Taken with a 61MP resolution specialist camera, this dark and moody vision of a Japanese temple transforms a postcard favorite into fine art​

A dramatic, low-light photograph of the red and white wooden structures of the Byōdō-in Temple in Uji, Japan, reflected clearly in the dark water of a pond, with a single white koi fish near the bottom left corner.

Buddhist temples in Japan are major tourist attractions, and the most popular have been photographed literally millions of times. So if you're entering an image of a temple into a competition, it's going to be an uphill struggle to get noticed, especially within Japan itself.

Nonetheless, awards judges were drawn towards this shot by Rintaro Ukon, who's somehow managed to portray one of the country’s most familiar architectural wonders in a way that's more visual poetry than tourist snap.

Originally a country palace for the Fujiwara clan, Byodo-in’s Phoenix Hall was converted to a temple by Yorimichi Fujiwara to enshrine the Buddha Amida. Featured on Japan’s 10‑yen coin, it's one of the most photographed places in Japan today, and visitors queue daily to shoot it straight across the pond, to capture the full reflection in their lens.