Winners - Underwater Videography Contests
March 2021 Video Contest Winner and Review

WINNER CHOSEN AND REVIEW BY SCUBAVERSE.COM’S EDITOR-AT-LARGE AND RESIDENT UNDERWATER VIDEOGRAPHY EXPERT JEFF GOODMAN
Winner: Breathing under the sea by Noemie Stroh
Winning Video:
Oh I don’t know! Every film once again was top quality and everyone must feel proud of their work. For me this month the most outstanding film was Breathing under the sea by Noemie Stroh which just had that little extra in it’s editing and overall treatment.
Thanks to everyone for your amazing entries and look forward to seeing more next month.
Mediterranean sea by A deep forest by Claudio Valerio
Hi Claudio, thanks for setting up your film with the excellent written introduction. Fabulous quality right from the start and I loved the slow pace of the film which was edited perfectly to the music. Great lighting, which brought out all the amazing coral colours to their full glory. I loved the slow camera moves in your close up shots which gave the video a real cinema feel. The cutting to and from the divers worked well. The video was a perfect visual treat. What a beautiful area to dive!
Breathing under the sea by Noemie Stroh
Wow, that was terrific. Great quality of images with wonderful wildlife. Your commentary worked very well and having a French accent didn’t do any harm. The words and sentiment were well thought out and moving. I have to say again that the wildlife images were fabulous and very well lit. Great film.
We are Swanwick Divers by David Gwyer
Thanks for the intro David. Swanwick Divers must be pleased with this. Good pace and nice bright music. Camera work was good as was the editing. Although it’s always good to use your own footage in this type of promo video, it may be an idea to think about incorporating 3rd party clips as well. As long as you list the names of contributors and edit yourself, then that is perfectly fine. I only mention this because I’m sure that over the years various people from the group must have caught some exceptional moments that would boost the clubs profile even more. I do the same myself when shooting a promo for lets say a tourist board. I do the trip and then ask around for anyone who has great video clips that I would have no chance of capturing during my short visit. I then give credit where it’s due and everyone is happy.
Similans – Thailand // Liveaboard experience by Andreas Fiskeseth
Very nice. Loved the anemone tracking shot with the wreck behind. Good touch with the freeze frame and really well cut to the music which was the perfect choice for the videos treatment. The drone and life on board sequence was terrific especially with the slow motion. Great wildlife images all beautifully shot and lit. Great film.
Turtle moments by Zaflee Bin Md Suibarek
Your opening shot was wonderful. For me it could have lasted for another minute. I felt I was peeking in a secret moment of the turtles life. I love the simplicity of the video and the music choice was perfect.
Treasure Bay by Craig Beasley
What an adventure! Very exciting story in the written introduction which carried on into the video. Nice that you did the music yourself as well as the very professional narration. Excellent rock steady macro camera work and lighting on stunning creatures.
The April competition is now open for entries. You can enter up to three videos by clicking here.
Winners - Underwater Videography Contests
June 2022 Video Contest Winner and Review

WINNER CHOSEN AND REVIEW BY SCUBAVERSE.COM’S EDITOR-AT-LARGE AND RESIDENT UNDERWATER VIDEOGRAPHY EXPERT JEFF GOODMAN
Winner: French Polynesia by Olivier Bourgeois
Winning Video:
Exciting entries this month which once again make me wish the impossible of being everywhere at once to witness the amazing marine life we have on this planet. But, just seeing your entries makes me glad to know it is out there. Keep it safe, look after it. Spread the word.
This month’s winner is French Polynesia by Olivier Bourgeois. Not only stunning images but a lot of thought has gone into the production with clever editing and great music choice to set the mood.
Love the end question from the turtle.
Just some Hammer Heads living the life by Megan Ratnam
Great experience and what a perfect way to spend a dive.
Meet the reef Egypt by Domenico Pertschi
Lovely images. Clear and crisp with excellent colour. Very steady camerawork especially on the close ups. Good music choice.
French Polynesia by Olivier Bourgeois
Stunning opening with the blue aerial and then the magnificent underwater shoaling fish. The music and the speed of the action throughout was perfect and produced a wonderful dream like quality that kept my full attention right to the end. Beautiful film, well filmed and edited.
Falmouth Bay, Cornwall, May 2022 by Graeme Parker
Liked the opening. Good to see so many happy divers. The transition from the surface was well thought out but I have to say that I was glad you changed the music at that point as I felt the opening score was a bit too manic for the pace of the shots. However, once underwater it all worked perfectly. Lovely wildlife shots with good camerawork and nice lighting. I think a gentle and informative script/narration would well be worth thinking about.
Gyllyngvase Beach, Falmouth, Cornwall, May 2022 by Graeme Parker
Lovely opening with stunning scenery and perfect music choice. The colours are wonderful. You did well with the dogfish, keeping it perfectly in frame as well as very steady. The spider crabs are excellent. Good idea to put in a short shot of yourself.
Philippines Reef Fish by Dave Weeks
Great title shot and very nice transition to the underwater sequences. Good steady, well lit shots of a lovely variety of marine life. The music was a good choice but did become a little soporific after awhile. Perhaps you could think of some narration to explain what we are looking at which would add another dimension to the film. Maybe try a few extended shots of just one animal and shoot it in a variety of ways, wide angle, mid shot and close up. Love the Turtle shot, Excellent quality.
A story about human… by Maria Bereozka
Thank you for the full and emotive written intro. It’s an important story to tell. I was greatly saddened to see that boats still tie up to coral. They are mad, stupid, short sighted and must be stopped.
In search of the best shots with GoPro by Maria Bereozka
Good message in your written introduction. Beautiful long developing shot. You get great stuff freediving. Nice commentary and very good music. Is that you in shot?
Scuba diving in Tiran island with Go Pro by Maria Bereozka
Whole new ball game, filming wildlife with scuba tanks and not free diving. New disciplines to master in camerawork, lighting and editing. This was a nice film that showed the delight of just being underwater.
The July competition is now open for entries. You can enter up to three videos by clicking here.
Winners - Underwater Videography Contests
May 2022 Video Contest Winner and Review

