The 13th annual Ocean Art Underwater Photography Competition winners have been announced, with the 2024 edition of the contest bringing entries from more than 90 countries, which the organiser says indicates a wider reach than ever before.
The Best in Show award went to Eduardo Labat for Dancing Whitetips, a black and white shot taken on the remote Revillagigedo archipelago off Mexico.
The Black & White category was highlighted by event organiser the US-based Underwater Photography Guide (UPG) as proving to be a highly competitive one this year. The Conservation category was also singled out out for its drawing attention to the devastating impact of ghost-fishing.
“This year’s Ocean Art competition was nothing short of extraordinary,” commented contest organiser Nirupam Nigam, who is UPG’s editor-in-chief and president of Bluewater Photo.
“These images do more than win awards; they captivate hearts and minds, reaching millions globally and reminding us of our shared responsibility to protect the ocean’s beauty. It’s an honour to see the competition grow in scope and impact every year.” The reach of the winning images is based on them being showcased by an estimated 250+ global media outlets – such as Divernet.
The judging panel as usual included photographers Tony Wu, Marty Snyderman and Mark Strickland, though with a new panellist, Ipah Uid Lynn, joining them to judge the Underwater Digital Art and Underwater Fashion categories.
Ocean Art handed out more than US $60,000 in prizes of underwater camera gear and dive-trips donated by diving resorts and liveaboard operators. Seen below are the winning images in each of the 14 categories:
Wide Angle winner:
Hwanhee Kim / Light

“The week before I captured this shot, heavy rains fell in Cancun [Mexico],” says Kim. “Sediment and nutrients from the nearby Carwash were washed into the cenote, creating stunning colours due to the difference in concentration. Rain is typically a challenge for underwater photography but, in this instance, it produced vibrant hues rarely seen underwater.
“Sunlight, with its strong vitality, pierced through the reddish waters, revealing a magical moment. The light served as a connection between the land and the underwater world, as well as between nature and humans. I felt privileged to witness this beauty and fortunate to have been able to document it.”
Prize: Four-night dive trip for two at Atmosphere Resorts & Spa in the Philippines.
Taken with a Nikon D850 + Nikon 8-15mm in Nauticam housing, natural light. 1/125th, f/7.1, ISO 1100
Macro winner:
Adam Martin / Juvenile Batfish

This juvenile batfish was found 26m deep in Tulamben, Bali in Indonesia. A snoot was used to try and isolate the strobe to the subject, without lighting up too much of the background. The lighting highlights the texture and structure of the fish’s body, emphasising its graceful lines and vivid coloration.
Prize: Nine-night dive trip to Komodo or Raja Ampat with Mermaid Liveaboards
Taken with a Sony A7RV + Canon 100mm Macro in Nauticam housing, Inon strobe with snoot. 1/250th, f/13, ISO 320
Marine Life Behaviour winner:
Yoichi Sato / Born From Mouth

“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,” says Sato, who captured the shot in Minamisatsuma, Kagoshima, Japan. “To minimise stress on the fish, I observed the process under a dim red light.
“During the hatch-out moment, I used red lighting with a special setting that turned off the red light as soon as the strobe’s pre-flash was detected. This set-up effectively eliminated red-light interference in the photograph, ensuring that the image captured the moment as naturally as possible.”
Prize: Seven nights with 12 dives for two at Meridian Adventure Dive Resort, Raja Ampat, Indonesia.
Taken with a Canon EOS R5 + EF-S 60mm F2.8 Macro USM in Nauticam housing, two INON Z330, one RG Blue S02RE-SNC. f/13, 1/125th, ISO 400
Portrait winner:
Stefano Cerbai / Exceptional Shipping

“I was on my honeymoon in Australia, and among the many incredible places we visited was Southern Australia, where I had the chance to dive and search for the elusive seadragon – an animal I had dreamed of seeing for years.
“I was incredibly lucky not only to find and observe one but also to capture a photograph of it carrying its eggs, which it was protecting on its back near its tail.”
Prize: Ikelite DS230 underwater strobe with modelling light.
Taken with a Nikon D7200 + Tokina 10/17 in an Isotta housing, Ikelite strobe. f/16, 1/160th, ISO 250
Coldwater winner:
James Emery / Curious Cormorant

