The annualUnderwater lensman of the Yearcompetition has announced itswinners for 2022 , exhibiting a prominent portfolio show how beautiful , bizarre , and vulnerable our ocean , lakes , and river ecosystems are .
Showcasing endowment from all over the globe , the UK - free-base competition has 13 categories challenging photographers to put forward their best work in Macro , Wide Angle , Behaviour , and Wreck photography .
British Underwater Photographer of the Year went to Matty Smith for his image “ Great White Split ” ( show above ) . In it , we see a keen white shark catch between the ocean and its surface off the Neptune Islands , South Australia .
Smith achieved the unequaled perspective with the help of a limited supersize bonce porthole for his camera , as well as a carbon perch and remote induction allow him to bust the shot from a good distance .
“ I had wanted to shoot a charismatic over / under portrait of a great blanched shark for a twosome of years,”explained Smith .
“ Some proficiency I had previously assay failed terribly , so this metre I designed and constructed my own carbon pole and remote trigger . Surprisingly the shark were instantly pull to the television camera with no extra bait demand , in fact it was a battle to break off them biting the dome port ! ”
Underwater Photographer of the Year 2022 go to Rafael Fernandez Caballero for an astonishing photo of a nighttime fete among a group of whale shark in the Maldives .
Conveniently for the whale shark – and Fernandez – the light of a gravy holder had concentrate their nightly provender of plankton , bringing these ocean giants within nip with just enough light to see .
“ In the sea illusion can always happen . But when magic materialize all together , you only can think you ’re dreaming . This was the case of that night in Maldives,”said Fernandez .
“ Out of the blue , insaneness happened and giant sharks start to add up in large numbers pool . I was together with Gador Muntaner , a shark researcher , who could n’t believe what we were seeing . We counted at the same clip 11 whale sharks surrounding us . It was a unique moment that no one there had thought it could even be possible . ”
PhotographerThien Nguyen Ngocfrom Vietnam was awarded “ The Save Our Seas Foundation ” Marine Conservation Photographer of the Year 2022 .
His aerial photo “ Big Appetite ” highlight the struggle for keystone coinage such as the anchovy : a basic in Vietnamese fixings but whose universe is speedily wane , having whack - on effect for whales , sea birds , and other nautical predator .
Category succeeder and My Backyard Winner Pekka Tuuri attest that you do n’t always require to head to the farthest ambit to capture memorable exposure . His pic “ All You Need Is Love ” was take in a pool 20 second from his home .
“ It is full of love in recent April,”said Tuuri . “ The common frogs issue forth first , then toad and finally newts . I expend four sidereal day and four night time session in it in 2021 . I wore a drysuit with argon , lot of undergarments and a heated undershirt to survive in the five stage water . ”
“ I floated and stayed put among the frog and quite presently they accepted me and my camera as a part of the scenery . The frogs climb on top of my camera , make grunting sounds in my ears and squeeze between my face and the backplate of the camera . The alive spawning metre lasts about two days and night . What an experience with lots of photo ops ! ”
Indeed , discover beauty in unexpected places was something of a running theme for the competitor throughout the pandemic .
“ Restriction on travel over the last class may have halt many photographers visiting their favourite waters , but it has n’t stifled their creativity , ” comment judge Mustard in a waiver emailed to IFLScience .
“ The Underwater Photographer of the Year competition shoot for to celebrate underwater picture taking in all its forms , and we are delighted that many of this year ’s award images come from family countries and some are even taken in swim pools . ”
Got some weak chance on your threshold ? It ’s time to start shooting for next class .
