In pictures: The winners from the 2017 Scottish Press Photography Awards

THESE stunning images are the winning entries from this year’s Scottish Press Photography Awards.

The awards recognise press photographers for their talent, consistent high standards and the lengths they go to to get the perfect shot to grab the readers’ attention.

The SPP Award winners for 2017 will form an exhibition hosted at the Scottish Parliament from 19 October 2017 until 8 February 2018 as part of the Festival of Politics.

The Sunday Post’s Picture Editor Jeremy Bayston, one of the judges, said: “Congratulations to everyone who took the time to submit their work at this year’s awards. There were some fantastic entries which made it incredibly tough to judge. Each entrant proved to have a great eye for an image and should be proud of their efforts.”

Mark Asquith, Group Picture Editor for the Dundee Daily Newspapers and Alasdair Baird, the Daily Record’s Picture Editor, were the other members of the panel.

Mark said: “I really enjoyed judging this year’s photography for the Scottish Press Photography Awards. The fantastic selection of photography entered shows a dedicated group of individuals who are prepared to go well beyond the expected to create their work. It’s a pleasure to judge their photography and be a part of press photography in Scotland.”

Alasdair added: “This years SPPA entries displayed a truly excellent representation of the Scottish Press photographers skills and talent in Scotland today. A splendid mixture of hard news images that captured the moment, requiring great timing and skill, to shots of great creativity that demanded thought, clever planning and technical knowledge.

“They have managed to capture not only the moment, but the humour or emotion therin too. These, along with the special talent of being at the right spot at the right time, a quality that only some possess, are the ingredients that make Press Photographers the rare and exceptional breed they are.”