Ocean Art 2025 Judges Comments

Ocean Art 2025 is the 14th annual underwater photo competition hosted by the Underwater Photography Guide. Ocean Art is world’s most prestigious and best endowned underwater photo contest, with over $60,000 in prizes awarded this year!

If you haven’t yet, be sure to check out the 2025 Ocean Art Contest Winners.

Ocean Art 2025 would not be possible without our esteemed judging panel – each of whom is a leader in their field with decades of experience and some of the most prestigious awards in the diving, photo, and video industries.

Here is what our judges had to say about this year’s competition:

First, to all contestants, thank you. Just by participating, you are helping to spread awareness about the beauty and fragility of the underwater realm. Competitions like Ocean Art also serve as inspiration to your fellow underwater shooters, including the judges of this contest. It was a huge honor to work with such renowned judges as Marty and Tony, each of whom are superstars in the underwater photography world, but thankfully are too humble to act that way.

 

As in previous years, I was struck by the large volume of quality images in most categories. Continuing a trend in recent years, many outstanding photos were taken with compact cameras, including smart phones. Naturally, high-end mirrorless and DSLR systems still have an edge, but as technology marches on, those advantages no longer seem like night and day. Compact shooters are now able to capture images that were formerly impossible with modestly-priced systems. This prompts more people to participate, and also serves to de-emphasize the importance of certain technical specifications, encouraging all underwater shooters to concentrate more on the actual art of underwater photography.

 

While we judges have years of underwater imaging experience and probably admire many of the same photos taken by our peers, photography is still very subjective, so naturally we found ourselves disagreeing on certain images. Of course such debates add to the time and effort required to complete the judging, but are an essential part of the process, allowing each judge to consider different points of view and aesthetic sensibilities. Thanks to these interactions, I think we all gained perspective that made for a truly collaborative process, ultimately resulting in a selection of winners that we are all proud to have chosen.

 

For anyone considering future competitions, a few suggestions come to mind. Read the rules thoroughly. Think carefully about the most appropriate category for each image. Just because a photo was taken with a wide lens doesn’t mean it must go in the wide-angle category, especially if it depicts great behavior or a strong environmental message.

 

Regarding editing, in general, less is more. Resist the urge to push those adjustment sliders too far, as it’s easy to overdo it. As in previous years, many otherwise good images had to be eliminated due to overprocessing – especially saturation and sharpening. That said, there were also examples of images that would have ranked higher with just some minor cropping or removal of a few distracting bits of backscatter. If possible, calibrate your display before adjusting images, so that they look the same on the judges’ screens as they do on yours. And, while it’s fine to admire the work of others and emulate certain techniques and approaches, strive to create something new and different, rather than just copying someone else’s successful efforts.

 

To those whose images were honored this year, congratulations! You will be taking home some great prizes, but perhaps more significantly, you can take pride in having your work chosen out of an extremely competitive field that includes some of the world’s most accomplished underwater shooters.

 

If you entered but didn’t place, do not be discouraged. With so many exceptional images being entered and the highly subjective nature of judging, it’s normal that a lot of great, potentially prize-winning images went without recognition. It happens with every major contest, and is just the nature of these events. So, if you have images that you’re proud of and feel are well suited for other contests, I encourage you to enter them. And whether you plan to compete or simply enjoy sharing images with others, remember that satisfaction comes not only from capturing great images, but also the broader experience of being an underwater photographer. So embrace the entire process, from researching dive locales to learning about potential subjects and behaviors, to fine-tuning your techniques and equipment. Seek out a new destination or revisit an old favorite, take time to chat with local people, and enjoy the whole experience. When you encounter difficulties, whether it involves dive conditions or equipment, remember that this, too, is part of the experience, and will help you grow as a photographer.

 

Wishing everyone a happy, healthy and rewarding 2026, hopefully including lots of time below the waves!