15 Stunning Underwater Photos from the United Nations World Oceans Day Contest

Jun 11, 2025

Matt Growcoot

Split image: Left side shows a humpback whale emerging from the blue ocean. Right side shows a close-up of a leopard seal underwater with its mouth open, revealing sharp teeth. — Photo credit: Ollie Clarke and Ritter Zahony / www.unworldoceansday.org

The winners of the twelfth annual photo competition for United Nations World Oceans Day were announced this week, celebrating stunning ocean photography.

A panel of judges selected four first place winners from thousands of global entries made by both amateur and professional photographers. This year’s competition featured the categories of: Big and Small Underwater Faces, Underwater Seascapes, Above Water Seascapes, and Wonder: Sustaining What Sustains Us.

Each hailing from a different country, the first place winners for 2025 included: Andrey Nosik (Russia), Dani Escayola (Spain), Leander Nardin (Austria), and Rachel Moore (USA).

A close-up of a sculpin fish with textured skin and protruding lips, set against a black background with floating particles, highlighting its unique features. — First place in the Big and Small Underwater Faces category. This photo of a Japanese warbonnet (Chirolophis japonicus) was captured in the Sea of Japan, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southwest of Vladivostok, Russia. I found the ornate fish at a depth of about 30 meters (100 feet), under the stern of a shipwreck. This species does not appear to be afraid of divers—on the contrary, it seems to enjoy the attention—and it even tried to sit on the dome port of my camera. | Andrey Nosik / www.unworldoceansday.org

A vibrant, iridescent blanket octopus swims against a black background, displaying its broad, colorful webbed arms that shimmer with blue, green, and purple hues. — Second place in the Big and Small Underwater Faces category. On one of my many blackwater dives in Anilao, in the Philippines, my guide and I spotted something moving erratically at a depth of around 20 meters (65 feet), about 10 to 15 centimeters in size. We quickly realized that it was a rare blanket octopus (Tremoctopus sp.). As we approached, it opened up its beautiful blanket, revealing its multicolored mantle. I managed to take a few shots before it went on its way. I felt truly privileged to have captured this fascinating deep-sea cephalopod. Among its many unique characteristics, this species exhibits some of the most extreme sexual size-dimorphism in nature, with females weighing up to 40,000 times more than males. | Giacomo Marchione / www.unworldoceansday.org

A close-up underwater photo of a leopard seal with its mouth open, showing sharp teeth, swimming above a blue, icy background. — Third place in the Big and Small Underwater Faces category. Trips to the Antarctic Peninsula always yield amazing encounters with leopard seals. Boldly approaching me and baring his teeth, this individual was keen to point out that this part of Antarctica was his territory. This picture was shot at dusk, resulting in the rather moody atmosphere. | Lars von Ritter Zahony / www.unworldoceansday.org

Close-up of a whale’s eye underwater, showing intricate skin texture, fine wrinkles, and subtle color variations from dark gray to light, highlighting the detail and depth of the animal’s gaze. — First place in the Wonder: Sustaining What Sustains Us category. This photo, taken in Mo’orea, French Polynesia in 2024, captures the eye of a humpback whale named Sweet Girl, just days before her tragic death. Four days after I captured this intimate moment, she was struck and killed by a fast-moving ship. Her death serves as a heartbreaking reminder of the 20,000 whales lost to ship strikes every year. We are using her story to advocate for stronger protections, petitioning for stricter speed laws around Tahiti and Mo’orea during whale season. I hope Sweet Girl’s legacy will spark real change to protect these incredible animals and prevent further senseless loss. | Rachel Moore / www.unworldoceansday.org

A fish with glowing orange-edged fins appears to swim gracefully in dark water, creating a blurred, ethereal motion effect against a deep blue background. — Second place in the Wonder: Sustaining What Sustains Us category. A juvenile pinnate batfish (Platax pinnatus) captured with a slow shutter speed, a snooted light, and deliberate camera panning to create a sense of motion and drama. Juvenile pinnate batfish are known for their striking black bodies outlined in vibrant orange—a coloration they lose within just a few months as they mature. I encountered this restless subject in the tropical waters of Indonesia’s Lembeh Strait. Capturing this image took patience and persistence over two dives, as these active young fish constantly dart for cover in crevices, making the shot particularly challenging. | Luis Arpa Toribio / www.unworldoceansday.org

A close-up underwater photo of a shark taken with motion blur, capturing the animal swimming through blue water with its mouth closed and the details of its face and body partially obscured. — Third place in the Wonder: Sustaining What Sustains Us category. Shot in Cuba’s Jardines de la Reina—a protected shark sanctuary—this image captures a Caribbean reef shark weaving through a group of silky sharks near the surface. Using a slow shutter and strobes as the shark pivoted sharply, the motion blurred into a wave-like arc across its head, lit by the golden hues of sunset. The abundance and behavior of sharks here is a living symbol of what protected oceans can look like. | Steven Lopez / www.unworldoceansday.org

A humpback whale rises vertically toward the ocean surface, its head and pectoral fins visible underwater, with sunlight illuminating its textured skin and a clear blue sky above the waterline. — Honorable Mention in the Wonder: Sustaining What Sustains Us category. Humpback whales in their thousands migrate along the Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia every year on the way to and from their calving grounds. In four seasons of swimming with them on the reef here, this is the only encounter I’ve had like this one. This pair of huge adult whales repeatedly spy hopped alongside us, seeking to interact with and investigate us, leaving me completely breathless. The female in the foreground was much more confident than the male behind and would constantly make close approaches, whilst the male hung back a little, still interested but shy. After more than 10 years working with wildlife in the water, this was one of the best experiences of my life. | Ollie Clarke / www.unworldoceansday.org

