The Abbey Road music photography awards 2026 have announced their winners, with images of Oasis, Leicester punks and a Kyiv techno rave among the standout entries. The competition attracted 24,500 submissions from 42 countries.
Oasis wins music moment of the year
Joshua Halling took the music moment of the year award for his image of Oasis's 2025 tour in Buenos Aires, which Noel Gallagher singled out as the best show of the entire run, saying: 'Those people from that country, in that stadium … they're heaven-sent people'. Angus Jenner's judge's choice winner captured Liam Gallagher with his arm around brother Noel as they walked on stage for the opening night of the reunion tour in Cardiff.
Emerging photographer and live music honours
Dara Petrova won emerging photographer of the year for her images from a techno rave in Kyiv, Ukraine, in May 2025. 'Techno raves have quotas of free tickets for military personnel and veterans and have become a place for informal socialisation among the population,' Petrova said. 'It is a place where military personnel can socialise and civilians can relieve stress'.
Tom Pallant took the live music award for an image of Yungblud and his bassist, Silke Blansjaar, engulfed in fog while performing in Luxembourg. Yungblud sent a video message to Pallant congratulating him on his win, saying: 'You're the best there is at the minute'.
Punk heritage and other categories
Wayne Large won the 50 years of punk category for a 1979 image of members of various punk bands, including Crazyhead and Gaye Bykers on Acid, pictured with Dolly and Harriet in Castle Gardens, Leicester. AF Cortés took the underground scenes award for an audience shot at a secret show by hardcore punk band Kartel on abandoned train tracks in Brooklyn in July 2025.
Gabrielle Ravet won behind the scenes for her image of My Chemical Romance fans readying themselves for the first show of the Long Live the Black Parade tour in Seattle. Frances Carter took the portrait prize for her photograph of British singer-songwriter Billie Marten on horseback during her first trip to New Zealand. 'We'd only just met about an hour before this photo was taken, but her calm presence was so easy to connect with,' Carter said.
Giulia Spadafora won the festivals category for her image of the audience at Glastonbury festival, taken at the Stone Circle opening ceremony in June 2025. Judge Raye said: 'Art is subjective, it's not logic, it's not one plus one equals two. It's about seeing something that moves you. This photograph moved me, it made me want to be the girl on the rock, her face slightly sullen is such a beautiful contrast to the rest of the scene'.
Notable finalists
Finalists included Manuel Vázquez's portrait of Warren Ellis with his dogs Larry and Piglet at the Flask Tavern in north London, Charlie Barclay Harris's live image of Carlos O'Connell of Fontaines DC in Ireland, Isaac Wheatley's shot of Ghanaian vocalist KiDi in Accra, Ian Zandi's image of the Killing Floors at Echo Park Rising in Los Angeles, Suzanne Phoenix's photo of Australian punk band Private Function in Melbourne, Sophie Buckley's behind-the-scenes capture of Izzy Baxter Phillips of Black Honey, and Jack Oliver's image of Charli xcx marking the end of her Brat era at Glastonbury.
