Judges sifted through thousands of stunning images to select this year’s finalists for the Ocean Photographer of the Year award. The final images include entries from coastal, drone and underwater photographers, highlighting both the beauty of the oceans and the many dangers they face.
This year’s finalists include eels gliding over rocks at low tide, a freediver heading to the depths of a blue hole and an octopus seeking shelter in a plastic bag. The overall winner will be announced in mid-September along with the category winners.
Here is a selection of our favorite photos from the finalists:
Ocean Adventure Photographer of the Year
Benjamin Yavar
A freediver in the middle of a school of sardines. Bohol, Philippines
Byron Conroy
A diver explores the Silfra fissure in Iceland, the tectonic boundary between the North American and Eurasian plates, Iceland
David Verhoeven
Freediver Sun Young Kim dives in the “finless” category at Vertical Blue 2021, a freediving competition Competition in the famous Dean’s Blue Hole. The Bahamas
Tobias Friedrich
Every winter, orcas and humpback whales come to northern Norway to feed in the Atlantic Ocean. Herring. This huge humpback whale filled its mouth with the small fish before it passed the Watch divers closely. Norway
Marine Conservation Photographer of the Year (Hope)
Dilly’s Pouponeau
Young rays rest in the shallow waters of the St. Joseph Atoll Marine Reserve. The image shows the importance of healthy mangrove habitats and isolated island protected areas. Seychelles
Edward Herreño Parra
A whale shark swims next to the Shark water Research vessel, a ship originally used by the Japanese fishing fleet but now used for research purposes. Cocos Island, Costa Rica
Florian Ledoux
A male and female polar bear rest high in the mountains after mating. Spitsbergen, Norway
Shane Gross
A green sea turtle is released by a researcher after it was caught while trying to catch sharks. The researchers reacted quickly, freeing the turtle from its thread, taking measurements and tagging it before releasing it back to the site where it was caught. Seychelles
Marine Conservation Photographer of the Year (Impact)
Francesca Page
An endangered smoothnose wedgefish illustrates the consequences of bycatch. Aceh, Indonesia
Frederik Brogaard
The second largest whale, the fin whale, lies in a whaling station in Iceland waiting to be dismembered and then shipped to Japan. Iceland
Joao Rodrigues
A pregnant stingray is trapped in an aquaculture frame, highlighting the problem of bycatch. Currently, around 40% of the world’s fish stocks are caught unintentionally and are dead or moribund when released back into the sea. Portugal
Pietro Formis
A coconut octopus has found a hiding place in a plastic bag of sandwiches. Philippines
Ocean Fine Art Photographer of the Year
Enric Adrian Gener
A seagull rests on a sea turtle just before they both go their separate ways. Mediterranean
Mark Williams
An orca exhales at the surface. Vancouver Island, Canada
Merche Llobera
A puffin carries fish to feed its chicks. Saltee Islands, Ireland
Mizael Palomeque Gonzalez
The natural pattern of a spotted eagle ray. Quintana Roo, Mexico
The Human Connection Award: People and Planet Ocean
Pavlos Evangelidis
Traditional stilt fishermen try their luck on the tides at sunset in Koggala, Sri Lanka, showing the movement of the water contrasting with the stillness of the fishermen. Traditional, artisanal fishing methods such as these, used for subsistence, do not pose a significant threat to the ocean’s natural resources. On the contrary, they make local communities stakeholders in the health of the ocean.
Tanya Houppermans
Scientists perform an ultrasound scan on a female tiger shark off the coast of Grand Bahama. She was discovered to be pregnant and a groundbreaking device called a birth tag was inserted into her uterus, which does not harm the mother or the puppies. The Bahamas
Yue Hongjun
A freediver with her custom-made fish tail swims among a school of sardines. Moalboal, Philippines
Zhang Xiang
Fishermen on the Fujian coast dry their nets in a complicated way. Because they are woven from hemp fibers, they swell slightly after being immersed in water. China
Marine Photographer of the Year
Andrey Shpatak
A giant Pacific octopus in shallow water. Russia
Laura Leusko
A fever of manta rays from above. As the photographer’s drone got closer, some rays started jumping out of the water. Baja California Sur, Mexico
Merche Llobera
The hunt. Pelicans swoop down from the sky in a well-coordinated dance. Underwater, dolphinfish dart around at top speed, chasing sardines, while sea lions also join in. Baja California Sur, Mexico
Shane Gross
At low tide, spotted moray eels search for food in tide pools. “Their ability to come completely out of the water is amazing and surprising,” says Gross. D’Arros Island, Seychelles
Young Ocean Photographer of the Year
Jacob Guy
An elusive algae octopus shows its fluorescence under ultraviolet light. North Sulawesi, Indonesia
Joao Pontes
A perfectly camouflaged lizardfish with prey in its mouth. Hawaii
Julian Jacobs
A California moray eel remains at the surface of its rapidly shrinking world at low tide. California
On the website you can see all the winners from previous years as well as the remaining finalists for 2024. The Ocean Photographer of the Year is presented by Oceanographic Magazine and Blancpain.
