The Winners Of Ocean Art Photography Contest: 25 Beautiful Underwater Photos

From a synchronized ballet of white-tip reef sharks to the moment a male cardinal fish releases a swarm of freshly-hatched babies from its mouth, the winning underwater photos of the Ocean Art Photography Contest are a revelation of our oceans’ beauty.

This year’s contest, which is organized by the Underwater Photography Guide, broke records with participants from more than 90 countries entering their best underwater photos across 14 categories.

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“From mesmerizing macro shots of marine birth to dramatic wide-angle scenes of cenotes and reefscapes,” the organizers explain, “the winning photographs highlight the beauty, fragility and diversity of underwater ecosystems while inspiring global conservation efforts. Every winning photograph tells a story of perseverance and connection to the ocean.”

A remarkable black-and-white image (below) entitled “Dancing White Tips,” taken in Mexico by photographer Eduardo Labat was selected as the overall “Best in Show” picture of this 13th annual underwater competition.

The sharks’ swirling bodies in Labat’s image provides a fascinating contrast between the water, the animals’ bodies and the white tips of their fins. This strong composition also won the Black & White category.

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Underwater Photos Overall Winner

“It was our last dive of the day, in the afternoon with sunlight fading at Roca Partida, Revillagigedo, Mexico,” Eduardo Labat recalled. “Most white tip sharks congregate in small groups at various ledges throughout the rock formation. On this particular afternoon, though, dozens of sharks formed a tight group at an approximate depth of 25 feet. The sharks were not hunting or exhibiting aggressive behavior. After witnessing this rare event from the periphery of the formation, I slowly ascended to hover just above it. That is where I took this picture. From above, the sharks seemed to be swimming in synchrony in a circular motion.

“I decided to use black-and-white for this picture both because of how the geometry of the formation looked in this style and also because of the natural contrast one can appreciate in black and white regarding the shark tips in relation to the rest of their bodies.”

Wide And Macro Angles Of Underwater Photos

“Heavy rains had fallen in Cancun, Mexico, and sediment and nutrients from the nearby carwash were washed into the cenote, creating stunning colors as light, with its strong vitality, pierced through the reddish waters, revealing a magical moment,” said Hwanhee Kim.

“It is nice to have a wife that puts up with being my model,” joked Todd Aki. “Trying to stay in a certain position in current waters, watching your breathing, following hand directions when you can’t look at the camera is hard work. Luckily, this shot was relatively easy on my wife. She just had to be very calm, which she always is underwater.”

“This juvenile batfish was found at 85-foot depth in Tulamben, Bali, Indonesia,” said Adam Martin. “A snoot was used to try and isolate the flash to the subject, without lighting up too much of the background. The lighting highlights the texture and structure of the fish’s body, emphasize its graceful lines and vivid coloration.”

“In the cold, dark of night mid-winter waters of Port Phillip Bay, I decided to go in search of small creatures that may be living on sessile invertebrates,” said Imogen Manins. “This Pygmy Leatherjacket of approximately 20mm camouflages its highly compressed body with cryptic pattern of ocelli matching perfectly to its host. These timid fish reside close to similarly coloured sargassum seaweeds.”

Corals are animals that engage in a fascinating reproductive process, creating new generations of baby corals.

Typically, thousands of corals belonging to a specific species, spanning hundreds of kilometers of the reef, precisely synchronize their reproduction by releasing egg-and-sperm bundles into the open sea, an intriguing phenomenon known as “broadcast-spawning.” These bundles, propelled by ocean currents, mingle in the water until they encounter a match. This image captures the spectacle as it unfolds only once a year and lasts just a few minutes.

The photo provides a close-up perspective of branching coral spawning, featuring pinkish egg-and-sperm bundles. Witnessing this magical phenomenon gives a unique aesthetic sensation as looking at a colorful underwater snowstorm. This image is part of an ongoing scientific project dedicated to exploring the nightlife and distinctive reproductive behaviors of corals and other inhabitants of the Red Sea coral reef.

Grooved razorfish live in sandy substrates and tend to stay in large groups. Unlike most fish, they’re unique in swimming and positioning themselves vertically with their tails up and snouts down, helping them blend in with sea urchins, sea grass or whip coral. They move together as a group in synchronized movements angling themselves almost identically to each other as seen in the photo, which likely makes it more difficult for predators to isolate individual fish.

Marine Life Behavior And Portraits

On a midsummer night, while most creatures were fast asleep, a male Ostorhinchus properuptus, having completed a week-long incubation period, summoned all its energy and, with a trembling motion, released a swarm of larvae from its mouth.

In Sado, Japan, there is a diving point called “Akaiwa,” a sacred place for the Asian Sheepshead Wrasse. This photo shows two males fighting over territory. On the right is the winner with a wider mouth, the boss of Akaiwa. He is called “Yamato.”

While free-diving in the Red Sea near Marsa Alam, Egypt, this serene dugong appeared, gliding through the water, grazing on seagrass, chasing green sea turtles out of his territory and rising to the surface for air. Then, unexpectedly, he laid himself sideways on the seafloor and began rolling around, much like a puppy scratching an itch.

