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Winners of the 2018 Ocean Art Underwater Photo Contest (25 photos)

Judging for the 7th annual Ocean Art Underwater Photo Competition, organized by the Underwater Photography Guide, has wrapped up, and the winning images and photographers have been announced. Duncan Murrell took “Best in Show” with a photo of the courtship behavior of spinetail devil rays. The contest organizers have shared with us some of the winners and honorable mentions below, from the sixteen different categories of underwater photography. Captions are written by the individual photographers and lightly edited for content.

Eclipse: 5th Place, Wide Angle. From August to November, golden rays migrate in large numbers in Costa Rican Pacific waters. No one knows the exact reason, but it might be for protection from predators or as a social / mating behavior. I was looking for this picture for years and after several weeks searching and working with a biologist specialized in rays, I spotted a good place using my drone. I did several dives in this area and waited patiently, then When they came on top of me, I was shocked and forgot that I had a camera in my hands. Location: Big scare, Bat Island, Costa Rica. (© Copyright (Edwar Herreno / Ocean Art))
https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2019/01/winners-2018-ocean-art-underwater-photo-contest/581056/