There was one image that judge Isobel Parker Philip couldn't shake from her mind amongst the finalists of the 2026 National Photographic Portrait Prize.
It was Melbourne artist Nathan Beard's photograph of his aunty Mae Khong in her home in rural Thailand, bathing as she recuperated from a debilitating fall.
Ms Parker Philip said the photograph was "a really, really tender work" and even without seeing the elderly woman's face "we feel a profound emotional connection to her".
