Bodybuilder Turtle, Creepy US Navy Shipwreck and Shattered Fish in Scotland: Incredible Winners of Underwater Photographer of the Year 2022

The 2022 Underwater Photographer of the Year winners have been revealed – and each one is mesmerizing.

More than 4,200 entries from all over the world were submitted for this year's competition, dedicated to photography below the surface of oceans, lakes, rivers, and even swimming pools. However, it was a breathtaking photograph of five whale sharks feeding together at night in the waters of the Maldives that prompted the judges to award Spanish photographer Rafael Fernandez Caballero the 2022 Underwater Photographer of the Year Award.

Meanwhile, Matty Smith, an Englishman now living in Australia, has been named Britain's Underwater Photographer of the Year 2022 for his impressive portrait of a great white shark gliding through the waters near the Neptune Islands in South Australia.

Other photos that impressed the judges included a touching shot of a yawning baby seal off the coast of the British island of Lundy, an atmospheric image of a US Navy shipwreck off the Cayman Islands, and a striking photo of striped marlin in the waters of Magdalena Bay in Mexico.

Competition judge Alex Mustard said: "Last year's travel restrictions may have prevented many photographers from visiting their favorite bodies of water, but they haven't stifled their creativity."

Scroll down for a selection of mesmerizing winning and highly rated shots…

13 PHOTOS

1. Above is a powerful image taken near the Neptune Islands in South Australia that won Matty Smith the title of British Underwater Photographer of the Year 2022. It also placed second in the Portrait category. Smith, who has been trying to capture a "charismatic" portrait of a great white shark for several years, admitted that methods he has used in the past have "failed terribly". He said: “This time I designed and built my own pole and remote trigger. This allowed me to safely lower the camera and case into the water with the 30cm dome port attached for split shooting. Surprisingly, the sharks were instantly attracted to the camera without additional bait, in fact, it was a battle to stop them from biting the port of the dome. We had surprisingly calm seas and nice evening side lighting for this naturally lit image." The judges felt that the image "really has a certain character."

2. "Good design and beautiful lighting are classics." So said the judges of this image by British photographer Dan Bolt, which shows two Yarrell blennies in Loch Carron, Scotland. It became the overall winner in the British Waters Macro category. Bolt said the lake, which he has been visiting for the past decade, "always takes amazing underwater pictures with its diverse marine life." He explained: “We were diving on a section of the reef that I had not explored before, and after an excited squeal and waved the flashlight in my direction, I jumped down and saw that my friend had found not one, but two beautiful little blennies. dug into a crack in the rock. Having my telephoto macro lens was an advantage, as I could get far enough away from the reef to light up their house so we could all see their somewhat puzzled little faces. Best friends.

3. Overall winner Rafael Fernandez Caballero took this sensational shot in Ari Atoll in the Maldives. It also took the lead in the Wide Angle category. Sharing a behind-the-scenes story, Caballero said: “At the beginning of the night, one whale shark came into the light of our BlueForce One boat, we jumped into the water, and then another whale shark appeared. We were so happy when a couple of hours later all of a sudden the frenzy happened and the whale sharks started arriving in large numbers. I was with Gador Muntaner, a shark researcher who couldn't believe what we were seeing. We counted 11 whale sharks surrounding us at the same time. It was a unique moment that no one could have imagined." He added: "There is magic happening in the ocean every day, but if we don't protect the oceans and the sharks, those moments will soon be a thing of the past." One judge said the image was "breathless" when he first saw it.

4. Caballero also took this touching photo of a turtle tangled in a net at the La Reina dive site in La Paz, Mexico. It was honored in the Marine Conservation category. Caballero said: “The University of Exeter estimates that 91% of turtles entangled in discarded fishing gear die. Luckily, our turtle was one of those little nine percent. The number of sea turtles has declined sharply in recent decades. It is estimated that approximately 52 percent of these animals have eaten plastic.” The photographer explained: “On this day we saw the net, and when we were about to pick it up, we realized that a small turtle was entangled in it. It is best, in this case, to call emergency services so as not to harm the animal. But in this case, we were far from land with no signal and we thought we should try to help there. It took a few friends, a knife, and a lot of time to finally free this turtle. There is always hope, and even people can help solve the problems they have created. We just need to erase the source of these problems." The judges described the image as "a very strong image and a violent subject to photograph."

