Richard Perin, Return to Eden (PEOPLE 2025)

A woman stands barefoot at the edge of an ocean. She wears nothing but found things, shells: a delicate arrangement of strung together with thin, natural fiber. The shells are imperfect, weathered, and organic. Her posture is serene yet powerful. Her gaze is contemplative. Her hair is loose and wild, strands lifted by the wind, echoing the untamed spirit of the scene. The background is minimal. The absence of color intensifies the emotional weight—this is not a tropical paradise, but a sacred threshold. The photo feels ancient and modern at once, like a rediscovered relic from a forgotten civilization. A return to nature, to innocence, to a time without shame. A Return to Eden.  The shells evoke innocence and primal beauty—clothing not made by man, but by the sea. Her nudity is not provocative but symbolic: a shedding of artifice, a return to origin. The water represents life, cleansing, and rebirth. The grayscale palette strips away distraction, focusing the viewer on form, emotion, and symbolism.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.