Main photo: Ben Thouard, OPYawards, @opy_awards
Got an ocean lover in the family? Head to the capital and view the jaw-dropping images selected as the best ocean photography captured on camera.
The Ocean Photographer of the Year 2022 is a free-to-view, open air exhibition in the shadow of Tower Bridge in London and the photographs on display are spectacular.
First prize this year went to Ben Thouard’s image of the moment a surfer gets wiped out by the turbulence of one of the heaviest waves in the world in French Polynesia (main photo). ‘This is the unseen part of surfing,’ says Thouard. ‘I have so much respect for both the wave and the surfers - surfing such a heavy wave is a huge challenge.’
'We swam alongside her and then, like magic, she opened up her blanket to show herself in all her glory.’
Katherine Lu's mesmerising photograph of a blanket octopus in the Philippines scooped second prize. ‘I was very sick during this dive,’ she reveals. ‘I spent a lot of time trying to equalise near the surface. When my guide frantically signalled for me to come down I hesitated for moment, but went for it, pushing myself down. Luckily my ears equalised and there before my eyes was this beautiful blanket octopus. We swam alongside her and then, like magic, she opened up her blanket to show herself in all her glory.’
A cormorant and baitfish form the shape of a human face in the image selected as third prize winner snapped by Brook Peterson. ‘This image was made under the oil rig platform, Ellen, off Los Angeles, California,’ says Peterson. ‘There was a large school of baitfish under the platform for several weeks and, as a result, numerous other animals there to feed off the baitfish - sea lions, bonita, and cormorants. The image depicts a cormorant hunting through a large bait ball.’
Ryuta Ogawa scooped the Young Photographer of the Year totle with this beautiful shot of a baby green sea turtle photographed at the Ogasawara Islands, Japan. ‘The baby turtles born on the islands have to migrate more than 1000km north to their feeding habitat," says Ogawa. ‘I came across this hatchling in the shallows. It almost looked as if it was calmly preparing for its long journey ahead. I waited for the moment it surfaced for a breath of air to get this particular shot.’
The Ocean Photographer of the Year exhibition will run from October 5 to November 7. For more information and to view the work of all the finalists, head to Oceanographic or follow @opy_awards on Instagram.
