OCEAN AZORES PHOTOGRAPHER 2024 WINNER

OICEAN+TOURISM-Cópia de suldopico@gmailcom-Common dolphinsjpg-Striped dolphins and Picojpg-Sperm whale breaching

© Pedro Madruga | Espaco Talassa

CATEGORY WINNER: ABOVE WATER

ABOVE-WINNER-piconaturecleanup@gmail.com-Risso_s-dolphin_RR_2023_05_18_Roxane-Rambert_cat-2-scaled

© Roxane Rambert

HONORARY MENTIONS

Copia-de-info.jquaresma@gmail.com-1

© João Quaresma

Copia-de-info.jquaresma@gmail.com-1.jpg-2.jpg-4

© João Quaresma

info.jquaresma@gmail.com-1.jpg-2.jpg-4.jpg-5.jpg-6

© João Quaresma

Copia-de-suldopico@gmail.com-Common-dolphins.jpg-Striped-dolphins-and-Pico-scaled

© Pedro Madruga | Espaco Talassa

CATEGORY WINNER: BELOW WATER

© David Ochoa

HONORARY MENTIONS

Copia-de-david.ochoa_.sub@gmail.com-DSC00048-Enhanced-NR.jpg-Sunfish.jpg-Tuna-Baitbal-Silhouette-scaled

© David Ochoa

david.ochoa_.sub@gmail.com-DSC00048-Enhanced-NR-1.jpg-Sunfish-1

© David Ochoa

Copia-de-r_ventura_4@hotmail.com-GPTempDownload-3

© Ricardo Ventura

FSGarcia_TA_PA_img151

© Francisco Garcia (NIR. 04-ORAC-2023)

fsampaiogarcia@gmail.com-OAPY2024_Underwater_img035-scaled

© Francisco Garcia

Sperm whale around the coast of Sao Miguel island, Azores. Photo by Francisco Garcia for Ocean Azores Foundation

© Francisco Garcia | Terra Azul

Copia-de-nzpotes@hotmail.com-IMG_1942-scaled

© Nuno Potes

Copia-de-nzpotes@hotmail.com-IMG_4339-scaled

© Nuno Potes

CATEGORY WINNER: OCEAN TOURISM

OVERALL-WINNEROICEANTOURISM-Copia-de-suldopico@gmail.com-Common-dolphins.jpg-Striped-dolphins-and-Pico.jpg-Sperm-whale-breaching-scaled

© Pedro Madruga | Espaco Talassa

HONORARY MENTIONS

Copia-de-francis.glassup@gmail.com-01.jpg-IMG_0911-Edit.jpg-IMG_0994-scaled

© Francis Glassup

Copia-de-joel_rohrer@hotmail.com-DSC_1461-Pedra-do-Souza-Faial-July-25-2022.jpg-DSC_1298-Pedra-do-Souza-Faial-July-25-2022-scaled

© Joel Rohrer

fsampaiogarcia@gmail.com-OAPY2024_Underwater_img002-scaled

© Francisco Garcia | Terra Azul

Copia-de-francis.glassup@gmail.com-01.jpg-IMG_0911-Edit.jpg-IMG_0994.jpg-IMG_1662-scaled

© Francis Glassup

Copia-de-r_ventura_4@hotmail.com-GPTempDownload-3

© Ricardo Ventura

Freediving in sao miguel island

© Francisco Garcia | Terra Azul

CATEGORY WINNER: MARINE TRASH

MARINETRASH-WINNER-joel_rohrer@hotmail.com-DSC_2488-Condor-Bank-Faial-August-26-2022-scaled

© Joel Rohrer

HONORARY MENTIONS

Location: Faial Island, Azores
Species: Hippocampus spp but I am not certain whether this is a long-snouted or lined seahorse.
Description: I have free dived regularly in the Azores for years and always longed to see a seahorse. On a late season dive in about 15m depth I was enjoying the clear water and magical light when I suddenly came into a stream of murkier water filled with salps and rubbish, carried around the point by the current. I was filming pieces of plastic drifting past when I spotted this tiny seahorse using a piece of plastic as an anchor point. It was a bittersweet moment - I was delighted to see this beautiful, elusive creature at last but sad that it had attached itself to plastic instead of seaweed. Plastic is everywhere in the marine environement and adapting to its presence may be the only option for some creatures. I watched it for a long time, bobbing and twisting just below the choppy surface, trying to capture the beauty of the seahorse in the vast blue of the ocean. Lined seahorses have recently been discovered in the Azores, believed to have drifted 1000s of miles across the Atlantic from the Caribbean region.

© Kirstin Jones

Abandonned rope floating with triggerfish in São Miguel island, Azores.

© Francisco Garcia | Terra Azul

Copy-of-fsampaiogarcia@gmail.com-OAPY2024_TrashMarineImpact_img004-scaled

© Francisco Garcia | Terra Azul

Copy-of-garten@vogala.de-Slower-death-1-scaled

© Michael Vogelsang (DRAM/CETACEOS/2021xx/035xx)