The finalists of the competition have just been announced. Discover the stunning photographs that reached the highest level of the competition. The winners of each category and the prestigious title of Ocean photographer of the year will be revealed in September. Place your bets to see which images will be selected for the final stage of the competition.

The competition is produced by Oceanographic Magazine, this year in partnership with Blancpain, Arksen and Tourism Western Australia.

The 2023 Finalists:

Fine art

Merche Llobera
Two devil rays (Mobula tarapacana) gracefully swim through a swirling baitball.
Costa Rica

Jade Hoksbergen
A whale shark and its entourage of remoras are drawn to the fishermen’s bright lights.
Maldives

Michael Haluwana
Shark Bay from above: Golden sand meets turquoise ocean and a herd of goats.
Western Australia

Alex Postigo
Calm after the storm: after devouring a baitball, nearly depleting it, a blue marlin swims amongst shimmering fish scales.
Baja California Sur, Mexico

Scott Portelli
A polar bear rests on the ice.
Canada

Celia Kujala
A group of curious Steller sea lions circles the photographer.
Canada

Andrei Savin
A porcelain crab sits on a sea pen, its constant companion.
Philippines

Henley Spiers
Hidden yet recognizable, a gannet peers through a cloud of bubbles after diving to chase a fish.
Scotland

Tim Burgess
Rain and wind, combined with light highlighting the spray, create a dramatic scene.
Queensland, Australia

Cédric Péneau
The complex body of a spotted moray eel fills the entire background of the image.
Reunion Island

Colin Tennant
A group of narwhals slowly swims through murky water, gently weaving abstract patterns in its wake.
Canada

Yung Sen Wu
A curious spider squat lobster looks into the photographer’s lens.
Philippines

Young photographer

Aaron Sanders
Like a lightning bolt piercing dark clouds, this little common squid darts and shoots a plume of ink in the water.
England

Jarvis Smallman
A bodyboarder moves forward as big storm clouds block the sun and create an electric blue effect on the wave.
Western Australia

Jake Brandwine
A brightly orange goby contrasts sharply with its blue background.
Indonesia

Portfolio

Kat Zhou

Renee Capozzola

Sirachai Arunrugstichai

Wildlife

Michael Haluwana
A group of humpback whales and their calves feed amidst a stunning iceberg backdrop.
Greenland

Michael Haluwana
Illuminated by the Arctic sun, a polar bear crosses a glacier adorned with a waterfall.
Arctic

Remuna Beca
A curious nurse shark rises above the waterline to inquire about the photographer’s presence.
Bahamas

Jack Pokoj
The open mouth of a lizardfish reveals its last meal.
Philippines

Shane Gross
A rarely photographed juvenile lobster hides behind a curtain of stinging tentacles from a lion’s mane jellyfish.
North Pacific Ocean

Scott Portelli
At sunset, a pair of king penguins strike a dramatic pose in the pink sky.
Falkland Islands

Craig Parry
A Gentoo penguin, the world’s fastest penguin species, speeds across the water.
Antarctica

Henley Spiers
A blue-footed booby rises from a vast school of sardines, a fish in its beak.
Baja California Sur, Mexico

Ollie Clarke
The portrait of a hunting octopus reveals numerous lines of movement.
Indonesia

Merche Llobera
A beautiful group of spinner dolphins swims in unison.
Costa Rica

Nicholas Holton
A humpback whale gracefully lands on its back after launching its enormous body out of the Pacific Ocean.
Australia

Renée Capazzola
A rare encounter: four green turtles swim serenely together in a single image.
Hawaii

Adventure

Tim Burgess
Under five surfers paddling in perfect line, the sand mixes with the waves and complex swirling textures appear.
Byron Bay, Australia

Martin Broen
In the cenotes, flooded caves of the Yucatan Peninsula, a diver discovers Mayan relics.
Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico

Todd Glaser
Surfing the famous Banzai Pipeline of the North Shore, a rainbow appears.
O’ahu, Hawaii

Martin Broen
Le Lockheed Martin L1011 Tristar, a deliberately sunk aircraft wreck in the Red Sea, eclipses a diver.
Jordan

Franco Banfi
A diver explores beneath a giant iceberg in East Greenland.
East Greenland

Daniela Tommasi
Kayakers paddle silently along the drifting ice floe and discover a frozen wonderland shared by walruses, seals, whales, and seabirds.
Svalbard, Arctic

Rachel Moore
A freediver is surrounded by a group of grey reef sharks.
French Polynesia

Malek Bouguenoun
A freediver contemplates the opening of a cenote, illuminated by sunbeams.
Mexico

Gabrielle Lui
In a moment of joy, a freediver ‘walks the line’ after breaking a personal record.
Western Australia

Gergo Rugli
A surfer faces a big swell, while the setting sun paints the sky red.
Sydney, Australia

James Ferrara
A freediver contemplates the complex patterns of ice beneath the surface of a frozen lake.
Canada

