The water is teeming with fascinating creatures: jellyfish, great white sharks, or mating frogs.
The Underwater Photo of the Year 2022 contest this year had 4,200 participating underwater photos from photographers from 71 countries . Based in the UK, this annual photo competition rewards photos taken below the surface of the ocean, lakes, rivers and swimming pools.
It currently has 13 different categories (including Macro, Behavior, Black & White and Marine Conservation) and four of these are specific to photos taken in UK waters.
The first Underwater Photographer of the Year was named in 1965 . The winner of 2022 has been the Spanish photographer Rafael Fernández Caballero for his incredible image titled ‘Dancing with the giants of the night’.
Fernández Caballero comments: “In the ocean, magic can always take place. But when the magic happens together, you can only think that you are dreaming. This was the case that night in Maldives. Early in the evening a whale shark came to light from our BlueForce One boat, we jumped into the water and then another whale shark came along. We were so happy when a couple of hours later, out of nowhere, the madness happened and the whale sharks started arriving in large numbers. I was next to Gador Muntaner, a shark researcher, who couldn’t believe what we were seeing. We counted at the same time 11 whale sharks surrounding us. It was a unique moment that no one had thought could be possible. Magic happens in the ocean every day, but if we don’t protect the oceans and the sharks, these moments will soon be a thing of the past.”
UPY 2022 Photographer of the Year
The jury highlighted Rafael Fernández Caballero’s mastery of light and composition in his image.
“Photography needs light and simply capturing these giants in a dark ocean is quite an achievement. To do this with such beautiful light and careful composition of all five sharks is extraordinary,” said Alex Mustards, contest judge.
Australian photographer Matty Smith won the title of British Underwater Photographer of the Year 2022 for his portrait of a great white shark titled Great White Split.
The winner of the My Backyard 2022 category was Pekka Tuuri who captured this image in her backyard pond. The image won the Behavior category as well as the My Back Yard award. Pekka: “All you need is love! This love pond is in my backyard, a 20-minute drive from my house. And it has rewarded me handsomely for the last ten years. It is full of love at the end of April. Common frogs come first, then toads, and finally newts. I spent four days and four night sessions on it in 2021. I wore an argon dry suit, lots of underwear and a thermal vest to survive in the five degree water. I floated and stayed among the frogs and very soon they accepted me and my camera as part of the scenery. The frogs climb to the top of my camera, growl in my ears, and get between my face and the back plate of the camera. Active spawning time lasts about two days and nights. What an experience with many photographs!” explains the photographer.
Each year, the UPY Photo Contest creates a free downloadable yearbook showcasing the entire collection of winning images. You can consult and download the 2022 ebook on the official UPY website.
These are other winning images.
