The 2025 edition of the Ocean Art Underwater Photo Competition, now in its 14th year, has opened for entries.
Offering more than US $60,000 in prizes, the annual contest is organised by online resource the Underwater Photography Guide and aimed at everyone from amateur to professional photographers around the world.
Entries can be made into any of 14 categories. Regarded as the top brackets are Wide Angle, Macro and Marine Life Behaviour, each of which has a corresponding Compact Camera category. This year an innovation sees smartphones and action-cameras included with compacts.
Other sections include Black & White, Marine Life Portrait, Cold/Temperate Water, Blackwater, Underwater Conservation and Nudibranchs.
The Underwater Fashion and Underwater Digital Art categories differ from the others in that they allow complete freedom in post-processing.
The prizes consist of scuba-diving holidays provided by resorts and liveaboards, and underwater photo-gear manufacturers. Winners from each category can rank the prizes they would prefer to receive, making it more likely that they will receive a reward they want.
The judging panel consists of Tony Wu, Marty Snyderman, Mark Strickland and Ipah Uid Lynn, and the competition is organised by Nirupam Nigam, editor-in-chief of Underwater Photography Guide, where the 50+ winning images will appear, Bluewater Photo and Bluewater Travel.
Entry fee is US $10 (£7.50) per photograph (or 11 for $100) and they must be submitted by 11 December, 2025. Divernet will report on the winners in January.
