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Winners - Underwater Photography Contests

July 2021 Photo Contest Winner and Review

Published

3 years ago

on

WINNER CHOSEN AND REVIEW BY SCUBAVERSE.COM’S UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR NICK ROBERTSON-BROWN

WINNER: JellyFish Explosion by Huw Penson

Another month filled with incredible images, both macro and wide angle, from all around the world. So many great images to go through!

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!

Alas I cannot discuss each and every image but here are a few that caught my eye and why:

The Cleaning Station by Nus Lobbu: Lovely image of all these colourful reef fish on a a small bommie. As always a single fish has chosen to go its own way! You can feel the motion of the marine life as they go about their business.

The Coconut Octopus by Nus Lobbu: One of my favourite macro subjects to photograph and this is a lovely example. Good use of depth of field and I love the position of the octopus in the shell, looking out at the photographer.

Water Lily by Matej Miskovic: This image caught my eye due to the composition and colours. The lily flower in the corner, the diagonals of the leaf stems and the small gap through into the blue make this an evocative image to look at.

Mating pair by steven.walsh.underwater: Wow – what an encounter with such an iconic species. The egg laden male in the foreground and another swimming above is great to see. Add this to the fact you have been able to include both the seagrass habitat and the surface makes this very eye-catching indeed.

Geometric morays (Gymnothorax griseus) by Oksana Maksymova: What a great shot. Eye-contact with all four morays at the same time. There are even a couple of tiny shrimp thrown into the mix too. Bravo!

Odontaspis ferox by claude lespagne: What a great shot. Full of character and it just forces the viewer to smile back at this goofy shark.

This is MY house by Bill Passmore: Striking image of a moray. The lack background really makes the golden pattern on the subject stand out.

Giannis D by MichaelG: The post-processing of this image makes it really stand out. It look great in black and white with loads of contrast.

Golden Damsel by MichaelG: Well done! It is always hard to get small, quick fish head on and you have nailed this one. The yellow looks stunning on the black background and the eye-contact, detail on the fins and it’s facial expression are super.

Baby Black Tip Reef Sharks at Sunrise by Huw Penson: What an experience and well done for capturing an image of these 3 baby sharks. I would have loved this more if the sharks had been coming towards you and the portion above water had been in focus.

Reefshark B/W by Jan Leya: Striking portrait of a reef shark in black and white.

JellyFish Explosion by Huw Penson: Superb image. So much details in the jellyfish and the sunburst behind really makes this image jump out of the screen. I might have tried editing out the small bubbles as they could be considered a distraction from what is a striking image.

After much deliberation by our judge….

The results

Winner: JellyFish Explosion by Huw Penson

Runner-up: Geometric morays (Gymnothorax griseus) by Oksana Maksymova

Third Place: Golden Damsel by MichaelG

Highly Commended: Odontaspis ferox by claude lespagne; Mating pair by steven.walsh.underwater & The Coconut Octopus by Nus Lobbu 

Congratulations to those who were placed – there were a number of excellent images, and well done to all those that entered.

Scubaverse.com’s July 2021 Underwater Photo Contest is now open! Enter as many as three of your underwater photos here.

  • Highly Commended: Odontaspis ferox by claude lespagne

  • Runner-up: Geometric morays (Gymnothorax griseus) by Oksana Maksymova

  • Third Place: Golden Damsel by MichaelG

  • Highly Commended: The Coconut Octopus by Nus Lobbu

  • Highly Commended: Mating pair by steven.walsh.underwater

  • WINNER: JellyFish Explosion by Huw Penson

Related Topics:

Nick and Caroline (Frogfish Photography) are a married couple of conservation driven underwater photo-journalists and authors. Both have honours degrees from Manchester University, in Environmental Biology and Biology respectively, with Nick being a Fellow of the Royal Photographic Society, a former high school science teacher with a DipEd in Teaching Studies. Caroline has an MSc in Animal Behaviour specializing in Caribbean Ecology. They are multiple award-winning photographers and along with 4 published books, feature regularly in the diving, wildlife and international press They are the Underwater Photography and Deputy Editors at Scubaverse and Dive Travel Adventures. Winners of the Caribbean Tourism Organization Photo-journalist of the Year for a feature on Shark Diving in The Bahamas, and they have been placed in every year they have entered. Nick and Caroline regularly use their free time to visit schools, both in the UK and on their travels, to discuss the important issues of marine conservation, sharks and plastic pollution. They are ambassadors for Sharks4Kids and founders of SeaStraw. They are Dive Ambassadors for The Islands of The Bahamas and are supported by Mares, Paralenz, Nauticam and Olympus. To find out more visit www.frogfishphotography.com

Winners - Underwater Photography Contests

December 2022 Photo Contest Winner and Review

Published

2 years ago

on

January 3, 2023

By

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.

Continue Reading

Winners - Underwater Photography Contests

November 2022 Photo Contest Winner and Review

Published

2 years ago

on

December 1, 2022

By

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.

Continue Reading

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