The 8th Annual Ocean Art underwater photo competition starts now.
Silky Sharks
– Daniel Flormann
Shot in Jardins de la Reina, Cuba with Canon 7D
Ocean Art is one of the most prestigious underwater photo competitions in the world. A long list of prizes valued at over $80,000 also makes it one of the best endowed, attracting amateur to pro photographers across the globe. Sixteen categories ensure all photo disciplines and cameras compete fairly.
Favorinus pacificus and eggs
1st Place – Flavio Vailati
Shot in Anilao, Philippines with Nikon D500 Camera
Ocean Art prizes are provided by over 20 scuba diving resorts, liveaboard dive yachts, and underwater photo gear manufacturers. Grand prizes include a choice of an Indonesian liveaboard itinerary on the S.M.Y. Ondina, an Indonesian liveaboard itinerary on the M.Y. Oceanic, a 7 night liveaboard trip to Palau on the Solitude One, 7 or 8 nights for two aboard the Coralia in Indonesia, a Great White Sharks trip aboard the Pelagic Fleet’s newest ultra-luxury boat the “Vortex”, multiple Paralenz Dive Cameras and accessories, a 7 night liveaboard trip on the M.V. Bilikili in the Solomon Islands, a 7-night package with Villa Markisa, a 9 night Passport to Paradise at Lembeh Resort, and a variety of gift certificates from Bluewater Photo. Premium travel prizes are provided by Siladen Resort & Spa (Indonesia), Solitude Liveaboards & Resorts (Indonesia), Atlantis Dive Resort (Philippines), Volivoli Beach Resort (Fiji), Crystal Blue Dive Resort (Philippines), El Galleon Dive Resort/Asia Divers (Philippines), Aquamarine Diving (Indonesia), Atmosphere Resorts (Philippines), Eco Dive Resort (Indonesia), Blackbeard’s Cruises – Allstar Liveaboards (Bahamas), and scuba travel agency Bluewater Travel. Premium gear prizes are provided by Sea & Sea, Think Tank Photo, and Ikelite. There are even more platinum sponsors this year than in 2018!
Small fish swimming above a jellyfish
3rd Place – Yeh Hung Wei
Shot in Taiwan with Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II
Ocean Art 2019 consists of 16 categories total, including Novice Wide-Angle, Novice Macro and 3 compact camera categories, giving underwater photographers of all levels a chance to win a great prize. Unique categories include Supermacro, Cold/Temperate Water, Blackwater, Underwater Conservation and Nudibranchs, while the more traditional categories include Wide-Angle, Macro, Marine Life Portraits and Marine Life Behaviour. The Underwater Art category encourages creativity in post-processing.
White tip reef shark (Triaenodon obesus)
Jin Woo Lee
Shot in Roca Partida, Revillagigedo Archipelago, Mexico with RX100 V Camera
Winners from each category will be able to rank the prizes they would like to receive, making it more likely that each winner will receive a prize they desire.
African Bavosa (Parablennius Pilicornis)
Stefano Proakis
Shot in Argentario, Italy with Nikon D800E
Judges include world-renowned underwater photographers Tony Wu, Martin Edge, Marty Snyderman and Scott Gietler. Martin Edge is the author of The Underwater Photographer, a top-selling book on underwater photography. Marty Snyderman is an Emmy winner with work appearing in top publications like National Geographic. Tony Wu is a renowned underwater photographer and author of Silent Symphony. Scott Gietler is the owner of Bluewater Photo, Bluewater Travel and the Underwater Photography Guide.
Coral Goby on Coral
2nd Place Compact Macro – Kate Tinson
Shot in North Sulawesi, Indonesia with Olympus TG4
Photos must be submitted before the deadline of 23.59 PST on November 30 (6.59 am GMT December 1st).
“Special Encounter”
Oceanic Manta Ray
1st Place- Alvin Cheung
Shot it Socorro, Mexico with Nikon D810 Camera
One of last year’s winners was by our Facebook friend Rafi Amar.
For more than an hour I waited for this picture but finally it was worth it.
Location: Shark Paradise, Bahamas
Equipment Used: Olympus OM-D E-M1 Camera, Olympus 60mm Macro Lens, Dual Sea & Sea YS-D2 Strobes
Settings: F8, 1/320 sec, ISO 200
To enter go to https://www.uwphotographyguide.com/ocean-art
