Winners of the 44th French Championship of Underwater Photo and Video

From April 3 to 5, the island of La Réunion hosted the 44th French Underwater Photography and Video Championship. Discover the winners of this competition.

In the heart of the Indian Ocean, on the island of La Réunion, 21 photography teams and 6 video teams competed in this 44th French championship. The locals took advantage: they were numerous among the participants! Photographers from mainland France also made the journey and were able to benefit from the national workshop organized the previous week to scout the competition’s diving sites.

Departing from the port of Saint-Gilles, the divers spread out across four different sites for 90-minute dives, aiming to capture the best shots in each category: macro (excluding fish), fish (macro or proximity), theme (hidden life), moving fauna ambiance, and two ambiance images.
As for the videographers, they had prepared their script, music, and, if applicable, their voice-over in advance, on an open theme. They dived under the same conditions as the photographers.

The dives took place in La Réunion’s marine reserve. After Cyclone Garance passed through, some organisms – notably gorgonians and corals – may have been damaged, and several mooring buoys are now missing. Despite this, photographers and videographers found sites full of life and many subjects to capture.

After two days of diving, the photo and video juries convened (both in person and remotely) to judge the contestants’ works. The photo jury was composed of Isabelle Jurquet, director of La Réunion’s National Marine Reserve, as well as photographers Stéphane Régnier, Patrick Ragot, Vincent Maran, and Jean-Lou Ferretti.
In the video category, competitors were evaluated by Catherine Hervé (deputy chair of the National Photography and Video Commission), Laurent Mancini, Julie Gauthier, Hubert de Castelbajac, Dany Sarrazin, and Rémy Tezier.