A Somali woman concentrates while making paper bracelets, sitting close to a barred window at Lyster Barracks detention centre.

She is in a dormitory where the walls are covered with graffiti scribbled in pencil but the woman appears to be oblivious to her surroundings, absorbed in the meticulous folding and weaving of her bracelet.

This was the scene captured by the lens of Times of Malta photojournalist Darrin Zammit Lupi and which won him the Documentary Photographer of the Year 2014 award at The Societies 2015 Convention.

Mr Zammit Lupi placed second as Photographer of the Year 2014 with the same picture.

The judges said the picture “has a strong narrative with excellent composition – the emotive words along with the action of the subject tell a powerful story”.

“The award for one of my pictures on migration, coming hot on the heels of the publication of my book Isle Landers, is a fantastic rounding-off to what has been a roller coaster ride of a year,” Mr Zammit Lupi said.

Immigration is a “very hot topic” in the UK and Malta, “so having the picture do so well in one of the UK’s top photography contests means a lot to me,” he added.

The award ceremony was held earlier this month during an awards gala dinner, the highlight of The Societies 2015 Convention at the Hilton Metropole Hotel, in London. The Societies is Europe’s largest all-welcome association for the serious photographer.

Last year was an outstanding year for The Societies’ Monthly Image Competition with entries numbering 12,694 from all over the globe.

“This year, we have seen a fantastic range of images and the standard has been very high. The Photographer of the Year Awards represent some of the finest images entered into the competition and have competed against some of the world’s best photographers. Congratulations to all our winners,” Phil Jones, the Societies’ CEO, said.