Photo & Video Blogs
Why I love Photography
I’ve had a love for wildlife since I was a child, which mainly stemmed from my love of sharks and the worlds oceans, and ever since I was a child I think I’ve always had a love for photography, but I never acted on it until I was in my early twenties.
I got my first underwater semi-professional setup on my first trip to the Maldives back in 2015 and I captured some images that I was truly proud of. This camera came with me to South Africa in 2017, it was on this trip where I realised that I wanted to be a Wildlife/Underwater Photographer and Cameraman. I loved being able to capture a moment, a feeling, and I loved the detail that a camera could capture, detail that people do not usually see.
After several years with my first camera, it finally was not able to do what I needed it to do, so I upgraded my setup with a lot of help from Nick & Caroline at Frogfish Photography. The new setup has really helped me learn, its many settings and capabilities allow you to truly develop and advance yourself as a photographer.
Photography and film for me is about being able to capture a moment and allow that moment to change people by taking them there, unfortunately not everyone is able to jet out to these amazing places and see these animals, but anyone is able see an image and instantly connect to it. It is this that fueled my passion when I was a child and even made me want to protect our planet, so if it can do it for me, it can definitely do it for someone else.
Photography and the media has also had a huge part to play in recent years, in terms of spreading awareness of our planet’s issues, such as plastic pollution and the disappearance of species such as rhinos, corals and the Florida Grasshopper Sparrow, who’s numbers are around 100 adult individuals worldwide.
Science and the media can play an imperative role, with science gathering the data and helping laws and legislation to be changed, and photography and the media conveying this message to the wider public, which as we have seen increases the pressure of change to take place.
If you love photography and care about Wildlife and you want others to care, then go out and take pictures, capture that moment for others to see and help further protect our natural world.
For more information about Blue Planet Aquarium please visit their website by clicking here.
An emotive photograph showing a freediver examining the aftermath of whaling sees
Alex Dawson from Sweden named Underwater Photographer of the Year 2024. Dawson’s
photograph ‘Whale Bones’ triumphed over 6500 underwater pictures entered by underwater
photographers from around the world.
“Whale Bones was photographed in the toughest conditions,” explains chair of judging
panel Alex Mustard, “as a breath-hold diver descends below the Greenland ice sheet to bear
witness to the carcasses. The composition invites us to consider our impact on the great
creatures of this planet. Since the rise of humans, wild animals have declined by 85%. Today,
just 4% of mammals are wildlife, the remaining 96% are humans and our livestock. Our way
needs to change to find a balance with nature.”
Photo: Rafael
Fernandez Caballero
Whales dominated the winning pictures this year with Spanish photographer Rafael
Fernandez Caballero winning two categories with his revealing photos of these ocean giants:
a close up of a grey whale’s eye and an action shot of a Bryde’s whale engulfing an entire bait
ball, both taken in Magdalena Bay, Baja California, Mexico. Fernandez Caballero took ‘Grey
Whale Connection’ while drifting in a small boat, holding his camera over the side in the water
to photograph the curious whale. ‘The End Of A Baitball’ required Fernandez Caballero to dive
down and be in exactly the right place at the moment the whale lunged. “The photo shows
the high speed attack,” he said, “with the whale engulfing hundreds of kilograms of sardines
in one bite — simply unforgettable to see predation on such a scale.”
Photo: Rafael
Fernandez Caballero
Lisa Stengel from the United States was named Up & Coming Underwater Photographer of the Year 2024 for her image of a mahi-mahi catching a sardine, in Mexico. Stengel used both a very fast shutter speed and her hearing to catch the moment. “If you listen there’s an enormous amount of sound in the ocean,” she explained. “The action was too fast to see, so I honed in on the sound of the attacks with my camera to capture this special moment.”
“It is such an exciting time in underwater photography because photographers are capturing such amazing new images, by visiting new locations and using the latest cameras,”
commented judge Alex Mustard. “Until this year I’d hardly ever see a photo of a mahi mahi,
now Lisa has photographed one hunting, action that plays out in the blink of an eye.”
The Underwater Photographer of the Year contest is based in the UK, and Jenny Stock,
was named as British Underwater Photographer of the Year 2024 for her image “Star
Attraction”, which finds beauty in species of British wildlife that are often overlooked.
Exploring the west coast of Scotland, Stock explained “in the dark green depths my torch
picked out the vivid colours of a living carpet of thousands of brittle stars, each with a
different pattern. I was happily snapping away, when I spotted this purple sea urchin and I
got really excited.”
Photo: Jenny Stock
In the same contest, Portuguese photographer, Nuno Sá, was named ‘Save Our Seas
Foundation’ Marine Conservation Photographer of the Year 2024, with his photo ‘Saving
Goliath’, taken in Portugal. Sá’s photo shows beachgoers trying to save a stranded sperm
whale. The picture gives us hope that people do care and want to help the oceans, but also
warns us that bigger changes are needed. “The whale had been struck by a ship and its fate
was sealed,” explains Sá. “An estimated 20,000 whales are killed every year, and many more
injured, after being struck by ships-and few people even realise that it happens.”
Photo: Nuno Sá
More winning images can be found at www.underwaterphotographeroftheyear.com.
About Underwater Photographer of the Year
Underwater Photographer of the Year is an annual competition, based in the UK, that celebrates photography beneath the surface of the ocean, lakes, rivers and even swimming pools, and attracts entries from all around the world. The contest has 13 categories, testing photographers with themes such as Macro, Wide Angle, Behaviour and Wreck photography, as well as four categories for photos taken specifically in British waters. The winners were announced in an award ceremony in Mayfair, London, hosted by The Crown Estate. This year’s UPY judges were experienced underwater photographers Peter Rowlands, Tobias Friedrich and Dr Alexander Mustard MBE.
Header image: Underwater Photographer of the Year 2024 winner Alex Dawson
Each month we give the winner of the Scubaverse Underwater Photography competition the opportunity to show off a little more of their work in a gallery. The December winner was Arnaud Guillebert.
Tell us a little about yourself Arnaud
What equipment do you use?
I use a Nikon D7200 in a Hugyfot Housing and two lens, depending on the subject: a Tokina 10-17mm F3.5-4.5 Fisheye and Nikon Macro lenses 60mm. The Fisheye is my main lens, as it allows me to get really close and still cover a big field of view. For lighting I use two Inon D2000.
Where can our readers see more of your work?
You can find me on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/nono_underwater.
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