Check out the winners of the Ocean Photographer of the Year Award 2021

The Ocean Photography Awards™ are a celebration of our beautiful blue planet, as well as a platform to highlight the many plights it is facing — and this year’s winning images are stunning!

The Ocean Photography Awards™ Prizewinners

Ocean photographers of all disciplines and experience levels – amateurs and professionals alike – were invited to submit their most impactful imagery to be judged by a panel of some of the world’s leading ocean photographers, including International Photography Hall of Fame inductee Paul Nicklen, founder of the International League of Conservation Photographers, Cristina Mittermeier, and Emmy Award-winning cinematographer Shawn Heinrichs. 

A total of six categories were judged, with the overall winner crowned the Ocean Photographer of the Year™ in September this year. Here we present the 1st, 2nd and 3rd prize winners of THE OCEAN Photographer of the Year category, and the 1st prize winners of the other categories. 

Note: these images are low resolution. To see hi-res originals, and the runners up in other categories, click ‘Source’ on any image.

A green turtle, surrounded by a ball of glass fish, one of four turtle species found on Ningaloo Reef, the worlds largest fringing reef. “We were doing a back-of-the-reef snorkel when one of my work friends called me over to tell me there was a turtle under a ledge in a school of glass fish, about 10 m down,“ says photographer Aimee Jan. “When I dived down to look, the fish separated around the table perfectly and this is what I saw. I said to her: ‘I think I just took the best photo I’ve ever taken’.”
THE OCEAN Photographer of the Year. Aimee Jan. 1st place. A green turtle, surrounded by a ball of glass fish, one of four turtle species found on Ningaloo Reef, the worlds largest fringing reef. “We were doing a back-of-the-reef snorkel when one of my work friends called me over to tell me there was a turtle under a ledge in a school of glass fish, about 10 m down,“ says photographer Aimee Jan. “When I dived down to look, the fish separated around the table perfectly and this is what I saw. I said to her: ‘I think I just took the best photo I’ve ever taken’.” Source: Aimee Jan/OceanPhotographyAwards
Gannets diving for food. “Diving amidst the barrage of gannets, I witnessed a violent synchronicity of these impressive seabirds as they embark on fishing dives,“ says photographer Henley Spiers. “Their piercing glare scans for prey, even as they hit the water at 60 mph, an impact they can only withstand thanks to specially evolved air sacs in the head and chest. The agility of the birds transfers from air to see, swimming with an incredible speed reaction as of a gannets torpedo into the sea.”
THE OCEAN Photographer of the Year. Henley Spiers. 2nd Place. Gannets diving for food. “Diving amidst the barrage of gannets, I witnessed a violent synchronicity of these impressive seabirds as they embark on fishing dives,“ says photographer Henley Spiers. “Their piercing glare scans for prey, even as they hit the water at 60 mph, an impact they can only withstand thanks to specially evolved air sacs in the head and chest. The agility of the birds transfers from air to see, swimming with an incredible speed reaction as of a gannets torpedo into the sea.” Source: Henley Spiers/OceanPhotographyAwards
A hawksbill turtle hatchling, just 3.5 cm long, takes its first swim. “This turtle had emerged from an egg just minutes earlier with approximately 100 of its siblings,“ says photographer “Matty” Smith. “They quickly made their way across the sand and into the ocean to disperse as rapidly as they could and avoid predation from birds and fish. I had to work quickly for this shot.“
THE OCEAN Photographer of the Year. Matty Smith. 3rd Place. A hawksbill turtle hatchling, just 3.5 cm long, takes its first swim. “This turtle had emerged from an egg just minutes earlier with approximately 100 of its siblings,“ says photographer “Matty” Smith. “They quickly made their way across the sand and into the ocean to disperse as rapidly as they could and avoid predation from birds and fish. I had to work quickly for this shot.“ Source: Matty Smith/OceanPhotographyAwards
A dead Moreell on an abandoned fishing line.Having bitten onto a sharp hook at the end of a ghost fishing line, the eagle entangled itself further as it tried to wriggle free. “Every spin slowly suffocated the poor animal until he couldn’t breathe anymore,“ says photographer Kerim Sabuncuoglu. “This photograph shows a silent scream.“
CONSERVATION Photographer of the Year. Kerim Sabuncuoglu. 1st Place. A dead Moreell on an abandoned fishing line.Having bitten onto a sharp hook at the end of a ghost fishing line, the eagle entangled itself further as it tried to wriggle free. “Every spin slowly suffocated the poor animal until he couldn’t breathe anymore,“ says photographer Kerim Sabuncuoglu. “This photograph shows a silent scream.“ Source: Kerim Sabuncuoglu/OceanPhotographyAwards
Matahi Drollet catches a wave known as Teahupo’o in Tahiti. “For this photo, I wanted to translate the energy of waves like these,“ says photographer Ben Thouard. “I used a slow shutter speed to create the motion blur effect, giving a sense of speed to the photo. Speed is key in surfing, but capturing that sense of speed in an image was a real challenge. I’ve shot so many images like this, but this is the best I’ve got! I call it ‘Full speed’.“