“During a dive in Monterey [California], I was photographing the Metridium fields when I noticed a cormorant swimming down towards us. To my surprise, it began pecking at my wife’s head, but she was completely unfazed.
“I quickly swam over to get a few shots, and then the cormorant’s attention shifted to the reflection in my camera’s dome port. It stayed with us for about 20 minutes, swimming up for air before returning to check us out again. It was a unique and playful moment that gave me a glimpse into the curiosity of the cormorant”.
Prize: $300 Ultralight gift certificate
Taken with a Sony A7III + Canon 8-15mm with Metabones adapter in a Nauticam housing, Kraken KS160 strobes. 1/80th, f/13, ISO 500
Nudibranch winner:
Borut Furlan / Hooded Nudibranchs

“This was my first visit to Vancouver Island in October 2024 and my first visit to Canada at all,” says Furlan. “I didn’t have much knowledge about the area so decided to use a wide-angle zoom lens on most of my dives because of its diversity.
“When I reached the kelp forest with hooded nudibranchs, I was simply shocked. I have never before seen so many nudibranchs in one spot. There were many thousands of them and they were everywhere, on the bottom, on the kelp and even swimming. I shot hundreds of various images of them and this one is one from this series.”
Prize: Up to 10 nights on Oceania from Walindi Plantation Resort, PNG
Taken with a Nikon D850 + Nikkor 28-80 / 3.3-5.6 + Nauticam WACP (converted to Seacam), two Seacam 150D strobes. 1/40th, f/14, ISO 400
Blackwater winner:
Kyungshin Kim / Hunting

“I captured this shot during a blackwater dive in Anilao [Philippines] last November,” says Kim, who had at first noticed two squid stuck together and assumed they were mating. “On closer inspection I realised they were not mating – one squid was eating the other, a smaller squid.
“Squid are known to engage in cannibalism, but it’s rare to witness small squid eating each other during a blackwater dive. I carefully followed and observed them, managing to capture a few photos.
“After about 10 minutes, the colour of the smaller squid began to fade. Finally, it released a spurt of black ink. Shortly after, the squid that had finished eating slowly disappeared into the distance, while the squid that became its prey sank into the dark depths of the sea.”
Prize: Seven-night dive package at Dive Resort in Puerto Galera dive resort in the Philippines from El Galleon / Asia Divers
Taken with a Nikon Z8 + 60mm macro in a Nauticam housing, two Kraken S160 and one Weefine 5000 light. 1/200th, f/20, ISO 200
Underwater Conservation winner:
Kimber Greenwood / Drowning in Plastic

This image taken at High Springs was created as part of an awareness project for the Florida Springs Council about the impact of water-bottling on the local Florida Springs. More than 300 bottles of water are produced every minute at water-bottling plants such as those located 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, but the bottling of “spring water” is causing a loss of water from the Floridian Aquifer, which is reducing water levels and water flow, causing deterioration of the springs and rivers,” says Greenwood.
“The bottles used for this image were donated from a local conservation activist who pulled them off the production belt of a local bottling plant.” The images are used in social media and print advertising campaigns to encourage individuals to switch to reusable water bottles.
Prize: Two Marelux Apollo S Strobes plus Lumilink
Taken with a Sony A7IV + 24-70mm F2.8 GM. 1/500th f/3.5, ISO 400
Underwater Digital Art winner:
Unkoo Kim / Desire

The sea at Seogwipo on Jeju Island, South Korea is close to Kim’s heart but far from an ideal environment for underwater photography, often murky and with strong currents. “Seogwipo’s waters have been further impacted by rising sea temperatures, a lack of subjects and other factors,” says Kim, who had been unsure how to capture the beauty of the sea creatures there before deciding to use light as a background to highlight them.
“I took this image during the best season of the year. To capture a front-view image of the blue hana goby, I spent countless hours observing and getting close to them. Imagining the dynamic interplay of the blue hana goby with bokeh lights, I used tools I had prepared in advance and a modified vintage lens to combine multiple exposures with firework bokeh images.
“While capturing firework images is not particularly difficult, it requires meticulous preparation, effort, practice and, most importantly, time to build a connection with the subjects.”
Prize: Marelux SOFt Lite Snoot plus dock.
Taken with a Nikon D850 + 60mm macro lens / Bell & Howell Filmovara alteration in a Nauticam housing, two Ikelite DS230 strobes, Sofirn underwater lantern. 1/160th, f/11, ISO 100
Black & White winner + Best In Show:
Eduardo Labat / Dancing Whitetips

