The winners of the Underwater Photographer of the Year contest 2025 have been revealed with Spanish photographer Alvaro Herrero taking home the top prize for his photo Radiant Bond showing the special relationship between a mother humpback whale and her newborn calf.
The photo was taken in French Polynesia and triumphed over 6,750 underwater pictures entered by underwater photographers from around the world. “The mother is accompanying her calf to the surface because the baby is still so small and clumsy,” explains Herrero.
Underwater Photographer of the Year is an annual competition, based in the UK, that celebrates photography beneath the surface of the ocean, lakes, rivers and even swimming pools, and attracts entries from all around the world. In 2025, the contest attracted 6750 underwater pictures, with the awarded photographers coming from 28 different countries.
The contest has 13 categories, testing photographers with themes such as Macro, Wide Angle, Behaviour, and Wreck photography, and includes three categories for photos taken specifically in British waters.
The winners were announced in an award ceremony in central London, hosted by The Crown Estate. This year’s judges were experienced underwater photographers Peter Rowlands, Tobias Friedrich, and Dr Alexander Mustard MBE. The contest was first run in 1965 when Phil Smith was named Underwater Photographer of the Year.