David Alpert
A freediver appears to fly in the calm blue waters of the Aegean Sea.
Greece

Ocean protection (impact)

Karim Iliya
A fin whale is carved up at a processing station in Iceland.
Iceland

Sirachai Arunrugstichai
In a Myanmar factory, a large pile of spadenose sharks (Scoliodon laticaudus) is prepared for preservation and sale as salted fish.
Myanmar

Sirachai Arunrugstichai
A response team in protective gear cleans oil-contaminated sand along a beach affected by an oil spill.
Thailand

Gabrielle Lui
An abandoned fishing net has become a deadly trap for this stonefish.
Cambodia

Ollie Clarke
A whale shark bears the marks of a recent propeller strike.
Western Australia

Jeroen Hoekendijk
Framed by an unexpected setting, the walrus Freya sits on a concrete pier in Harlingen harbor.
Netherlands

Dmitry Kokh
Two different worlds: A polar bear stands on the ice while a large expedition ship brings tourists to the region for wildlife encounters.
Arctic Ocean

Alex Postigo
A young humpback whale swims with a rope tangled around its lower jaw.
Baja California Sur, Mexico

Rike Brandt
Indonesian fishermen carry a dead tiger shark to a famous shark market in Lombok.
Indonesia

Florian Ledoux
Against a backdrop of melting ice and shifting tides, a determined young polar bear navigates the harsh Arctic waters.
Svalbard, Norway

Florian Ledoux
A polar bear cub dances on the fragile layer of ice.
Svalbard, Norway

László Földi
The downside of wildlife tourism: While swimming with a whale shark, a person attempts to touch it.
Egypt

Ocean protection (hope)

Henley Spiers
A marine reserve teems with life: The Misool Eco Resort funds and manages a 300,000-hectare marine reserve in its waters, with astounding results. Over a six-year period, an average biomass increase of 250% has been achieved.
Raja Ampat, Indonesia

Shane Gross
A diver holds bouquets of eelgrass to plant as part of a program to restore ancient marine meadows.
British Columbia, Canada

Gabriel Barathieu
At low tide, a coral reef is perfectly reflected on the surface.
Mayotte

Remuna Beca
Colorful corals form a heart off the Addu Atoll, a poignant reminder of the need to protect these fragile habitats.
Maldives

Merche Llobera
Cormorants search for their next meal in swirling schools of fish.
Baja California Sur, Mexico

Renée Capozzola
A green turtle briefly poses for an angelic portrait in Maui, Hawaii, where sea turtles enjoy strong legal protection.
Hawaii

Nicolas Hahn
A crowd of mobula rays swims peacefully in the shallow waters of the Gulf of California.
Baja California Sur, Mexico

Sylvie Ayer
A manatee enjoys the crystal-clear waters of the Homosassa River.
Florida

Brandon Berry
The essence of Raja Ampat: A myriad of colorful soft corals and schools of sweetlips in a single image.
Raja Ampat, Indonesia

Jules Casey
Two pale octopuses (Octopus pallidus) are settled on a pipe that is part of an artificial reef designed to attract octopuses and other marine species to the area.
Australia

Ross Long
The cycle of life: A hatchling green turtle follows the path of an adult turtle that laid its eggs.
Wilson Island, Australia

Mok Wai Hoe
Abundance in a single image: Schools of fish swim in unison before numerous corals.
Raja Ampat, Indonesia

Human Connection

Jingyi Wang
Artisanal fishing barriers stand proudly in the sea.
China

Jingyi Wang
At low tide, two fishermen use their traditional fishing nets to gather their catch.
China

Ioannis Pavlos Evangelidis
An artisanal fisherman cleans his boat and prepares for a day of fishing in the morning mist.
Uganda

Ioannis Pavlos Evangelidis
A small part of Ganvié, a floating village located in the northern part of Lake Nokoué in Benin. It is said to be the largest lake village in Africa, with about 30,000 inhabitants.
Benin

Max Holba
A fisherman places a traditional bubu, a handmade bamboo and rattan basket, on the seabed to catch fish.
Alor, Indonesia

Max Holba
A group of tourists swims with whale sharks in Oslob.
The Philippines

Jeroen Hoekendijk
On a gray and stormy morning, a horseman encounters one of the victims of a mass whale stranding.
Netherlands

Sirachai Arunrugstichai
An orphaned Irrawaddy dolphin, rescued from a stranding, is cradled by a caretaker to sleep.
Thailand

Renée Capazzola
Peaceful coexistence: A paddle boarder enjoys the sunset while a stingray swims beneath the water’s surface.
Mo’orea, French Polynesia

Martin Broen
Red headlamps illuminate the nightly routine of those tasked with sea turtle conservation.
Mexico

Peter Marshall
Off Alor, local children play in the water with their handmade wooden goggles held together with fishing line.
Indonesia

Vanessa Torres Macho
Off Sydney, a curious blue grouper investigates the photographer.
Australia

Cover image – Finalist – Wildlife © Renée Capazzola / Ocean photographer of the year