The exhibition will showcase 112 striking images celebrating the beauty of the ocean while highlighting ecological challenges and the urgent need for marine conservation.
For the first time in the competition’s history, two Australian photographers have been named category winners from a pool of over 15,000 entries.
Marcia Riederer's image of a dwarf minke whale won the Fine Art award. Image: Underwater Photographer of the Year
Melbourne-based photographer Marcia Riederer took out the Fine Art category with a stunning image of a Dwarf Minke whale captured on the Ribbon Reefs of the Great Barrier Reef.
Craig Parry won the Human Connection award with this photo of a group of people trying to save a stranded humpback whale. Image: Underwater Photographer of the Year
Meanwhile, Craig Parry from Lennox Head, NSW, won the Human Connection category with a dramatic drone shot documenting a rescue attempt for a stranded Humpback whale on Seven Mile Beach.
Additionally, two other Australian photographers were recognised in the competition: Brooke Pyke, third in the Portfolio category, and Gergo Rugli, runner-up in the Adventure category.
Brooke Pyke, Third, Portfolio category. A scalloped hammerhead near Darwin’s Arch. “This was one of my favourite safety stops ever,” explains Pyke. “Drifting over the white sand, I looked down to see several fish swarms. Underneath them passed several scalloped hammerheads”.
The exhibition celebrates excellence across categories including The Ocean, Wildlife, Fine Art, Adventure, Conservation (Hope), Conservation (Impact), Human Connection, Young Photographer of the Year and the Ocean Portfolio Award, along with the prestigious Female Fifty Fathoms Award, this year awarded to Jialing Cai.
Jialing Cai, Philippines – Female fifty fathoms, winner. A larval pufferfish, roughly the size of a thumb nail. “Although adult pufferfish are typically found around coral reefs, they begin life as plankton, drifting in the open ocean before eventually settling to the seafloor,” says Cai. Image: Ocean Photographer of the Year.
The overall winner for 2025 was Yury Ivanov of Indonesia.
Yury Ivanov, Indonesia – Overall winner. Two amphipods from the Cyproideidae family, each around 3mm in body length, rest on a coral. Commonly called “ladybugs of the sea”, these tiny creatures display striking colouration and symmetry. Image: Underwater Photographer of the Year
Australian Photography and Capture are official media partners for the exhibition, which offers a unique opportunity to experience the photographs up close, celebrating both the artistic and environmental significance of the ocean.
You can see a selection of the winning images below. The exhibition runs from Thursday until May 6.
Portfolio - Winner - Matthew Sullivan. Image: Underwater Photographer of the YearHugo Bret, Faroe Islands – Conservation (impact), winner A long-finned pilot whale foetus lies lifeless under its mother’s corpse. “Each year, more than 1,000 cetaceans are killed during grindadráp, the slaughter of entire whale groups, including juveniles and pregnant females,“ says Bret. Image: Underwater Photographer of the YearTakumi Oyama, Japan – Wildlife photographer, winner “This photo shows the larval dispersal behaviour observed during the hatching of the yellow pigmy goby,” says Oyama. Image: Underwater Photographer of the YearBen Thouard, Portugal – Ocean adventure, winner A rough Nazaré day. “The wind came from the north which made the surf tricky,” says Thouard. “Not many surfers went out and it was hard to shoot anything because of the big sets but eventually, this moment occurred”. Image: Underwater Photographer of the YearSirachai Arunrugstichai's photo of an aquarist handling the embryo of an Indo-Pacific leopard shark won the Hope award. Image: Underwater Photographer of the Year
