News
11th Annual Ocean Art Underwater Photo Contest Winners Announced

The prestigious Ocean Art Underwater Photo Competition, organized by the Underwater Photography Guide, has announced the results of the 11th Annual competition and the world’s largest underwater photo contest.
The competition organiser’s said:
“It is clear from this year’s winning images that our community of underwater photographers has dived into a new and exciting post-pandemic era. An unprecedented caliber of photos was ushered in by the lifting of travel restrictions – including our best in show image featuring another teachable moment from an octopus. This photo, captured in Palm Beach, Florida by Kat Zhou, depicts the bittersweet final days between a mother octopus and her young before dying of old age.”
Winning photos can be seen at the Underwater Photography Guide at https://www.uwphotographyguide.com/ocean-art-contest-winners-2022
This year’s competition debuted a new Mobile Phone category, with inspiring images captured by a tool that almost every ocean lover has in their pocket. Other extraordinary winners included extra-terrestrial blackwater scenes of the crazy domain of pelagic critters, images that brought hope and solutions for ocean conservation, exhibitions of imaginative photographic technique, and inspiring animal portraits.
14 different categories ensure a competitive contest for all levels and disciplines of underwater photography. The judges evaluated thousands of entries from 96 countries before selecting the final set of images as Ocean Art winners. Ocean Art 2022 judges included prestigious underwater photographers Tony Wu, Mark Strickland, and Marty Snyderman.
Over $100,000 in prizes was awarded provided by some of the world’s top scuba diving resorts, liveaboard dive yachts, and underwater photo gear manufacturers.
As the world resumes activities once considered normal, Ocean Art 2022 is a testament to the promise of novel photographic talent and innovation ahead. The competition was overseen by Nirupam Nigam, Editor-in-Chief of the Underwater Photography Guide and a partner in Bluewater Photo and Bluewater Travel.
Nirupam commented: “The winners of Ocean Art 2022 surprised me. I expected an “instagramable” moment to steal the show. Instead, each image is that of photographic excellence or poetic reflection of the natural world around us. These images will be seared in my mind of years to come.”
Complete list of winners:
Best in Show
“Octopus Mother” by Kat Zhou
Wide Angle
1st Place Renee Capozzola
2nd Place Daniel Nicholson
3rd Place Martin Broen
4th Place Julian Gunther
Honorable Mention Josh Blank
Honorable Mention Adam Martin
Macro
1st Place Kat Zhou
2nd Place Matthew Sullivan
3rd Place Nicolas Remy
Honorable Mention Novrizal Herdananto
Honorable Mention Kat Zhou
Marine Life Behavior
1st Place Galice Hoarau
2nd Place Bryant Turffs
3rd Place Tom Shlesinger
4th Place Mirko Zanni
Honorable Mention Luc Rooman
Honorable Mention Mark Green
Portrait
1st Place Kuo-Wei Kao
2nd Place Gabriella Luongo
3rd Place Kim Briers
4th Place Andrew Cummings
Honorable Mention Frank Begun
Honorable Mention Jeff Molder
Honorable Mention Lorenzo Terraneo
Coldwater
1st Place Nicolas Remy
2nd Place Yannick Gouguenheim
3rd Place Jon Anderson
Honorable Mention Shouhao Ren
Honorable Mention Sage Ono
Nudibranch
1st Place Aleksei Permiakov
2nd Place Veronika Nagy
3rd Place Luke Gordon
Honorable Mention Mayumi Takeuchi-Ebbins
Honorable Mention Talia Greis
Blackwater
1st Place Dennis Corpuz
2nd Place Josh Raia
3rd Place Steven Kovacs
4th Place Marcello Zof
Honorable Mention Steven Kovacs
Honorable Mention Galice Hoarau
Underwater Conservation
1st Place Lawrence Alex Wu
2nd Place Caroline Power
3rd Place Gabriella Luongo
4th Place Celia Kujala
Honorable Mention Alessandro Giannaccini
Honorable Mention Daniel Pio
Underwater Art
1st Place Sarah Teveldal
2nd Place Julian Nedev
3rd Place Lilian Koh
Honorable Mention Jenny Stock
Black & White
1st Place Martin Broen
2nd Place Brooke Pyke
3rd Place Piers Baillie
Honorable Mention Renee Capozzola
Honorable Mention Richard Condlyffe
Compact Wide Angle
1st Place Enrico Somogyi
2nd Place Felix Beck
3rd Place Martina Favero
Compact Macro
1st Place Eunhee Cho
2nd Place Regie Casia
3rd Place David Pleuvret
4th Place Ipah Uid Lynn
Honorable Mention Martina Favero
Honorable Mention Andrew Michelutti
Honorable Mention Man Bd
Compact Behavior
1st Place PT Hirschfield
2nd Place Sheryl Wright
3rd Place PT Hirschfield
4th Place João Pontes
Honorable Mention Sofia K. Tenggrono
Mobile Phone
1st Place Buzzichelli Alessandro
2nd Place Chris Gug
3rd Place Grega Verc
For more information, please visit http://www.uwphotographyguide.com
Marine Life & Conservation
UK Shark Fin ban moves closer to becoming law