WINNER CHOSEN AND REVIEW BY SCUBAVERSE.COM’S EDITOR-AT-LARGE AND RESIDENT UNDERWATER VIDEOGRAPHY EXPERT JEFF GOODMAN
Winner: Baja California – Socorro : Diving in size XXL by Noemie Stroh
Winning Video:
Hi all. So many good places in the world to dive and so good to see them being filmed and appreciated. However we are too close to loosing it all with overfishing, pollution and climate change so lets not be complacent and make sure we all do our best to protect and conserve.
Five entries this month and the winner is Baja California – Socorro : Diving in size XXL by Noemie Stroh. I do realise that not everyone has access to such amazing marine life and so I always look at filming skills as well as the actual species. But in this case Noenie has capture incredible images of incredible wildlife and edited them together in a thoughtful and exiting way.
Underwater birds by Maria Bereozka
The video shots you get by free diving are so good. No bubbles to worry wildlife. Beautiful ray and good music choice. I think I have said it all before on your previous films. Great and really nice to watch.
Scuba diving changed my life! by Maria Bereozka
Love the written intro. It was Cousteau who inspired me to explore the undersea world although perhaps a few generations before. Nice to see a different style of film from you. Lovely sentiment and very well shot with a perfectly slow pace. A simple film but with good impact. Have a look again at your opening narration as your words were a bit quite and lost behind the music. Love the long shots.
Meet the reef Egypt by Domenico Pertschi
Hi Domenico. Lovely images of some fabulous marine life. All sharp, steady, well framed and well lit. Good music choice too which kept a nice pace to the video. Red Sea – fabulous place to dive.
Tiran Island: scuba diving with Go pro 9 by Maria Bereozka
We are going to need to change this monthly competition name to the ‘Maria Bereozka show’. You have more entries than anyone else I know. Excellent. Keep sending them in. Nice pre-dive sequence which really captured the feel of Red Sea boat diving. Good underwater images and the music fitted well. As you are now getting into the scuba aspect of underwater filming and finding much more to film, have a think about some sort of narration or story line.
Baja California – Socorro : Diving in size XXL by Noemie Stroh
Fabulous drone shots to open the film. It’s a wonderful location. The link from the surface shot of the Sea lion to the underwater was great and the following images were stunning. I loved the shot of the diver under the massive shoal of fish. Your camera work is very good as is your lighting. The dolphin squeaks under the music was a simple touch but very effective. Well done. So many good images. The puffer fish and the ray made me smile. My only negative thought was the music, while starting well it eventually became a bit monotonous.
The June competition is now open for entries. You can enter up to three videos by clicking here.
-
Competitions2 months ago
WIN a Sharkskin Performance 40L Duffle Bag!!!
-
Competitions3 months ago
Win a Vasili Lights Fish Lantern!
-
Competitions2 months ago
WIN a c-monsta Wetsuit Hanger!!!
-
Dive Training Blogs3 months ago
Jeff chats to… Jim Elliott and Tinamarie Hernandez of Diveheart (Watch Video)
-
News2 months ago
DIVING talks 2022: the discussion we all want to hear
-
News1 week ago
Irish Marine Science student wins European Scuba Diving Scholarship
-
News2 months ago
DIVING talks 2022: all you need to know about this year’s event in Portugal
-
Marine Life & Conservation Blogs3 months ago
Love is in the air at Blue Planet Aquarium