Colossal · Creativity & design

Seahorse Family Wins 2026 Ocean Photographer of the Year

The annual Ocean Photographer of the Year competition, organized by Oceanographic magazine and Blancpain, has announced its 2026 winners, celebrating the diverse beauty and challenges of marine environments.

Julien Anton received the top award for his black-and-white photograph of a seahorse with two tiny juveniles. The contest also awarded Jenny Stock the Female Fifty Fathoms Award for her contributions to women in ocean photography.

Other notable winners include Gergo Rugli for the Adventure category, capturing dolphins riding waves with surfers in Sydney, and Rui Filipe Cardoso Duarte for Human Connection, documenting a collaborative effort to re-float stranded pilot whales in Cape Verde.

The competition featured a range of images, from brittle stars covering a seabed in Scotland to a close-up of a black sea bass with parasitic copepods in Southern California.

Finalists included Matty Smith's image of elephant seal pups on the Falkland Islands and Andrea Michelutti's depiction of a scorpionfish hunting a lizardfish in the Philippines.

The article also briefly mentions the impact of climate change on coastlines, referencing rising sea levels and beach erosion in Southern California as a backdrop to the importance of ocean awareness.

AI-samenvatting op basis van de bron.