The competition attracts entries from all around the world, has 13 categories, testing photographers with themes such as macro, wide angle, behaviour and wreck photography, as well as four categories for photos taken specifically in British waters.

This year’s competition received over 4,200 underwater images, submitted by photographers from 71 countries.

This year’s judges were experienced underwater photographers Peter Rowlands, Tobias Friedrich and Dr Alexander Mustard MBE.

“Restriction on travel over the last year may have stopped many photographers visiting their favourite waters, but it hasn’t stifled their creativity,” comments judge Mustard. “The Underwater Photographer of the Year contest aims to celebrate underwater photography in all its forms and we are delighted that many of this year’s awarded images come from home countries and some are even taken in swimming pools.”

Rafael Fernandez Caballero won the Wide Angle category, as well as scooping the overall Underwater Photographer of the Year prize for his shot of five whale sharks feeding in the Maldives.

Rafael said: “In the ocean magic can always happen. But when magic happens all together, you only can think you’re dreaming. This was the case of that night in Maldives.

“At the beginning of the night one whale shark came to the light of our boat, BlueForce One, we jumped in the water and then another whale shark came

We were so happy when, a couple of hours later, out of the blue, madness happened and whale sharks started to come in big numbers. I was together with Gador Muntaner, a shark researcher, who couldn’t believe what we were seeing. We counted at the same time 11 whale sharks surrounding us.

“It was a unique moment that no one there had thought it could even be possible. Magic happens in the ocean every day, but if we don’t protect the oceans and sharks, these moments will soon be a thing of the past.”

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