Underwater Seascapes — Winner; Emerging from the darkness of a Mexican cenote, an underwater garden teems with colorful water lilies and small fish.
Ysabela Coll, Dominican Republic – UN World Oceans Day Photo Competition
For the 13th year of its annual Photo Competition, the United Nations World Oceans Day (UNWOD)) has unveiled 13 remarkable winning images steeped in the wonders of life under and over the seas, selected from hundreds of global entries made by both amateur and professional photographers from around the globe.
Under the theme “Reimagining our Relationship with the Ocean,” the 2026 photo competition featured four categories: Big and Small Underwater Faces, Underwater Seascapes, Above Water Seascapes, and the new Connecting Oceans.
The categories are purposefully broad to encourage photographers’ interpretations and artistic visions.
“For too long, we have treated the ocean as something vast, distant and separate from us,” the organizers explain. “’Reimagine’ asks us to close that distance together. To move from passive inheritors of the ocean’s generosity to active guardians of its future.”
Like the winning image above of an underwater garden teeming with colorful water lilies and small fish captured emerging from a Mexican Cenote — vital freshwater reservoirs that sustain biodiversity but are endangered by pollution and climate change threatening their fragile balance.
It offers a moment of beauty that reminds us of our responsibility to protect these hidden ecosystems where life depends on the purity and clarity of the water.
Forbes12 Beautiful Winners Of The U.N. World Oceans Day Photo CompetitionBy Cecilia Rodriguez
The Photo Competition for UN World Oceans Day, coordinated among the United Nations Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, DivePhotoGuide (DPG), Oceanic Global and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO, is a free and open-to-the-public competition that calls on photographers and artists from around the world to communicate the beauty of the ocean.
Connecting Oceans, U.N. Photo Competition
Connecting Oceans, Winner; Cenote Nariz, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico
Valentina Cucchiara, Italy – UN World Oceans Day Photo Competition
Suspended in the pristine darkness of Cenote Nariz, a diver illuminates a breathtaking ancient underwater world formed drop by drop over millennia.
This vast subterranean aquifer (caves system) serves as the vital heart of Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula, just outside of Tulum, acting as the primary source of fresh water that sustains its sprawling jungles, diverse wildlife and human communities.
Known to the Maya as “Suhuy Ja’”- or sacred water – these submerged networks are an interconnected ancestral legacy that has nurtured life across countless generations.
Tragically, this irreplaceable geological marvel is currently under serious threat. We have a profound obligation to protect this fragile ecosystem from destruction so these sacred subterranean rivers may continue to support future generations.
Connecting Oceans, 2nd Place; Inside a cave in the Kingdom of Tonga
James Ferrara , U.S. – UN World Oceans Day Photo Competition
While diving inside a cave in the Kingdom of Tonga, James Ferrara watched a freediver surrounded by a swirling school of baitfish. Sunlight pouring in from the cave’s entrance created a striking silhouette, perfectly framing the diver and fish in a fleeting moment of harmony between shadow and motion.
Connecting Oceans, 3rd Place; North America’s Lake Huron
UN World Oceans Day Photo Competition
A freediver glides beneath the frozen surface of North America’s Lake Huron, suspended in a silent and surreal world.
Lake Huron is one of North America’s five Great Lakes, shared on the north and east by the Canadian province of Ontario and on the south and west by Michigan
The view from below reveals intricate patterns in the ice, sculpted by weather and waves. Experiencing a scene like this makes braving the elements more than worthwhile.
Connecting Oceans, Honorable Mention; Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia
Wendy Mitchell, Australia – UN World Oceans Day Photo Competition
There has never been a more critical time to take action to protect the places we love. Globally, coral reefs are being lost at an alarming rate, largely driven by the relentless impacts of burning fossil fuels.
The release of carbon dioxide trapped in coal, oil, and gas is the leading contributor to climate change, driving ocean temperatures to extreme levels.
Yet, hope remains through awareness and responsible leadership. A brighter future is possible if we champion local initiatives and cast our votes for those committed to protecting these critical ecosystems.
This photo is a window into two worlds, a reminder of the interconnectedness of every element of our planet.
The image was captured in the blue-water mangroves of Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia, where communities rely heavily on the health of their reefs for sustenance and economic benefits from tourism.