Despite his eternal smile suggesting otherwise, this male dugong seemed visibly annoyed by the dozen remoras hitching a free ride on him. Being listed as vulnerable on the “Red List” of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, sightings of dugongs are rare. Their remaining isolated population along the shores of the Red Sea is estimated to be just 2,000 individuals.

Encounters like this are a powerful reminder of the wonders that still thrive in our oceans and underscore how vital it is to protect their habitats to safeguard their future.

“During my honeymoon, we visited Southern Australia, where I had the chance to dive and search for the elusive sea dragon, an animal I had dreamed of seeing for years,” said Stefano Cerbai. “I was incredibly lucky not only to find one but also to capture it carrying its eggs on its back near its tail.”

“In order to help protect this hidden ecosystem, over the last eight years I have been exploring and capturing images in over 300 different cenotes of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula,” explained Martin Broen. “This Blue Crab was fishing in a cave where the salty water from the sea mixes with the fresh flow of the cave, standing on a stone and perfectly framed by the light entering the cenote from the jungle above, and tinted by the tannic acid in the water.”

Gunnels are a common fish in the Pacific Northwest. They come in a rainbow of colors and are often found solo or in pairs. Occasionally, one can spot a small group clustered together. Here, 11 gunnels lined up for what seems like a family portrait (one of them playing “hard to shoot”) under a fallen log.

Nudibranchs And Underwater Digital Art

Diving during a first visit to Vancouver Island, Canada, the photographer reached a kelp forest with an overwhelming number of nudibranchs.

Two nudibranch use their extended gonophors to mate, while simultaneously enjoying the delights of a good meal of green tendrils. Nudibranchs are hermaphrodites, but because they cannot self-fertilize they need to find a partner to mate with. After cross-fertilization (and finishing their meal), they both laid their own egg spiral.

“Night snorkeling in the lagoon of St-Pierre on La Reunion island, I found this little shell wandering along the substrate searching for food,” said David Pleuvret. “This specimen has a beautiful electric blue color.”

A nudibranch moves inside a Sarcophyton, surrounded by the coral’s extended polyps that look like a field of flowers in the enchanted atmosphere of the underwater world.

“The sea at Seogwipo, where I captured this image, is often murky due to strong currents,” said Unkoo Kim. “It has also been further impacted by rising sea temperatures. To create images that truly capture the beauty of the sea creatures inhabiting Seogwipo’s waters, I used light as a background and a modified vintage lens to combine multiple exposures with firework bokeh images with a front-view of the Blue hana goby.”

Cardinalfish are mouthbreeders. Females release an egg mass close to her chosen male. The male fertilizes these eggs, then takes them into his mouth for incubation. Fathers are then unable to eat during the incubation period, although research has shown that they may partake in partial brood cannibalism, eating up to 30% of his brood. After all, a guy’s gotta eat.

“On a dive at Atlantis Dumaguete in the Philippines, I slowly approached this egg-laden male and waited patiently until he opened his mouth and aerated his babies. Later, in photoshop, I felt the bright orange of the cardinalfish would work well as licking flames and made a smokey fire creation.”

Compact Underwater Photos

“This photo was taken during a dive trip to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, at a thriving coral bommie with abundant macro life,” said Naomi Springett. “Perched proudly on the Black Sun Coral, this Longnose Hawkfish was not too concerned with my presence and sat still long enough for a few photos before it swam away.”

These Bluestreak Cleaner wrasse and Variegated Lizardfish were spotted on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia — an example of mutualistic symbiosis, which means that both species benefit from their association.

The cleaner wrasse nibbles dead skin and parasites off the larger fish, providing the cleaner fish with food and leaving the lizardfish clean and healthy. Usually Lizardfish are quite skittish, not tolerating photographers to get too close, but this individual was quite content to pose for photos during its cleaning that even included inside its mouth, demonstrating incredible trust on both parts.

“Maya Thila is one of the most famous night dive sites in the world,” said Marco Lausdei. “During a dive, I noticed a whitetip reef shark moving in cyclical patterns, visibly attracted to a cloud of silverfish positioned along the Thila drop-off. Once the shark grew accustomed to my presence, I waited for one of its cyclical movements to bring it within flash range.”

The Magic And The Reality

A Naiad, an enchanting water nymph, dances in an underwater lily pad garden. This image was captured underwater in a cenote (sinkhole) full of lily pads in Mexico.

This image was created as part of an awareness project for the Florida Springs Council about the impacts of water bottling on the local springs. More than 300 bottles of water are produced every minute at water bottling plants such as the ones located just minutes from the Spring where this image was shot.

Not only are these bottles ending up in landfills and introducing micro-plastics into our environment. The bottling of “Spring Water” is causing a loss of water from the Floridian Aquifer, which in turn is reducing water levels and water flow, triggering deterioration of the springs and rivers.

The images created for this campaign are used in ongoing social media and print advertising campaigns to encourage individuals to make a better choice to use reusable water bottles over plastic ones.

All the winning underwater photos can be seen at the Underwater Photography Guide here.

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