Josh Edelson wins the 2025 Varenne/Canon Grand Prize
American photographer Josh Edelson has won the 2025 Varenne/Canon Grand Prize for Photojournalism for his series “Deadly Wildfires in California”, produced as part of his collaboration with AFP. The award recognises his unique eye, capable of restoring both the force and the tragedy of a disaster we thought we already knew by heart.
Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Josh Edelson has been working with AFP since 2012. A specialist in covering the wildfires that devastate California each year, he has spent nearly a decade documenting these extreme events from the front lines, alongside firefighters and rescue teams. His images, published around the world, capture with striking power the violence of climate change and the resilience of those affected.
Winner of the Covering Climate Now Award in 2021, Edelson also showcased his work this year at Visa pour l’Image, the international photojournalism festival in Perpignan. He is known for his empathetic eye and his respectful approach to those he photographs. Behind the lens, he combines journalistic rigour with human sensitivity, making him one of the most compelling chroniclers of California’s climate crisis.
Each year, the Varenne Foundation Awards honour journalists who uphold rigorous, verified and ethical reporting, while fostering young talent and promoting journalism in the public interest.
In 2024, the Varenne/Canon Grand Prize was awarded to Sameer Al-Doumy, AFP photojournalist based in Lille, for his photograph “Migrants in Search of Peace”, depicting the anguish of a young African man stranded on a beach in northern France after his makeshift boat was intercepted by police.
The official award ceremony will take place on 18 December 2025 at the French Senate in Paris.