Hundreds of jellyfish float in clear, dark blue water beneath a split view of lush, green, rocky cliffs and a cloudy sky. The photo captures both underwater and landscape scenery. — First place in the Underwater Seascapes category. This year, I had the incredible opportunity to visit a jellyfish lake during a liveaboard trip around southern Raja Ampat, Indonesia. Being surrounded by millions of jellyfish, which have evolved to lose their stinging ability due to the absence of predators, was one of the most breathtaking experiences I’ve ever had. | Dani Escayola / www.unworldoceansday.org

A large school of eagle rays swims gracefully through the blue ocean, their long tails trailing behind, illuminated by sunlight filtering from above. — Second place in the Underwater Seascapes category. This shot captures a school of rays resting at a cleaning station in Mauritius, where strong currents once attracted them regularly. Some rays grew accustomed to divers, allowing close encounters like this. Sadly, after the severe bleaching that the reefs here suffered last year, such gatherings have become rare, and I fear I may not witness this again at the same spot. | Gerald Rambert / www.unworldoceansday.org

A diver swims above large underwater basalt columns, which rise from the sea floor in geometric, hexagonal shapes, surrounded by clear blue water. — Third place in the Underwater Seascapes category. “La Rapadura” is a natural hidden treasure on the northern coast of Tenerife, in the Spanish territory of the Canary Islands. Only discovered in 1996, it is one of the most astonishing underwater landscapes in the world, consistently ranking among the planet’s best dive sites. These towering columns of basalt are the result of volcanic processes that occurred between 500,000 and a million years ago. The formation was created when a basaltic lava flow reached the ocean, where, upon cooling and solidifying, it contracted, creating natural structures often compared to the pipes of church organs. Located in a region where marine life has been impacted by once common illegal fishing practices, this stunning natural monument has both geological and ecological value, and scientists and underwater photographers are advocating for its protection. (Model: Yolanda Garcia). | Pedro Carrillo / www.unworldoceansday.org

A spotted seal swims underwater near rocky terrain, with the waterline dividing the photo; above water, an overcast sky and snow-dusted rocks are visible in the background. — Honorable Mention in the Underwater Seascapes category. With only orcas as their natural predators, leopard seals are Antarctica’s most versatile hunters, preying on everything from fish and cephalopods to penguins and other seals. Gentoo penguins are a favored menu item, and leopard seals can be observed patrolling the waters around their colonies. For this shot, I used a split image to capture both worlds: the gentoo penguin colony in the background with the leopard seal on the hunt in the foreground. | Lars von Ritter Zahony / www.unworldoceansday.org

Aerial view of a vibrant, blue-green lagoon surrounded by a ring of white sand and red, orange, and brown terrain, with a narrow water channel leading to the lagoon from the left. — First place in the Above Water Seascapes category. A serene lake cradled by arid dunes, where a gentle stream breathes life into the heart of Mother Earth’s creation: Captured from an airplane, this image reveals the powerful contrasts and hidden beauty where land and ocean meet, reminding us that the ocean is the source of all life and that everything in nature is deeply connected. The location is a remote stretch of coastline near Shark Bay, Western Australia. | Leander Nardin / www.unworldoceansday.org

Aerial view of ocean waves crashing against jagged rocks with several white seabirds flying above the turbulent water. — Second place in the Above Water Seascapes category. Northern gannets (Morus bassanus) soar above the dramatic cliffs of Scotland’s Hermaness National Nature Reserve, their sleek white bodies and black-tipped wings slicing through the Shetland winds. These seabirds, the largest in the North Atlantic, are renowned for their striking plunge-dives, reaching speeds up to 100 kph (60 mph) as they hunt for fish beneath the waves. The cliffs of Hermaness provide ideal nesting sites, with updrafts aiding their take-offs and landings. Each spring, thousands return to this rugged coastline, forming one of the UK’s most significant gannet colonies. It was a major challenge to take photos at the edge of these cliffs at almost 200 meters (650 feet) with the winds up to 30 kph (20 mph). | Nur Tucker / www.unworldoceansday.org

A massive blue glacier with jagged ice rises from calm, reflective water, surrounded by snow-covered mountains and low-hanging clouds in a cold, remote landscape. — Third place in the Above Water Seascapes category. Paradise Harbour is one of the most beautiful places on the Antarctic Peninsula. When I visited, the sea was extremely calm, and I was lucky enough to witness a wonderfully clear reflection of the Suárez Glacier (aka Petzval Glacier) in the water. The only problem was the waves created by our speedboat, and the only way to capture the perfect reflection was to lie on the bottom of the boat while it moved towards the glacier. | Andrey Nosik / www.unworldoceansday.org

A powerful ocean wave curls, creating a hollow barrel with white spray and foam at the crest, against a backdrop of churning blue water and mist. — Honorable Mention in the Above Water Seascapes category. A South Atlantic swell breaks on the Dungeons Reef off the Cape Peninsula, South Africa, shot while photographing a big-wave surf session in October 2017. It’s the crescendoing sounds of these breaking swells that always amazes me. | Ken Findlay / www.unworldoceansday.org

Since its inception in 2008, United Nations World Oceans Day (UN WOD) has been celebrated on June 8 to underscore the ocean’s importance to the planet and our lives. The photo competition is organized by DivePhotoGuide, a comprehensive underwater photography and videography resource and award-winning website for photographers and videographers of all levels.