Bite-Back Shark & Marine Conservation’s relentless campaigns to make Britain shark fin-free reached a new milestone last week when a private member’s bill to ban the import and export of shark fins was voted through parliament with unanimous cross-party support.
The bill is now scheduled for three readings in the House of Lords and, if successful, it will then go to King Charles for Royal Ascent and become law.
Campaign director for Bite-Back, Graham Buckingham, said:
“Our goal of ending Britain’s ties with the global shark fin trade is within our reach. This country has a dark history of exporting around 20 tonnes of shark fins every year and it remains legal to bring up to 20kg of dried shark fins through Customs without needing to declare it. This bill could represent a significant blow to the multi-million-pound shark fin industry. It’s now down to the House of Lords to smooth its path to the palace.”
Since July 2022 the charity has been consulting the Labour MP Christina Rees who put forward the private member’s bill after the government failed to bring its Animal Welfare Bill, that promised to ban the import and export of shark fins, into law last year.
To help improve support for the bill, Bite-Back also created a briefing document on the issues for all MPs to reference. During the bill’s final reading in the House of Commons MPs from different parties wholeheartedly endorsed the ban on the import and export of shark fins.
In her closing statement Christina Rees MP said that she hoped this bill would ‘drive up the standards of global shark conservation’.
Bite-Back will now turn its attention to educating and inspiring members of the House of Lords to vote in favour of a ban.
Follow the bill’s progress at www.bite-back.com and learn how you can get involved in supporting shark conservation initiatives in the UK.
Header image: Finned sharks underwater- Copyright – Scubazoo.
News
Dive Travel Adventures Winter 2023 out now!

Join us on some of the most spectacular and exciting Dive Travel Adventures worldwide!
The latest issue of Scubaverse’s printed premium quality, quarterly publication, Dive Travel Adventures, is available now. After an extended hiatus due to world events, we’re delighted to be back bigger and better than ever before as we share with you the Winter 2023 edition.
Packed full of incredible photography and first person travel experiences, Dive Travel Adventures will inspire you to put on your scuba gear and explore more of the underwater world. From amazing marine encounters to edge of your seat expeditions across the planet, Dive Travel Adventures offers you an insight into the hottest and coolest dive travel destinations the world has to offer. Get ready to tick some incredible Dive Travel Adventures off your wish list!
In the new Winter 2023 edition of Dive Travel Adventures:
BAHAMAS
Nick and Caroline’s long-held dreams of epic Tiger Shark encounters come to fruition on their return trip to Grand Bahama.
TRAVEL GUIDE: AZORES
Into the Blue: Hovering around the dramatically beautiful mid-Atlantic archipelago with Daniel Brinckmann.
FUERTEVENTURA
Yo-Han Cha takes a short flight to the Canary Island of Fuerteventura for a week of relaxed diving and some winter sun.
LUNDY ISLAND
Lundy Island offers an off the beaten track experience along with fantastic scenery above and below the waterline. Jane Morgan explores.
SNORKELING SCOTLAND
Nick and Caroline take advantage of the international travel hiatus to seek out some underwater highlights a little closer to home.
PALAU
Jay Clue heads to Palau to discover what makes this spectacular Pacific archipelago one of the most diverse dive destinations on our planet.
JORDAN
Sean Chinn returns to Aqaba for the scuttling of a Lockheed L-1011 Tristar Plane.
EGYPT
After many a difficult time with suspended flights and then the COVID pandemic, Sharm el Sheikh is firmly back on the map for UK divers. Nick and Caroline head out to see what’s new.
View or download a digital copy of the WINTER 2023 edition of Dive Travel Adventures HERE.
Want a printed copy? The printed edition of Dive Travel Adventures is available to pick up FREE from dive centres throughout the UK and Ireland now, so make sure you pick up your copy today. See a complete list of stockists HERE.
New outlets where you can pick up Dive Travel Adventures are being added to the list all the time. In addition to being available from dive centres, copies will also be delivered to your door with selected orders from leading manufacturers and retailers. You can also pick up your FREE copy of Dive Travel Adventures at various dive shows and events.
We hope you enjoy reading the latest edition of Dive Travel Adventures! Let us know your thoughts on our new publication in the comments below!
Keep up to date with all things #DTA on our Dive Travel Adventures Facebook page and on Instagram.
Look out for the Spring 2023 edition of Dive Travel Adventures coming soon!
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