Australian Life photography competition 2025 – in pictures

From coast to coast, these snapshots of the everyday lives of everyday Australians capture moments of love, laughter, grief and grind.

Thirroul Servo Crew Picture: Chris Duczynski

Thirroul Servo Crew

Chris Duczynski

Remember the days when a forecourt attendant would pump fuel for you? That’s still a thing at the Thirroul Service Station, south of Sydney. “It’s just a tradition we’ve kept up,” says owner Graeme Rutledge, pictured with forecourt attendant Avery, left, and apprentice mechanics Katie and Mitchell. “We’ll wash windows and pump up the tyres, too, on request.” Rutledge’s parents bought the business in 1946 and he has worked there for 55 years. “Cars have changed a lot in that time – they’re much more technical now, and the work is cleaner and less physical,” says the 76-year-old, whose passion in life is racing his collection of vintage Triumphs. He loves the job (“it’s very satisfying to repair cars”) and has no plans to retire. “Why would I?” he says cheerfully. “I’m having too much fun.”

Abandon Ship. Picture: Lidia D Opera

Abandon Ship

Lidia D’Opera

The red pontoon installed every summer off South Beach in Fremantle is a magnet for the Cold Nips. This bunch of like-minded people meet at dawn every Wednesday at beaches around Perth to start their day with an invigorating ocean swim, perhaps followed by a spot of yoga, or coffee and a chat. A self-described “community movement built on connection, discomfort, nature and joy”, Cold Nips now has groups on the Gold Coast and in Sydney, too.

Sea of Horns. Picture: Rach Ryan

Sea of Horns

Rach Ryan

Rach Ryan used an iPhone to capture this atmospheric shot of her sister Esther drafting feral goats on the family’s 250,000-acre grazing property at Tilpa in NSW’s far west. Goats roam freely out there on the Darling River flood plains, “and as long as they’re on your property, you own them”, Ryan says; once or twice a year they’ll muster them with a chopper and a ground crew. With a thriving export market for goat meat (most goes to the US and China), it’s a handy stream of income, as well as a way to reduce pressure on the land.

Riley and the Roma Southern Road. Picture: Carly Earl

Riley Swanson on the Roma Southern Road

Carly Earl

Riley Swanson, left, was part of a droving team taking 2000 steers on a four-month journey in the “long paddock” in Queensland in late 2024. (The network of historic stock routes is still used to feed and water cattle in tough times.) Swanson, 19, is a city boy with no family connections to agriculture. “In Brisbane I enjoyed watching westerns with my Nanny and that first gave me the idea for droving,” he told Guardian Australia. “Life is simple out here. It’s beautiful country, and there’s no stress – you’re only thinking about the next watering point.”

Beast Unleashed. Picture: Melissa Crisa

Beast Unleashed

Melissa Crisa

It hit 44C in Adelaide on February 12 this year. “We were the hottest city in the world!” says Melissa Crisa, whose boys Sebastian and Cristiano – AKA Bash and Nano – are pictured cooling off with Humphrey, the family’s young poodle. “Humphrey goes crazy in water – he turns into a beast unleashed,” Crisa laughs. “Bash and Nano look a bit stand-offish because they wanted to play in the water and Humphrey just took over, charging through the spray. They’re like, ‘Are you for real?’”

Sweetheart Merriwa. Picture: Therese Maher

Sweetheart, Merriwa

Thérèse Maher

Merriwa was a fine racehorse in her youth. “She had about a dozen starts at country races, and won four or five,” says Terry Maher, who bought her when she was not much more than a foal. “She held the track record over 1000m at Taree for five years.” Merriwa was retired early from racing and thereafter became a beloved fixture at Maher’s farm in NSW’s Hunter Valley. “She was a beautiful animal – gentle and intelligent,” he says. “She loved to be around people.” His granddaughter Eugenie, especially, loved to groom her. Alas, Merriwa had to be put down last year, aged 12, after an infection got into her bones. Eugenie, 10, is pictured saying a last goodbye. “It was the first time she’d really encountered death,” says her mum Thérèse, who captured this image. “It was an absolute bummer of a day.”

I Am Max. Picture: Rob Palmer

I Am Max

Rob Palmer

“From a very young age, our son Max would describe feeling like there was a dark shadow over his heart and that his body was ‘broken’,” says photographer Rob Palmer. “It took a long time for him to open up about why. It all stemmed from the fact that he felt different – he was interested in things that, according to societal gender expectations, he ‘shouldn’t’ be.” Max especially loves to dance. Here, the youngster (who turns nine today – happy birthday, champ) is pictured in the playground at his new school, Bondi Public. “He’s found a group of kids there who just let Max be Max,” Palmer says. “His friends and family are doing everything we can to support him, to help him celebrate what makes him different.”

Australian Life finalists will be exhibited at Sydney’s Customs House Square from July 31 to August 24