See 15 Otherworldly Images From the Underwater Photographer of the Year Awards

FEBRUARY 23, 2024 12:25 P.M.

A hunting monkey, ‘kissing’ scorpionfish and playful dolphins feature in just a few of the 130 striking photographs distinguished with honors in the competition

Christian Thorsberg
Daily Correspondent



six seabirds with yellow heads dive through the water, their bodies streamlined
Northern gannets plunge into the water to hunt in Shetland. This image won the British Waters Wide Angle category. © Kat Zhou / UPY2024


From a lemon shark sharing a toothy grin at dusk, to a green-blue mahi-mahi ambushing sardines, the 2024 Underwater Photographer of the Year (UPY) Awards showcase the stunning beauty and diversity of our world’s oceans.

Photographers from around the world submitted roughly 6,500 photographs for 13 contest categories that celebrate both technical craft and creative eyes—including the esteemed “Underwater Photographer of the Year” title, which honors an overall winner. In total, 130 photographs were distinguished with awards or commendations.

The competition is based in the United Kingdom, which, according to UPY, has a rich history of underwater photography contests. In 1965, the Brighton Underwater Film Festival was organized in the country for the first time. Two years later, the British Society of Underwater Photographers was founded, inspiring decades of undersea image-making.

“But since these only cater for underwater images of wildlife, 50 years after the original Brighton Festival, we decided to bring a dedicated and international underwater photography contest back to Britain,” per the UPY website. In addition to photos of animals, the contest honors images featuring wrecks, divers and human impact on the environment. The inaugural UPY Awards took place in 2014 and 2015.

More:
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/see-15-otherworldly-images-from-the-underwater-photographer-of-the-year-awards-180983832/