make himself “invisible” and not attract attention. Any posing for the camera would bother him, as it would distract from what really fascinates him: the moment when all the details in the picture come together and people are shown in relation to their living space."

What about the series « Street Theatre », How did you build this project, and what are your plans for the future ?

The images from the Street Theatre series were taken in different countries and years. For me, they each tell a story about a particular situation that can also spark the viewer's imagination, allowing them to picture what is happening there; there is also a before and after, allowing the imagination to run free. And there are more questions than answers; that’s important.

If the opportunity arises, I will continue working on this project; there are no further plans at present.

As the winner of our photo contest, what advice can you give to photographers who want to apply next year ?

A tip for others could be to be very strict when selecting images, to see if and to what extent images can tell a special story of their own when put together; this sometimes means removing your own favourite images during the pre-selection process because they don't quite fit. Harvey Benge from NZ called this “kill your darlings”.

And, of course, keep submitting your work and be patient and lucky.

Werner Mansholt (@werner_mansholt), is based in Darmstadt, Germany. Appointed Member of DGPh (German Society of Photography).

He has made workshops with Anders Petersen, Lorenzo Castore, Arno R. Minkkinen, Anja Niedringhaus, Simon Norfolk and has exhibited in Germany, Finland, Georgia, Poland, Australia, USA, Italy, UK, Czech, Spain.

His work has appeared in international publications, including the book "Streetphotography2015" (USA), DieZEIT (online), ZEIT-MAGAZIN (online), Wiener Zeitung, Leica-camera.com, LFI - LEICA-Fotografie, LensCulture, DOC-Magazine, phroom-magazine, LIFE-FORCE-MAGAZINE, Photonews, dodho-magazine, L’Oeil de la photographie, lenscratch, SHOT-magazine, Openeye, EyesOpen, Book "Besuch bei Detlef Kraft", Book ODD TALES (89books.com), Book PALERMO DIARY 2023 (89books.com) etc.

His website : https://www.werner-mansholt.de/