5. Italian photographer Daniele Comine captured this shot of a green sea turtle that looks like it's showing off its muscles in bodybuilder style. The photo that won third place in the Portrait category was taken on a day trip to San Cristobal, Galapagos Islands. Komyn recalled: “Late in the afternoon we stopped at the famous dive site of Leon Dormido, so I took the camera and went to freedive. The conditions were very bad: no light and dark green water. It was not easy to set the camera to take a good picture. The purpose of this part of the journey was to find hammerheads underwater. However, instead of hammerheads, I saw a group of green turtles. I decided to watch them for a bit. One green turtle was "meditating", so I swam carefully, trying not to disturb her. I took three shots before she seemed to notice my presence and I left. She remained in the same position for another 10 minutes.”

6. Pekka Tuuri, winner of the My Backyard category, took this shot in the Finnish city of Vantaa, in a pond that is 20 minutes drive from his house. According to Tuuri, at the end of April, the pond is "full of love." He explained: “Common frogs come first, then toads, and finally newts. In 2021, I spent four days and four-night sessions in it. I was wearing an argon wetsuit, lots of underwear, and a heated vest to survive in five-degree water. I swam and stayed among the frogs and pretty soon they accepted me and my camera as part of the scenery. The frog's climb on top of my camera, make grunting noises in my ears and squeeze between my face and the back of the camera. The active spawning period lasts about two days. What an experience with lots of photo ops.

6. Pekka Tuuri, winner of the My Backyard category, took this shot in the Finnish city of Vantaa, in a pond that is 20 minutes drive from his house. According to Tuuri, at the end of April, the pond is "full of love." He explained: “Common frogs come first, then toads, and finally newts. In 2021, I spent four days and four-night sessions in it. I was wearing an argon wetsuit, lots of underwear, and a heated vest to survive in five-degree water. I swam and stayed among the frogs and pretty soon they accepted me and my camera as part of the scenery. The frogs climb on top of my camera, make grunting noises in my ears and squeeze between my face and the back of the camera. The active spawning period lasts about two days. What an experience with lots of photo ops.

8. This stunning image, which won a bronze medal in the wreck category, shows a freediver named Coral approaching the wreck of USS Kittiwake, the US Navy's submarine rescue ship. It was in service from 1946 to 1994 and is now off the coast of the Cayman Islands. The photo was taken by Croatian Carlo Macas.

9. This striking image shows a striped marlin hunting for bait in Mexico's Magdalena Bay. The image, taken by Croatian photographer Damir Zurub, won a bronze medal in the Behavior category. “The idea behind the photo was to try and recreate the thrill of sharing the ocean with a predator catching its prey,” Zurub said, adding, “The photo was quite difficult to capture given the constant movement. bait and school of marlin, requiring constant adjustment in the water column. Being able to share the ocean with marlin at that moment was exciting and unforgettable.” The judges called the shot "a perfectly timed, peak moment of action".

10. This sharp shot, which won second place in the Marine Conservation category, was taken by French photographer Fabrice Dudenhofer at a shark camp on Magdalena Island in Baja California Sur, Mexico. He said: “After I asked permission from the fishermen, I was able to take pictures of them when they returned from fishing. I wanted to take a split shot to show both the fishermen next to their pangas [a type of bladed tool] and the remains of the mako shark they had just butchered. In Mexico, shark fishing is absolutely legal, but in the natural environment, they are becoming less and less, and many species are on the verge of extinction. It's more important than ever to protect them." According to the jury, the image "really captures the spirit of the conservation theme and shows the cruelty of humanity."

11. Here, a gray seal pup “stretches and yawns as it wakes up from a slumber in seaweed” off the coast of Lundy Island, Devon. The cute image was captured by British photographer Henley Spears and it came in third in the British Waters Wide Angle category. “It’s hard for me not to smile when looking at this image, and I hope that it will make the same impression on others,” the photographer admitted. He continued: "When you share water with marine mammals, you feel a sense of kinship, and these seals are one of the best underwater companions." With an enviable aquatic grace, baby seals have an irresistible zest for life, showing curiosity, playfulness and affection.

12. Indonesian dive resort and conservation center Misul was the setting for this colorful image, which won second place in the Macro category, showing anemone fish embryos just hours before they were supposed to hatch. British photographer David Alpert, who was behind the lens, said: “Their big eyes give a sense of what is beyond them. During the spring tide, when water volumes peak, a couple of hours after sunset, for maximum protection from predators, they will be thrown into the ocean currents to try to make their way to adulthood.

13. Thien Nguyen Ngoc has been named the Save Our Seas Foundation's Marine Conservation Photographer of the Year 2022 thanks to this breathtaking photo that shows a bird's eye view of "active anchovy fishing" off the coast of Vietnam's Phu Yen province. This image also won first place in the Marine Conservation category. Ngoc explained that many families of local fishermen along the coastline of Phu Yen follow the coastal currents to catch anchovies during the high season.