The Ocean Photographer of the Year winner announced

Nadia Aly; an aggregation of mobula rays off the coast of Mexico wins top prize at this year's awards © Nadia Aly

Earlier this year, Princess Yachts, the UK’s largest yacht manufacturer, announced their involvement with a prestigious new awards event dedicated to ocean photography – The Ocean Photography Awards 2020.

Joining forces with Oceanographic Magazine and the non-profit organisation SeaLegacy – a collective of photographers, filmmakers, writers and strategists have worked together with the aim of engaging one billion people in ocean conservation. The innovative collaboration has seen Princess Yachts become an official supporter of these first awards which focus exclusively on celebrating the best amateur and professional photography of our oceans across the globe.

The virtual awards took place last night (19th November), where six photographers won prizes across seven awards, whittled down from more than 3,000 initial competition submissions. We are delighted to announce that Canadian photographer, Nadia Aly, was named Ocean Photographer of the Year 2020. All the winners and highly commended images can be seen at www.oceanphotographyawards.com - the photography is truly outstanding across all of the categories.

The Winners:

Matt Sharp - Ocean Conservation Photographer of the Year
Ben Cranke - Ocean Exploration Photographer of the Year
Jason Gulley - Ocean Adventure Photographer of the Year
Cruz Erdmann - Young Ocean Photographer of the Year
Tobias Baumgaertner - The Community Choice Award
Nadia Aly - The Collective Portfolio Award
Nadia Aly - The Ocean Photographer of the Year 2020

The standout judging panel consisted of seven members of SeaLegacy’s world-renowned Collective, including acclaimed Canadian wildlife photographer and documentary maker Paul Nicklen; marine biologist and award-winning photographer Cristina Mittermeier; and Emmy Award-winning marine cinematographer Shawn Heinrichs.

Will Harrison, editor of Oceanographic Magazine, said: “We’re delighted to finally be sharing the competition winner – the Ocean Photographer of the Year. Nadia Aly’s winning photograph mesmerised all seven of our judges, and it’s easy to see why – it’s a beautiful image that captures the awesomeness and vibrancy of life in the ocean. Sacha Specker’s and Magnus Lundborg’s images in second and third place, of a surfer and a rare white southern right whale respectively, epitomise what these Awards are about: the ocean at large, whether seen through the lens of a scuba diving conservationist, an adventurous surfer or a freediving explorer.”

“At Princess we really believe that the Ocean Photography Awards will grow to be recognised not only as a fixture for photographers the world over, but also, and perhaps more importantly, to keep the preservation of our oceans and aquatic life front of mind. The ocean is indeed our playground, and the collective efforts to maintain its health and well-being can be galvanised by these awards and the images captured, as well as via the readership of publications such as Oceanographic Magazine. Congratulations to everyone who entered and to our winners. This feels like the start of something really beautiful.” Kiran Haslam, Chief Marketing Officer, Princess Yachts.