What's your photograph of the day 1097?

A crested sculpin hiding

A spotted eagle ray’s natural pattern is on as-if-by-designer display. “On one of my dives, this beautiful eagle ray caught my eye,” says Palomeque Gonzalez. “It swam calmly across the sandy bottom as it exposed its intricate back to us all. I was amazed that nature inspires the most revolutionary creations. Its skin pattern reminds me of a binary code.”

With their dramatic marine wildlife encounters, gorgeous examples of our species’ connection with the ocean and stark reminders of the human impact on our seas, underwater photographers bring the best of our ocean planet to life and highlight the many perils it faces.

What makes you feel guilty the most?

A 7 Image Gallery of Marine Photos Shortlisted For The Ocean Photographer Of The Year Contest. Just Awesome! Do Enjoy 🤍

MIZAEL PALOMEQUE GONZALEZ, MEXICO - OCEAN PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR 2024

Philippines

Why is watching a man and a woman have sex considered perverted? It's how we all got here, it's what we do, I say if you want to watch porn then carry on!

Portfolio Award, British Columbia, Canada

Baby Plainfin Midshipman fish, still attached to their yolk sacs, are hidden under a rock in an intertidal zone in Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada.

Papua New Guinea's Conflict Islands

How do I know if he loves me? When he wants me to be his gf he make time for me and send me morning and night messages and done everything to melt my heart. Now I am his gf and he don't treat me that way now.

The hunt, Baja California Sur, Mexico

Above, pelicans in the sea off Mexico’s Baja California Sur dive from the sky in a well-coordinated dance. Underwater, mahi-mahi dart around at top speed, chasing sardines. “The surface was murky from the feast, with sea lions also joining the action,” says Merche Llobera. “Whales passed by, but none went for the sardines.”

A crested sculpin hides in the stinging tentacles of a lion’s mane jellyfish. “The tentacles provide both shelter and food for the cryptic fish in Alaska’s Prince William Sound,” explains Shane Gross.

Are Indian youths conservative or liberal?

“The (African pompano) juveniles look very different from adults,” says Pietro Formis. “They are very thin, with a silver body and very long appendages on their fins. Usually, the filaments stretch out behind them, making it almost impossible to capture the whole fish. The long fins created circles around the silver fish, looking like neon lights at night.”’

With many thanks to:

PIETRO FORMIS - OCEAN PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR 2024

Why do narcissists avoid talking about the real issues?

A spotted eagle ray’s natural pattern

Baby plainfin midshipman fish

SHANE GROSS - OCEAN PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR 2024

Why do people with trauma easily recognize other people with trauma through eye contact?

MERCHE LLOBERA - OCEAN PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR 2024

‘“As we gaze at this marine iguana, with half of its body submerged in the waters and the other half emerging above the surface, it's impossible not to marvel at the uniqueness of these creatures,” says Fernandez Caballero. “Without a doubt, marine iguanas are living dinosaurs, a testament to the countless stages and transformations life on our planet has undergone.”

RAFAEL FERNANDEZ CABALLERO - OCEAN PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR 2024

Why do you allow your cat to lie in bed with you?

SHANE GROSS - OCEAN PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR 2024

Conservation efforts have transformed former poachers into protectors. Amid this success swims the rare leucistic green sea turtle.

JAKE WILTON - OCEAN PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR 2024

Is it just me, or do we all hate Sasuke from Naruto?

A marine iguana sits on a rock. Galápagos Islands, Ecuador