Underwater photography competition crowns winners among 1,600 photos: See a 3-headed eel pic and more
An underwater photography company hosted a competition to find the most jaw-dropping images of 2022-2023.
UnderwaterPhotography.com had over 1,600 images submitted to its competition, with all falling under 10 different categories based on the type of angle used, the image captured and more.
The overall winner and world champion crowned was Glenn Ian Villanueva from the Philippines, who happens to be a tax consultant by day, as SWNS reported.
RARE SPOTTED HAND-FISH PIC AMONG TOP WINNERS OF 2022 OCEAN ART UNDERWATER PHOTO CONTEST
The shot that won gold in the "macro swimming" section was a unique image of a fish inside a jellyfish.
Villanueva told SWNS that photography — and diving, specifically — is what helps him survive corporate life.
"The warm and sometimes cold water as you descend underwater offers the perfect environment for the busy mind to cool down, relax and be creative," he said.
Villanueva said he hopes to do underwater photography full-time one day.
Another notable winner in the competition was Penn de los Santos, who won first place in the "macro super macro" category and gold in the "macro not swimming" category.
One image was of a specimen taken in the ocean off the Philippines — while the other is what appears to be an underwater image of a 3-headed eel, as SWNS reported.
French photographer Jerome Mirande won third place in the "over/under" category for his mermaid image captured in Corsica — an island in France.
Mirande’s images are all taken while free diving, according to SWNS.
Belgium photographer Kurt Storms took second place in the "wide-angle wreck" section — ones that covers any image taken of a manmade object that's sunk underwater.
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His image was of the Ghianis D in Egypt’s Northern Red Sea — which sunk in 1983 when it hit a reef, as SWNS reported.
The competition includes 219 winning images, but competition organizer Tal Mor told SWNS that the number of submissions was up 40% from the 2021-2022 competition.
"It’s the industry’s most coveted prize because it says you succeeded in the most competitive environment there is, against the top talent of the moment," the group said.
Mor added that photographers who want to make a name for themselves tend to come to Underwater Photography — which began in 1996 — to do so.
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