Diminutive Seahorses Top the 2026 Ocean Photographer of the Year Contest
As deep swells from an offshore hurricane were further empowered by king tides in Southern California over , residents experienced firsthand the impacts of human-generated climate change. Erosion is an innate process along coastlines, where waves and wind constantly shift the sand and gnaw away at bluffs. Infrastructure projects and residential development over the last several decades have also meant changes to the natural coastline, and beaches are regularly refilled with tons upon tons of sand. Even so, in just a couple of days, some of the region’s beaches virtually disappeared.
This example is just one in an increasing array of low-lying places where our oceans, which , demonstrate their impressive authority. That’s where magazine and ’s annual Ocean Photographer of the Year competition aims to highlight some of the most beloved, impressive, and little-seen aspects of our planet’s most expansive waters.
Matty Smith, finalist in the Wildlife category. Southern elephant seal pups explore shallow rock pools on Sea Lion Island in the Falkland Islands, testng their first movements in the water after being weaned by their mothers
The annual contest announced its winners of 2026 this week, awarding top honors to Julien Anton for his black-and-white portrait of a seahorse accompanied by two very tiny juveniles. British photographer received the Female Fifty Fathoms Award, which recognizes an overall practice that pushes the boundaries of women in ocean photography.
Peruse more images below, from this year’s contest, and see all the winners in the .
Jenny Stock, winner of the Female Fifty Fathoms Award. During a dusk dive in a Scottish sea loch, a torch reveals thousands of brittle stars covering the seabedGergo Rugli, winner of the Adventure category. Dolphins ride the waves alongside surfers at Tamarama Beach, Sydney, during a powerful swell and offshore windsSteven Lopez. A close view of a giant black sea bass reveals many parasitic copepods clustered around its eye in a Catalina Island kelp forest, Southern CaliforniaRui Filipe Cardoso Duarte, winner of the Human Connection category. Volunteers, surfers, lifeguards, and conservation groups in Boa Vista, Cape Verde, work together to re-float stranded short-finned pilot whalesSun Qingsheng, finalist in the Human Connection category. Thousands of fish-farming cages stretch across the sea, connected by floatng walkways and small wooden huts to form a vast community in Fujian Province, ChinaJenny Stock, winner of the Female Fifty Fathoms Award. In Western Australia’s Jurien Bay Marine Park, curious sea lion pups approached the photographer in the waterGergo Rugli. A teenager stands at Bronte Ocean Pool, Sydney, as a powerful swell sends waves crashing over the closed bathing siteAndrea Michelutti, finalist in the Wildlife category. A scorpionfish consumes a lizardfish in a moment of hunting behavior near Anilao, Philippines, revealing the constant balance between survival and vulnerability on coral reefs
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