Talk of brand ambassadorship has been a heated subject for debate in recent months as to whether there is an honest and fair representation. Instead of approaching photographers who are already in the public eye and have a vast following to join forces, Hasselblad does things a little differently and it is refreshing.

Since 2008 the company has housed the bi-annual Hasselblad Masters Competition in search of the next generation. The prestigious competition invites esteemed professionals as well as up-and-coming talent from around the world to submit their best three images for a chance to win the coveted title of being a Hasselblad Master.

Hasselblad Masters are judged on their photographic ability, creativity, compositional skills, conceptual strength and technique – and are acknowledged to have made a compelling contribution to the art of photography. Each entrant must submit three images per category, with the jury voting on the images rather than the photographer. – Hasselblad Official Press Release

The winner of the Hasselblad Masters of 2018 in the Art category is Maria Svarbova (@maria.svarbova) – Bratislava, Slovakia – Link in bio to see all the winners! – #hasselbladmasters #fineartphotography

A post shared by Hasselblad (@hasselblad_official) on Jan 12, 2018 at 5:42am PST

31,500 entries were received for the 2018 competition and eventually narrowed down to 110 finalists, ten for each of the 11 categories. A juried panel in conjunction with public vote chose eleven inspiring photographers to become a Hasselblad Master. The jaw dropping images will be printed in the bi-annual Hasselblad Masters book and the new ambassadors will be invited to collaborate with their brand new medium format camera.

The 2018 Hasselblad Masters

Aerial – Jorge de la Torriente – Miami, USA
Architecture – Kamilla Hanapova – St. Petersburg, Russia
Art – Maria Svarbova – Bratislava, Slovakia
Beauty & Fashion – Michal Baran – Trim, Ireland
Landscape – Benjamin Everett – Lopez Island, USA
Portrait – Tina Signesdottir Hult – Torvastad, Norway
Product – Marcin Gizycki – Warszawa, Poland
Project//21 (Age 21 & Under) – Nabil Rosman – Kota Bharu, Malaysia
Street / Urban – Ben Thomas – Kyneton, Australia
Wedding – Victor Hamke – Leipzig, Germany
Wildlife – Karim Iliya – Haiku, USA

Hasselblad Masters 2018 Finalists | Fashion/Beauty – Now, it is your turn to take part in selecting the next Hasselblad Master in the Fashion/Beauty category. Link in bio to learn more and cast your vote! – The Hasselblad Masters Competition is open to all photographers who have been active professionals for more than three years and who are using digital cameras of at least 16 Megapixel, regardless of brand and format. The Winners will receive a Hasselblad medium format camera and will be asked to create a new series of images that are published in the Hasselblad Masters commemorative book, to be launched in 2018. – #hasselbladmasters #fashionphotography #beautyphotography

A post shared by Hasselblad (@hasselblad_official) on Oct 16, 2017 at 6:44am PDT

“It really struck me how progressive many of the entries were this year and how far the entrants were willing to push the brief. These were the photographers who caught my eye – the ballsy, out-there risk-takers who make compelling pictures that refuse to be ignored. I’m proud to have helped to get this great kit into their hands – their images deserve it.” – Tom Oldham, Masters Jury Member.

The following video is a beautiful gallery of the winning projects from around the world and it is definitely worth a look. You can also visit the gallery here if you’d rather take your time and get lost in the sea of talent; it may inspire you to enter the competition in two years’ time.