For our latest Sony Alpha Universe Instagram competition, Alpha Autumn, we called upon you to show us what autumn looks like through your lens. It wasn’t just golden leaves and frosty mornings, you showed us your portrait, wildlife and nature images, and the quality was, once again, outstanding.

The judges have now decided on the winning entries, and we can reveal that the first overall winner was Irena Savic (@irenascaptures) with her stunning landscape image taken on the Grossglockner high alpine road in Austria.

Irena shot the image with her Sony Alpha 7 IV and says, “It’s an incredible camera with excellent image quality and top-notch autofocus. I love the versatility and performance in various shooting conditions.”

Traveling is Irena’s biggest inspiration when it comes to photographing, “exploring new places and experiencing different cultures provides fresh perspectives and unique subjects” she describes. Now, as her prize for winning the competition, Irena will be joined on her travels by a second Alpha 7 IV.

“Having two excellent cameras will be useful in many situations. For example, when I want to make timelapse videos, I can continue to shoot with the other camera. Also, in situations when I need to switch focal lengths, I can have both cameras set up identically with different lenses, making it easy to switch between the two.”

In second place was a stunning portrait image by Tomasz Bossak (@tomaszbossak). “The idea was born while walking through the fields in autumn. The sun was low, and then I noticed how the shape of the plants with the light spreading through them could make for a gorgeous bonnet-style headwear. I collected them, dried them, and made a headpiece. I added a little gold paint to them and then took the portrait of the beautiful model Eva Moskalenko in my studio with my Sony Alpha 7.”

Tomasz’s image shows how inspiration can come from all around us. “Autumn is a special time,” reflects Tomasz. “Colour and light make a big impression, but everything is dying, and you feel nostalgia for spring or summer. However, it becomes so beautiful that it takes your breath away.”

As runner-up, Tomasz will receive a Sony FE 35mm f/1.4 G Master lens, and he has already started working on a collection of portrait projects that he hopes to use his new lens to shoot.

Finally, in third place was Finnish photographer Sami Lehtinen’s (@samilehtinen) image of a Tilhi (Bombycilla garrulus) eating rowan berries, “It was the first time I photographed that bird. I’ve only been photographing animals and nature for a little over a year. Last winter, when I got to know the bird in question, I decided that I wanted to photograph it in autumn. I love autumn because it’s nice to move in nature in the cooler weather, and it’s become atmospheric with the darker evenings and foggy forests.”

It took some research and planning, but Sami was able to capture these beautiful shots of the Tilhi with his Alpha 7 IV.

As the third-place winner, Sami can now add a FE 70-200mm f/4 Macro G OSS II lens to his wildlife shooting camera kit. “I’m really interested in trying the macro function of the lens. I’m going to spend time with it in the forest taking different close-ups, but also, I’m going to see how the focal length works for shooting studio portraits.”

If you want to be in with a chance of winning a future Sony Alpha Universe competition, make sure you follow our Instagram account, @alphauniversebysony.eu