Winners - Underwater Photography Contests
February 2017 Photo Contest Winner and Review
WINNER CHOSEN AND REVIEW BY SCUBAVERSE.COM’S UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY EDITORS NICK & CAROLINE ROBERTSON-BROWN
WINNER: Double Exposure by Alessandro Giannaccini
*Please note that Alessandro’s winning shot is a portrait photo, and had to be converted into a landscape shot to be displayed above. Follow the photolink below to see the photo in its correct orientation:
PHOTOLINK: https://www.scubaverse.com/contestants/alessandro-giannaccini/
When judging any underwater photography competition, the first thing we do is ask of each image: Is it in focus? The main subject has to be pin sharp. Is it exposed correctly?
We then look at lighting (photography is all about light) and composition. Backscatter, hot spots of light, messy backgrounds all might see your image lose out.
Then there are other considerations that might get you knocked out of the first round: Was the image taken underwater? After all it is an underwater photography competition! Were any animals distressed or harassed to get the image? Was any environmental damage done to get the shot?
Once we have whittled out the images that do not pass these criteria, it is time to get down to picking a winner. A shot that makes us both go wow – I wish I had taken that!
February 2017
Wow – the shortest month of the year has brought a bumper crop of images! This is our biggest entry to date with 89 images for us to look through.
We are overseas at the moment, so this month we are sitting over a laptop at the airport judging the images together. It was very difficult to single out the finalists, so we had to be particularly single-minded this month – but here are our thoughts.
The shots that really stood out for us this month are:
Sardine Run by Alex Permiakov – an interesting shot with lots of action and eye contact going on in the frame.
Don’t Mess with Me by Kirk Irwin – this is a real eye-catcher! Fabulous use of monochrome to give maximum impact. Genuine contrast, with the eel’s black shapes making him melt into the background. Well done.
Showing off his beautiful fins by Khoo yi ping – lovely snoot shot, and we also like the artistry in Tinny Winny Nemos too.
A sealy sea lion fishing for compliments by Ryan Sault is gorgeous. Lovely expression on the sea lion face really gives the viewer the knowledge of what it is like to dive with these characters.
Wondrous Weedy by David Zakarias. Love the angle this shot is taken at, which helps create a 3D effect. Eye in focus and a lovely shot.
Porcelain crab by Mariska van der Paauw. Lovely macro shot of this crab in its environment. It is all too easy to close down the depth of field and lose that effect. We like this.
Double Exposure by Giannaccini Alessandro. This is a great shot (well two actually!) beautiful lighting using a difficult technique to master. We both prefer this one, with the second in this series looking a little forced. This one looks natural, almost giving the impression of a close up wide angle shot.
Jump by Giannaccini Alessandro. Another great shot. Pin sharp subject and a beautiful bokeh background
Underwater Boxing by Karlo Macas. Interesting bit of creative underwater photography. Nice reflection on the pool surface and a well composed shot.
Underwater Climbing by Mario Robillard. Simple but effective. Everything in focus, subject really pops out of the dark background.
Banded Sea Krait by Tracey Jones. This shot is worth a mention if only for the difficulty in capturing this image at night! The use of a snooting light is perfect and this really jumped out at us when judging.
Cuttlefish by David Haintz. Love this. Very engaging subject that has been well lit. Shame the very top of his tentacle has been clipped.
Scorpion Fish by Tim Spaanheden Dencker. Love the contrasting textures in this shot. Lovely coral to find this fish resting on.
My Buddy in Action by Marc Eeckhaut. A great shot of one of our favourite subjects (the frogfish not the diver) Well done.
Giant Frogfish by Daniel Slaughter. Understated but wonderful. The lighting is subtle but works on this tough subject. Black and brown frogfish are notoriously difficult
Lizard Fish by Daniel Slaughter. Another great shot by Daniel of another difficult subject. Love the eyes on this one
Hairy Frogfish by Larry Davis. It is a crazy month for Frogfish this month! We love the hairy ones and this shot includes the environment it lives in to give it some perspective.
Walk Tall by Sean Steininger. A great shot of this coconut octopus facing-off to the camera, A bit more eye contact would have made this a superb wow shot!
Inky Black by Mark Chivers. A beautiful colour capture of these photogenic animals which really works well on a black background
And the winners are…
Winner is Double Exposure by Giannaccini Alessandro
Second Place is Banded Sea Krait by Tracey Jones
Joint Third Place (too hard to separate) are Lizard Fish by Daniel Slaughter and Don’t Mess with Me by Kirk Irwin
Well done everybody. Let’s see if we can get over a hundred entries in March!
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Scubaverse.com’s March 2017 Photo Contest is now live! Enter here.
WINNER CHOSEN AND REVIEW BY SCUBAVERSE.COM’S UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR NICK ROBERTSON-BROWN
WINNER: Basket star in the pure darkness by Arnaud Guillebert
Another great month full of wonderful underwater images!