“It was our last dive of the day, in the afternoon with sunlight fading,” says Labat. At Roca Partida [Revillagigedos, Mexico] most whitetip sharks congregate in small groups at various ledges throughout the rock formation.”
A large aggregation of whitetips started forming some distance from the rock, with dozens forming a tight group at around 8m deep but not hunting or exhibiting aggressive behaviour.
“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. It was beautiful to witness.
“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.
Prize: Four nights for two with 7 dives at All 4 Diving / Akaya Bali
Taken with a Sony A6600 + Tokina 10-17mm F/3.5-4.5 Fish-eye in a Nauticam housing, Sea & Sea YS-D3 DUO strobes. 1/160th, f4.0, ISO 640
Underwater Fashion winner:
Lucie Drlikova / Long Live The Queen!

The Evil Queen from the Snow White fairytale is lifted by her demons in this photo, part of Drlikova’s personal project “Once Upon a Dream in Waterland“, which she has been working on for seven years.
“This project represents a return to my childhood dreams – all costumes, scenes and props are hand-made by myself,” she says. The shot was taken in an 8m-deep pool at Aquapalace Praha in the Czech Republic.
Prize: $400 Bluewater Photo gift certificate
Taken with a Nikon D810 + Nikor 17/35 f2/8 in a Nauticam housing, Subtronic strobes. 1/160th, f/8, ISO 500
Compact Wide Angle winner:
Marco Lausdei / Hunting in the Night

Diving at the famous Maya Thila site in the Maldives, Lasdei noticed a whitetip reef shark moving in cyclical patterns, visibly attracted to a cloud of silverfish positioned along the thila drop-off.
“Using a nearby boulder for cover, I carefully hid and minimised my bubbles, trying to get as close as possible without disturbing the predator’s behaviour,” he says. “Once the shark grew accustomed to my presence, I waited for one of its cyclical movements to bring it within flash range.
“I timed the shot to capture not only the shark but also the evasive motion of the cloud of potential prey. The shot was taken from a bottom-to-top angle, intentionally including the surface of the sea to add depth and dimension to the image. Understanding the subject’s habits and behaviour was essential to the success of this shot.”
Prize: Seven-night liveaboard trip on Bilikiki in the Solomon Islands
Taken with a Sony RX100m5 + Seafrog dome in a Seafrog housing. 1/160th, f/10, ISO 200
Compact Macro winner:
Naomi Springett / Longnose Hawkfish

“For our honeymoon, we joined a liveaboard dive trip to the Great Barrier Reef. This photo was taken on one of the nicest dives of the trip: a thriving coral bommie with abundant macro life. Perched proudly on the black sun coral, this longnose hawkfish was not too concerned with my presence and, much to my delight, sat still long enough for me to get a few photos before it swam away.
“With so many tropical fish being camera-shy, this was a rare treat. Black sun coral is among my favourite corals; the rich green colours provided a contrasting background for this striking fish.”
Prize: Eight-day dive trip to Galapagos on Aqua liveaboard from Andean Travel Company.
Taken with an Olympus TG-4 in a PT-056 housing, two Sea and Sea strobes. 1/40th, f/8, ISO 200
Compact Behaviour winner:
Naomi Springett / Mutualism

This bluestreak cleaner wrasse and variegated lizardfish were spotted on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, an example of mutualistic symbiosis. “Usually lizardfish are quite skittish, not tolerating photographers to get too close, but this individual was quite content to pose for photos during its clean,” says Springett of her second winning shot.
“I was amazed to watch the smaller fish dart all over the lizardfish, even into its mouth, demonstrating incredible trust on the part of the smaller fish, eventually settling right on top of the lizardfish’s head!”
Prize: as above
Taken with an Olympus TG-7 in a PT-059 housing, two Sea and Sea strobes. 1/80th, f/13, ISO 200
These images along with all the runners-up and honourably mentioned photos can be seen with background stories at the site of organiser Underwater Photography Guide.
Also on Divernet: No monkeying with AI: Ocean Art prizes ‘pure photography’, Fighting pike stand out in Ocean Art contest, Octopus selfie scoops Ocean Art pool