13 Jaw-Dropping Photos From Ocean Photographer of the Year

Spotlight
Matt Growcoot
A sea lion emerges from the water with a large, partially consumed ray in its mouth, surrounded by a dramatic splash.
From the Wildlife category. A New Zealand fur seal tears apart a rough skate in the waters of New Zealand, while seabirds gather for the scraps. Unable to swallow such large prey whole, the seal throws the skate repeatedly to break it into smaller pieces. Photographed from a kayak. | Allan Cronin / Ocean Photographer of the Year

The finalists for the Ocean Photographer of the Year 2026 have been announced, a competition that honors the ocean in all its complexity — its wonder, its fragility, and the urgent need to protect it.

A scuba diver swims alongside a large, flat-bodied ocean sunfish in deep blue water.
From the Human Connection: People and Planet category. A giant oceanic sunfish (Mola mola) glides through the clear waters of Mexico’s Baja Peninsula. | Anita Verde / Ocean Photographer of the Year
A large, dark blue ocean wave curls and breaks, with sea spray blowing off the top against a dark sky.
From the Fine Art category. A powerful wave breaks off the coast of Tahiti, its lip shaped by offshore winds as sunlight turns the spray into a glowing veil. Shot from a jet ski using a long telephoto lens, a moment of ocean chaos is transformed into a carefully balanced landscape, reminiscent of the famous print ‘The Great Wave’ off Kanagawa by Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai. | Ben Thouard / Ocean Photographer of the Year
A large, mottled red scorpionfish rests on the seabed, swallowing a smaller, slender fish head-first.
From the Wildlife category. A scorpionfish consumes a lizardfish. The compact composition isolates the interaction using a snoot to direct light onto the two fish while keeping the background subdued. | Andrea Michelutti / Ocean Photographer of the Year
A fisherman leaps from the bow of a small boat to harpoon a whale in the open ocean.
From the Human Connection: People and Planet category. A harpooner in the Indonesian village of Lamalera leaps from his boat to strike an orca with a hand-thrown harpoon. With exception of the sperm whale, the orca is one of the largest preys the Lamaleran catch, which is not common and considered dangerous. The orca in the photo eventually died, but also capsized the boat, leaving the fishers to be rescued by other boats. For more than 600 years, the community has relied on hunting whales and other cetaceans for food, with the meat shared throughout the village. Today, the use of motorboats has made the hunt increasingly controversial, placing traditional subsistence practices at the centre of debates about culture, livelihoods and marine conservation. | Sirachai Arunrugstichai / Ocean Photographer of the Year
A black seal pup rests its head on the snout of a larger, light-colored adult seal on a sandy beach.
From the Conservation (Hope) category. A Hawaiian monk seal rests with her week-old pup on Kaimana Beach in Waikīkī. Mothers nurse their pups for around six weeks without feeding, losing up to a third of their body weight while the pup grows rapidly before becoming independent. | Leighton Lum / Ocean Photographer of the Year
Five spotted eagle rays swim in a line over a textured, blue sandy ocean floor.
From the Fine Art category. Five spotted eagle rays glide above the sandy seabed, their dark bodies and white markings contrasting against the pale background. These rays often travel together while searching for prey, using electroreceptors to detect hidden molluscs and crustaceans beneath the sand. | John Kowitz / Ocean Photographer of the Year
An octopus with a bright orange eye peers through the dark, square mesh of a fishing net.
From the Conservation (Impact) category. An octopus peers from inside a lobster pot off the coast of southwest England. While the scene initially suggests an animal trapped, the reality is quite different. Octopuses often enter pots to feed on the crabs and lobsters inside before escaping again. | Eduardo Santana de Vega / Ocean Photographer of the Year
People stand behind a glass barrier in a dimly lit room, watching an orca swim in a large, brightly lit aquarium tank.
From the Conservation (Impact) category. A male orca rests motionless on the floor of a concrete tank at Chimelong Ocean Kingdom, China. His severely collapsed dorsal fin is a visible consequence of prolonged captivity. Originally wild-caught from Russia’s Sea of Okhotsk as juveniles, these animals were separated from their family groups and denied the social environment that defines their lives in the ocean. | Jingyi Zhang / Ocean Photographer of the Year
Several dolphins leap through a large, turquoise breaking wave alongside surfers in the ocean near a coastal town.
From the Adventure category. Dolphins ride the waves alongside surfers at Tamarama Beach, Sydney, during a powerful swell and offshore winds. The pod stayed with the surfers for more than an hour, moving through the lineup as naturally as the people around them. | Gergo Rugli / Ocean Photographer of the Year
A hammerhead shark swims over a rocky seafloor while two scuba divers use laser photogrammetry equipment to measure its size.
From the Conservation (Hope) category. This image represents the moment an anonymous shark becomes a known individual. Through photo identification and laser-calibrated video photogrammetry, scientists can track sharks over time, measuring size, sex and population trends. Conducted without bait or attractants, this research helps reveal the lives of Tamataroa, a culturally respected species protected in French Polynesia. | Thomas Pavy / Ocean Photographer of the Year
A pale, textured crab clings to a blue, porous sponge while holding a cluster of bright orange eggs beneath its body.
From the Ocean Unseen: Hidden Worlds category. A shrimp carrying a clutch of eggs shelters within the branches of a coral. The photographer used a snoot placed behind the coral to create the fiery glow surrounding the eggs, while front lighting revealed the shrimp without disturbing its fragile habitat. | Andrea Michelutti / Ocean Photographer of the Year

Category winners, alongside the overall Ocean Photographer of the Year 2026, will be announced in September. Ocean Photographer of the Year is presented by Oceanographic and Blancpain.

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