ADVENTURE Photographer of the Year. Ben Thouard. 1st Place. Matahi Drollet catches a wave known as Teahupo’o in Tahiti. “For this photo, I wanted to translate the energy of waves like these,“ says photographer Ben Thouard. “I used a slow shutter speed to create the motion blur effect, giving a sense of speed to the photo. Speed is key in surfing, but capturing that sense of speed in an image was a real challenge. I’ve shot so many images like this, but this is the best I’ve got! I call it ‘Full speed’.“ Source: Ben Thouard/OceanPhotographyAwards
Speleothems cast long shadows at cenote Dos Pisos. “This photograph captures the magic feeling of flying through a labyrinth of fragile formations that go from ceiling to floor, “says photographer Martin Broen. “This is a unique environment that took thousands of years to form, that hides hours away from the closest exit and it’s only illuminated by the light to carry with you.“
EXPLORATION Photographer of the Year. Martin Broen. 1st Place. Speleothems cast long shadows at cenote Dos Pisos. “This photograph captures the magic feeling of flying through a labyrinth of fragile formations that go from ceiling to floor, “says photographer Martin Broen. “This is a unique environment that took thousands of years to form, that hides hours away from the closest exit and it’s only illuminated by the light to carry with you.“ Source: Martin Broen/OceanPhotographyAwards
A green sea turtle hatchling cautiously surfaces for air, to a sky full of hungry birds. “Against all odds, this hatchling must battle through the conditions of a raging storm whilst dividing predators,” says photographer Hannah Le Leu. “The tropical storm made it difficult to capture this image, but perfectly symbolises the message I wanted to convey of the tumultuous journey all baby turtles must embark on, and why they only have 1-in-1000 chance of survival.“
YOUNG Photographer of the Year. Hannah Le Leu. 1st Place. A green sea turtle hatchling cautiously surfaces for air, to a sky full of hungry birds. “Against all odds, this hatchling must battle through the conditions of a raging storm whilst dividing predators,” says photographer Hannah Le Leu. “The tropical storm made it difficult to capture this image, but perfectly symbolises the message I wanted to convey of the tumultuous journey all baby turtles must embark on, and why they only have 1-in-1000 chance of survival.“ Source: Hannah Le Leu/OceanPhotographyAwards
Surfer Jack Robinson rides the famous break known as ‘The Right’, home to some of the heaviest waves in the world. “The clean lines in the wave displays its graceful movement and leads the height of the surfer, dwarfed by the massive wave, “says photographer Phil De Granville. “The rainbow and heart-shaped wash were a bonus, representing the oceans beauty and power and the respect we should have for it.“
COMMUNITY CHOICE Award. Phil De Glanville. 1st Place. Surfer Jack Robinson rides the famous break known as ‘The Right’, home to some of the heaviest waves in the world. “The clean lines in the wave displays its graceful movement and leads the height of the surfer, dwarfed by the massive wave, “says photographer Phil De Granville. “The rainbow and heart-shaped wash were a bonus, representing the oceans beauty and power and the respect we should have for it.“ Source: Phil De Glanville/OceanPhotographyAwards
Stefan Christmann is a nature photographer and filmmaker from Germany, who was wintered twice in Antarctica. He is mostly known for his intimate photos of the emperor penguin colony in Atka Bay and being part of the BBC film team that filmed the emperor penguin episode of BBC Dynasties.
COLLECTIVE PORTFOLIO Award. Stefan Christmann. 1st Place. Stefan Christmann is a nature photographer and filmmaker from Germany, who was wintered twice in Antarctica. He is mostly known for his intimate photos of the emperor penguin colony in Atka Bay and being part of the BBC film team that filmed the emperor penguin episode of BBC Dynasties. Source: Stefan Christmann/OceanPhotographyAwards
Renee is an award-winning underwater photographer who specialises in wide-angle and split-level images. Renee believes that striking images help increase awareness of a fragile marine ecosystems and encourage others to protect our oceans. Her images have won more than 45 prestigious international awards, including most recently Underwater Photographer of the Year 2021. When she is not in the water, Renee teaches biology and educating students about the challenges facing the ocean and the importance of conserving marine ecosystems.
FEMALE FIFTY FATHOMS Award. Renee Capozzola. Winner. Renee is an award-winning underwater photographer who specialises in wide-angle and split-level images. Renee believes that striking images help increase awareness of a fragile marine ecosystems and encourage others to protect our oceans. Her images have won more than 45 prestigious international awards, including most recently Underwater Photographer of the Year 2021. When she is not in the water, Renee teaches biology and educating students about the challenges facing the ocean and the importance of conserving marine ecosystems. Source: Renee Capozzola/OceanPhotographyAwards
2021 Ocean Photography Awards Blancpain, main partner to the 2021 edition of the Ocean Photography Awards (OPA), announce the winner of the Female Fifty Fathoms Award, as well as the name of the Ocean Photographer of the Year. Source: Facebook/Blancpain

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