From sunken ships to humpback whales: The 2025 Underwater Photographer of the Year winners
The Underwater Photographer of the Year is back!
The competition spans 13 different categories, pushing photographers from around the world to capture the magic of the underwater world – from intricate macro details to dramatic wide-angle scenes.
With a record-breaking 7,000 submissions from over 600 photographers, this year’s contest highlights the growing fascination with underwater visual storytelling.
This year, Spanish photographer Álvaro Herrero has won the overall Underwater Photographer of the Year 2025 title with his mesmerising shot titled “Radiant Bond” – showing a heartwarming glimpse into the world of a mother humpback whale and her newborn calf.
Radiant Blond by Alvaro Herrero (Underwater Photographer of the Year 2025)
A mother humpback whale accompanies her calf to the surface for its first breath early in the morning. The youngster is releasing a few bubbles as it rises, perhaps this is because it is still learning to control its breathing, or it is simply experimenting with its own body.
Alvaro Herrero
Judges praised Herrero’s winning image for its perfect composition, masterful lighting, and ability to capture an extraordinary moment in nature.
“The light coming from the left upper corner as well as the perfect movement of the Humpback whale and calf, in addition to the excellent framing and composition make this a truly deserved overall winner for the UPY 2025 contest,” says Tobias Friedrich, one of the UPY’s judges.
Below, take a dive into a selection of the winning images from this year’s competition:
Aurora Underwater by Ruruka (Up & Coming Winner)
I first travelled to Cancun, Mexico, for a shoot two years ago, and since then, I’ve been captivated by its charm. These days, I find myself visiting Cancun frequently. From where I live, it’s a very long journey – about 24 hours by plane – but this place perfectly aligns with the direction of my photography and offers a variety of shooting opportunities. To capture this particular photo, I visited during the rainy summer season and worked with a local Korean guide as my model.
Ruruka
Deep wreck by Alex Dawson (Wrecks, Winner)
The wreck sits on the reef at around 104m depth. When she sank she got wedged between the reef wall and a small reef so there is a swim through under the wreck. We did 25 min bottom time and about 2 1/2 hours of deco to produce this image.
Alex Dawson
Face Off by Shunsuke Nakano (Behaviour, winner)
This is a photo of two male Asian sheepshead wrasse fighting. The unique form of this species is characteristic of males, who form harems and claim territories during the breeding season. The one on the left in the photo is the harem king, who has defended his territory for more than 10 years and is estimated to be over 30 years old, while the one on the right is a young challenger.
Shunsuke Nakano
Chasing Dolphins by Enric Gener (Black and white, winner)
This image was captured in the northern Red Sea during a freediving expedition in search of bottlenose dolphins. The moment portrays an intimate mating ritual, where several males – four visible in the picture, though others were nearby – were playfully chasing a female.
Enric Gener
The Beauty of the Swamp by Bryant Turffs (Compact, winner)
I captured this image at one of my favourite locations within the Everglades ecosystem. I have revisited this spot many times trying to capture various subjects and the light just right. The water levels vary significantly, sometimes completely drying, during different times of year. Ironically, on this occasion, I hadn’t invested too much thought and I was enjoying the scenery when this Florida Gar positioned itself perfectly in the frame of my GoPro.
Bryant Turffs
Kaleidoscope of Colour by Catherine Holmes (Coral reefs, winner)
Raja Ampat, Indonesia, is a magical destination where the colour, beauty, biodiversity and dense fish life can almost be an overload on the senses- a celebration of healthy reef life. I was lucky to find perfect conditions with clear water and schooling baitfish swirling amongst the canyons of a large coral bommie, adorned with verdant soft corals.
Catherine Holmes
Magic backlit by Paolo Bondaschi (Macro, winner)
At the end of this dive, I spotted a couple of underwater photographers focused on shooting and it piqued my curiosity about what they were photographing. I signalled to my guide to check what they were shooting. After realizing that it was one of my favourite subjects, a hairy shrimp, I waited patiently for my turn and used the time to plan and prepare for the shot. I chose to shoot it in profile, backlight with a snoot. My guide and my buddy played a fundamental role in expertly managing the light of the snoot. After a few test shots to find the right setting, I finally got the photo I was looking for.
Paolo Bondaschi
Rusty Haven by Dan Bolt
I was actually practising for a different underwater photography competition when I took this shot. For a couple of days before an on-the-day ‘splash in’ competition, this crab was consistently in this position, or very close by. Sadly on the day it was no-where to be seen! Happily for me though that meant I was able to use my practice photos for UPY!
Dan Bolt
The Hitch Hiker by Dan Bolt (British Waters Macro, winner)
Occasionally in my time under the water I have come across this medusa ‘Neoturris pileata’ in the open water but had not taken a decent photo of one. On this occasion however, my buddy and I were specifically targeting them and other similar creatures to try to explore the idea of UK ‘blackwater’ photographic opportunities. Of the many, many(!), images I took that day, this one revealed a larval crustacean within the bell of this medusa.
Dan Bolt
Hydration by Abdulaziz Al Saleh (Portrait, winner)
I had the idea of photographing the camels drinking water for about one and half a years. I wanted to photograph them drinking water from the underwater perspective because I did not see any images showing this. The weather was a critical, and it took me several weeks to get the best possible shots.
Abdulaziz Al Saleh
