Momentum carries for young railroad picture contest victor
Young Railway Photographer of the Year 2025: Dale Bristo Takes the Top Prize
The Young Railway Photographer of the Year competition, an annual UK contest co-organised by the National Railway Museum and the Railway Photographic Society, has seen a significant increase in participation this year. With over 300 entries, double the number from 2022, the competition is fostering young photographic talent and celebrating railway heritage.
The winner of the Best Image prize in the 2025 competition is Dale Bristo, an 18-year-old photographer from St Helens. His winning entry is a dynamic hyperlapse of a Merseyrail Class 777 at Liverpool Central station on the underground Wirral line platform.
Dale's interest in train photography lies in capturing the excitement of large-scale moving vehicles, the satisfaction of the perfect shot, and the visual appeal of the speed and essence of trains. For the winning image, he used a Nikon D7500 DSLR with the 18-105mm AF-S lens.
The theme for the 2025 competition was "Railway 200", linking to the nationwide celebration of the bicentenary of the modern railway, marking 200 years since the Stockton and Darlington Railway. The shortlisted photographs are exhibited at the National Railway Museum in York until January 2026 and at Locomotion in Shildon until August 2025.
The Fujifilm X-T5 in silver with an XF16-50mm lens was the prize for the Best Image prize. Dale believes that railway photography is a genre that isn't explored enough and needs more exposure across the world. He encourages anyone with a passion for trains or the wider transport genre to enter the competition, emphasizing the importance of having a keen eye for detail and visual storytelling.
Another recognized photographer from 2025 is Tobias John, 14, who won a Judge’s Pick prize. The competition is open to UK railway photographers aged 25 or under, offering prizes such as opportunities to contribute to the Railway Photographic Society’s Print Folios, behind-the-scenes tours, and tickets.
One could express the following after reading the text:
- Dale Bristo, the winner of the Young Railway Photographer of the Year 2025 competition, now plans to diversify his focus and explore other genres such as home-and-garden and lifestyle photography, hoping to showcase the visual appeal and intricacies of everyday life as he did with trains.
- In an inspiring speech to aspiring photographers, Dale Bristo, the 18-year-old railway photography champion from St Helens, encouraged them to transcend boundaries and enter not just railway-themed competitions, but expand their horizons into home-and-garden and lifestyle photography, demonstrating the versatility and transferable skills they can acquire.
