These 11 Wildlife Photographs From the Ocean Conservancy’s Photography Contest Showcase the Marvel of Earth’s Waters

Seals, penguins and fish are featured within the nonprofit’s annual competitors to encourage look after the world’s oceans

Carlyn Kranking

| Associate Web Editor, Science

July 6, 2026 6:15 p.m.

Richard Rothstein had by no means encountered a walrus earlier than. But as he floated in a skiff amongst icebergs in Arctic Norway, he seen two feminine walruses in a seemingly protecting stance. In the center was a child, nursing from one of many adults.

“The walruses seemed to completely tolerate our presence as there appeared to be no alteration of their natural behavior,” Rothstein says in a statement. “It was truly an experience of a lifetime.”

The {photograph} he took of the second, Walrus Nursing, earned the highest prize on this yr’s Ocean Conservancy Photo Contest. The honor, known as the judges selection, comes with a $2,000 money prize.

“I loved the calm moment, the reflection and the connection between the walruses,” Andrés Ballesteros, one of many contest judges, says within the assertion. “It feels very natural, honest and emotional.”

The annual contest obtained greater than 1,000 pictures of marine wildlife and habitats this yr. A panel of three expert judges, who’re themselves wildlife photographers, graded the pictures on influence, creativity, lighting and composition.

“We look for photos that evoke a strong emotional response, that make the viewer feel a connection to the ocean,” Megan Bennett, senior supervisor of digital outreach on the Ocean Conservancy, tells Smithsonian journal.

As the judges regarded via the submissions, a theme began to emerge of their favourite photographs: animals. The entries included “gorgeous seascapes and sunsets,” Jenna DiPaolo, chief model and communications officer for the Ocean Conservancy, tells Smithsonian journal. “But as is often the case, the ones that rose to the top were portraits of ocean wildlife, and I think that’s because we crave to see and connect with animals on an interpersonal level.”

Photographer Rowan Dear earned the workers selection award, chosen by voters among the many Ocean Conservancy’s workers. Dear’s picture, taken close to the coast of Whyalla, Australia, captures a male big cuttlefish in search of a mate.

The photograph is “an absolute showstopper,” contest choose Angela J. Farmer says within the assertion. “The sunburst breaking through the surface turns an ordinary dive into something almost cinematic. The cuttlefish’s intricate textures and shifting purple-to-copper tones are stunning, and the way the light rays guide your eye right down to it shows real mastery of natural underwater lighting.”

Selected by a public vote, the individuals’s selection award went to photographer Nicole Pellegrino, who captured this picture of a seal resting alongside the shore of Long Beach, New York, in April 2024.

“Some photographs capture a moment,” contest choose Farmer writes on Instagram. “The very best photographs change the way we see the world.”

Here are the honorable point out awardees from the competitors.