SNAP JUDGEMENT: French photographer Isabelle Caplain scored the 2026 Belmond Photo Award, which was handed to her Friday at the Paris Photo art fair at the Grand Palais.
Established three years ago by the hospitality operator controlled by LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, the Belmond prize offers a residency at one of its luxury properties and financial support to create a new body of work.
It’s meant to champion new perspectives in travel photography, with the winner selected by a photographer-heavy jury, who sifted through more than 2,000 applicants.
They lauded “Caplain’s distinctive visual language, compositional precision and contemplative approach to storytelling,” according to a release shared first with WWD. “Her images were recognized for their poetry and ability to capture the beauty of human encounters.”
Caplain submitted 10 photos from her sojourn to Morocco’s Drâa-Tafilalet region, which she had first visited a decade prior.
“All the experiences I have pursued over the past few years have been driven by a deep curiosity about others, their cultures, their territories and ways of life,” she commented.
Arnaud Champenois, Belmond’s senior vice president, brand marketing and communications and a jury member, praised Caplain’s use of a medium-format camera, which demands a slower, more intentional approach.
According to him, this “invites the notion of time into her pictures and reveals the beauty of chance
encounters,” he said. “Her approach directly resonates with Belmond’s philosophy of slow travel, encouraging a more considered way of experiencing and exploring the world.”
Members of this year’s jury also included Aperture executive director Sarah Meister and photographers Tyler Mitchell, Rosie Marks and Chris Rhodes.
Belmond’s properties include the Mount Nelson in Cape Town, Copacabana Palace in Rio and Splendido in Portofino, Italy.
A photographer and art director, Caplain has done work for interior design fair Maison & Objet, fashion brand American Vintage and creative consulting group Mazarine, where she worked on accounts including Parfums Christian Dior, Guerlain, Cartier and Chaumet, according to her LinkedIn profile.