Big and Small Underwater Faces
Big and Small Underwater Faces, Winner. Baja California Sur, Mexico
Kaushiik Subramaniam, UK – UN World Oceans Day Photo Competition
A curious juvenile gray whale approaches the photographer’s boat in a lagoon in Baja California Sur, Mexico.
“This was an incredibly special encounter as the whale spent over an hour with us, coming in close enough for me to dip my camera into the water and capture this image,” recalled Kaushiik Subramaniam. “These whales are known for their friendly and inquisitive nature, and seem to genuinely enjoy interacting with humans.”
Big and Small Underwater Faces, 2nd Place; Anilao, Philippines
Verona Chadwick, Australia – UN World Oceans Day Photo Competition
In Anilao, Philippines, this moray eel was hiding in a hole in a reef wall, popping its head out intermittently.
A snooted flash with a color filter was set up behind the subject to create the red rim light.
Big and Small Underwater Faces, 3rd Place; Tongyeong Beach, Korea’s southern coast
Jeon Min-seok, South Korea – UN World Oceans Day Photo Competition
This bobtail squid was encountered during a night dive off Tongyeong Beach on Korea’s southern coast. “As the cephalopod swam upwards, its arms opening wide, I managed to capture this picture,with the animal’s reflection on the surface,” Jeon Min-seok explains.
Underwater Seascapes, Photo Competition
Underwater Seascapes — 2nd Place. Sea of Cortez, Mexico.
Bingqian Gao, UK/China – UN World Oceans Day Photo Competition
This expansive seascape captures one of the ocean’s most awe-inspiring spectacles: a “fever” of Munk’s devil rays gliding in unison in the Sea of Cortez, Mexico.
Bathed in the glow of the sun’s rays piercing the surface, the scene feels more celestial than aquatic. These vast migrations remind us that protecting the ocean means safeguarding the ecosystems that depend on it.
Listed as “vulnerable” on the IUCN Red List, these rays now receive CITES Appendix I protection, a crucial lifeline for the species and a promising sign for their recovery.
Underwater Seascapes, 3rd Place
Eduardo Carrasco, Chile – UN World Oceans Day Photo Competition
The image captures the split second when these Heermann’s gulls, on the lookout for a meal, shattered the silvered surface of the sea.
This view from below highlights the raw, dynamic boundary between the worlds above and below the water’s surface, illustrating a profound interdependence where the life in the sky is irrevocably tied to the health of the deep.
Above Water Seascapes, Photo Competition
Above Water Seascapes, Winner. Alaska’s Kodiak Island
Bruce Sudweeks, U.S. – UN World Oceans Day Photo Competition
The life of a grizzly bear cub on Alaska’s Kodiak Island consists of eating, playing and napping. These two cubs started their day at sunrise, frolicking in the river that provides their meals.
The river is full of salmon heading upstream to spawn as their last mortal act. The bear cubs will effortlessly select a few salmon to eat.
Above Water Seascapes, 2nd Place. Blue Cypress Lake, Florida
James Ferrara, U.S. – UN World Oceans Day Photo Competition
This single, long-exposure image was taken at Blue Cypress Lake, Florida. “After careful planning and a short boat ride in the middle of the night, I used a tripod in the water and light painting techniques to illuminate the cypress tree beneath the Milky Way above,” James Ferrara says.
Rapid population growth has transformed much of Florida’s once-pristine landscape into a patchwork of development and concrete. Yet, pockets of untouched wilderness still remain beyond the reach of urban sprawl and light pollution.
This image is a tribute to the Florida that once was and still exists in fragments today, a celebration and a reminder that these natural spaces are fragile and their future depends on the care and responsibility we choose to take.
Above Water Seascapes, 3rd Place; Nusa Lembongan and Ceningan, southeast of Bali
Miesa Grobbelaar, South Africa/Australia – UN World Oceans Day Photo Competition
The seaweed farms of Nusa Lembongan and Ceningan, southeast of Bali, stretch across the water in rows of green. “From above, I could notice how naturally the locals moved through them, not controlling the ocean but working in tune with it, with a sense of unity and collaboration, as if they were one with the sea,” Miesa Grobbelaar says. “From the sky, it resembles a woven, living tapestry across the water, where human hands and nature are threaded together.”
The winning photos from the U.N. World Oceans Day Photo Competition 2026, as well as from previous years, can be seen at the virtual gallery here.
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