When judging any underwater photography competition, the first thing I do is ask of each image: Is it in focus? The main subject has to be pin sharp. Is it exposed correctly?
I then look at lighting (photography is all about light) and composition. Backscatter, hot spots of light, messy backgrounds: all might see your image lose out.
Then there are other considerations that might get you knocked out of the first round: Was the image taken underwater? After all it is an underwater photography competition! Were any animals distressed or harassed to get the image? Was any environmental damage done to get the shot?
Once I have whittled out the images that do not pass these criteria, it is time to get down to picking a winner. A shot that makes me go wow – I wish I had taken that!
Three squid by Min seok Jeon: I love squid and this shot with three against a black background really stands out. I love the colours and shapes they create as they stretch across the frame.
Hippocampus guttulatus (Cuvier, 1829) by Marco Spoto: What a lovely scene. Great that you did not disturb the worm on taking this shot. I would have liked to have seen the subject isolated more though, losing the backscatter and seabed which can distact the eye.
Turtle in its coral garden by Claude Lespagne: What I like about this image is the snorkeler at the surface looking down on the scene. It shows that you do not have to be a diver to enjoy a stunning Red Sea scene like this one.
Ghost Goby by MichaelG: I love the colours, the expression on the goby’s face and most of all the texture of the coral. Lovely use of depth of field.
Hedgehog by Sofia Tenggrono: Great use of a snoot. You have lit up just enough of the environment to show us where this nudibranch lives, but still have highlighted the subject really well. The complimentary colours are lovely.
yellow cutie by Cedric Peneau: Lovely framing of a really cute little fish. The colours jump out from my screen.
REFLET by DIDIER PASQUINI: I like the motion in the tail and the reflection in this image of the biggest fish in the sea. I always like a bit more space in front of a fish when possible – but I know this will have been hard with a big Whale Shark.
Basket star in the pure darkness by arnaud.guillebert: This is more like a fine art image than the usual underwater imagery you see. Lovely lighting showing off the texture of this basket star.
After much deliberation by our judge….
The results
Winner: Basket star in the pure darkness by arnaud.guillebert
Runner-Up: yellow cutie by Cedric Peneau
Third: Ghost Goby by MichaelG
Highly Commended: Three squid by Min seok Jeon
Congratulations to those who were placed – there were a number of excellent images, and well done to all those that entered.
Scubaverse.com’s January 2023 Underwater Photo Contest is now open! Enter as many as three of your underwater photos here.
WINNER CHOSEN AND REVIEW BY SCUBAVERSE.COM’S UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR NICK ROBERTSON-BROWN
WINNER: The Herd by Cedric Peneau
Another great month full of wonderful underwater images!
When judging any underwater photography competition, the first thing I do is ask of each image: Is it in focus? The main subject has to be pin sharp. Is it exposed correctly?
I then look at lighting (photography is all about light) and composition. Backscatter, hot spots of light, messy backgrounds: all might see your image lose out.
Then there are other considerations that might get you knocked out of the first round: Was the image taken underwater? After all it is an underwater photography competition! Were any animals distressed or harassed to get the image? Was any environmental damage done to get the shot?
Once I have whittled out the images that do not pass these criteria, it is time to get down to picking a winner. A shot that makes me go wow – I wish I had taken that!
Longimanus by night by Claude Lespagne: Of the three wonderful Oceanic Whitetip Shark images you entered this month, this is my favourite. The reflection on the surface is sublime and I love the way the pilot fish really catch the eye against a dark night sea.
Underwater doughnut shop? by Bill Passmore: The detail in this simple shot of a coral head is super. I love the title too!
Little frogfish, big pollution by Cedric Peneau: I always worry about images like this one. Who put that battery there? Was it a diver in order to get a shot? I hope not. What it does to well is show how tiny this beautiful frogfish is.
The Herd by Cedric Peneau: Wow! I love this shot, there is so much going on and yet the subject is still really strong in the frame.
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star by Sofia Tenggrono: This image really caught my eye. The focus is not what we would usually expect, but because the body and the glittering edges are the subject, it still works.
GREAT ENCOUNTER by DIDIER PASQUINI: Lovely shot that tells a story. You can imagine being this snorkeler and have an encounter of a lifetime with the biggest fish in the sea. You can imagine this image in a brochure.
Below the surface by arnaud.guillebert: These shots are so difficult to get right. This is another shot that tells a story and could grace a diving magazine. Initially you see the main shark subject, but as you spend more time, you see all the other sharks in the background.
After much deliberation by our judge….
The results
Winner: The Herd by Cedric Peneau
Runner-Up: Twinkle Twinkle Little Star by Sofia Tenggrono
Third: Longimanus by night by Claude Lespagne
Highly Commended: Below the surface by arnaud.guillebert
Congratulations to those who were placed – there were a number of excellent images, and well done to all those that entered.
Scubaverse.com’s December 2022 Underwater Photo Contest is now open! Enter as many as three of your underwater photos here.
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