© Jenny Stock / Ocean Photographer of the YearWinner, Female Fifty Fathoms Award. An American crocodile moves through the mangroves of Cuba, a habitat that provides shelter for crocodiles feeding, breeding, nesting, and raising their young.
© Marc Lenfant / Ocean Photographer of the YearFinalist, Adventure. Three surfers converge on the same wave at Teahupoʻo, French Polynesia, after a paddler is thrown from his board. The tow-in surfer immediately changes course, grabbing the cameraman to avoid a collision.
© Julien Anton / Ocean Photographer of the YearOverall Winner, Ocean Photographer of the Year 2026. An adult seahorse pictured with newly born juveniles in the shallow seaweed-filled waters of Moorea, French Polynesia. While it is not known whether these seahorses are related, their arrangement creates the impression of a farewell, as if the tiny seahorses have gathered around their father after he has released them into the world.
© Ajiex Dharma / Ocean Photographer of the YearFinalist, Fine Art. A hinge-back cleaning shrimp rests against a pink barrel sponge in Bali, Indonesia; its eye are sharply focused while the surrounding colors dissolve into a soft blur.
© Jenny Stock / Ocean Photographer of the YearWinner, Female Fifty Fathoms Award. A mother humpback whale and her calf glide through Tonga’s warm, sheltered waters. The calf stays close to its mother at first, then becomes curious, swimming in playful circles and approaching the camera. The mother remains calm and watchful, guiding her young when it comes too close.
© Romain Barats / Ocean Photographer of the YearFinalist, Conservation Impact. Three gentoo penguins stand beside the rusting remains of the former Hektor whaling station at Whalers Bay, Deception Island, Antarctica. Once a center for Antarctic whaling, the site is now being reclaimed by wildlife and the harsh polar environment.
© Lars von Ritter Zahony / Ocean Photographer of the YearFinalist, Adventure. Sunlight pours through cracks in an iceberg in East Greenland, illuminating the seabed like a natural theater. Created by a storm just days earlier, these openings allow light to reach an underwater world usually hidden in darkness.
© Allan Cronin / Ocean Photographer of the YearFinalist, Wildlife. 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.
© James Ferrara / Ocean Photographer of the YearSecond Place, Fine Art. A common octopus reveals its intricate suckers, textured skin, and watchful eye in the waters of Blue Heron Bridge, Florida. Known for its rich marine life, this shallow dive site provided the setting for a close encounter with one of the ocean’s most intelligent animals.
© Richard Condlyffe / Ocean Photographer of the YearFinalist, Fine Art. A ladybug amphipod, only 3 millimeters long, rests on a blue sea squirt in the coral reefs of Komodo, Indonesia.
© Gergo Rugli / Ocean Photographer of the YearThird Place, Human Connection. A teenager stands at Bronte Ocean Pool, Sydney, as a powerful swell sends waves crashing over the closed bathing site. While the conditions forced beaches to shut, people watched the waves from behind the fence. A group of locals climbed into the closed area and stood on the edge, waiting for the waves to crash over them and sweep them across the pool.
c© Thomas Pavy / Ocean Photographer of the YearFirst Place, Conservation Hope. A great hammerhead shark, known as Tamataroa in French Polynesia, is photographed at 55 meters depth in Tiputa Pass, Rangiroa Atoll, during a population survey. 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 to measure their size, sex, and population trends.
© Leighton Lum / Ocean Photographer of the YearFinalist, Conservation Hope. 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 before becoming independent.
© Lin Yongxuan / Ocean Photographer of the YearFinalist, Conservation Hope. At sunrise, a traditional fishing village shares the coastline with rows of offshore wind turbines stretching across the sea, on Nanri Island, Fujian, China.
© James Ferrara / Ocean Photographer of the YearFirst Place, Conservation Impact. A whale shark is surrounded by divers and snorkelers in the Maldives, revealing the overwhelming pressure that crowded wildlife tourism can place on marine animals. With almost 50 people visible in the frame, this image captures the reality behind some popular wildlife encounters: an animal seeking space while people compete for a closer view. It challenges us to rethink how we experience and protect the species we admire.
© Yuta Shigeno / Ocean Photographer of the YearThird Place, Conservation Hope. A male white-spotted pufferfish creates an intricate spawning nest in the sand. The fish carefully shapes a two-meter-wide radial pattern using only his fins. Built over several days, this structure and its subtle details reveal the extraordinary effort this small fish invests in reproduction.
© Iris Uijttewaal / Ocean Photographer of the YearFinalist, Ocean Unseen. A pygmy seahorse, no larger than a grain of rice, clings to a delicate hydroid in the reefs of Raja Ampat, Indonesia. Perfectly camouflaged, these tiny animals are rarely seen, even by experienced divers.
© Daniel Taylor / Ocean Photographer of the YearFinalist, Conservation Impact. A silky shark circles helplessly after taking bait from an illegal longline, its fate sealed by a steel hook and heavy line designed to prevent escape. Photographed less than 48 hours after Baja California’s seasonal shark-fishing ban ended, the image reveals a hidden reality unfolding far from shore. A small group of pilot fish remains beside the shark, highlighting how the loss of one animal can ripple throughout an entire ecosystem.
© Chen Lin / Ocean Photographer of the YearFinalist, Human Connection. From above, moored fishing and tourist boats bloom across the sapphire-blue sea, like the petals of a flower. Fringed by golden coastal vegetation, the shoreline becomes an abstract pattern that is difficult to recognize from ground level.
© Mitsuna Kawai / Ocean Photographer of the YearFirst Place, Ocean Unseen. A ribbonfish rises vertically through the dark waters of Osezaki, Japan. Its long, silver body and delicate fins are adapted for life in the open ocean. This image was captured during a winter blackwater dive. Around the ribbonfish, a swarm of salps—small jelly-like animals that feed on tiny particles in the ocean—provides a glimpse of life moving through the deep sea.
© Lana Tannir / Ocean Photographer of the YearFinalist, Conservation Hope. Animal care workers perform daily physiotherapy on Norah, a juvenile harbour porpoise undergoing rehabilitation at SOS Dolfijn in the Netherlands. Rescued after being stranding on the Dutch coast, Norah was treated for multiple serious conditions, including pneumonia and severe muscle spasms. This image captures the intensive care required to return her to the sea.
To see all of the winning images, be sure to visit Oceanographic Magazine’s full gallery.
The post Winners of Ocean Photographer of the Year 2026 appeared first on The Atlantic.
