2026 Ocean Conservancy Photo Contest Winners Celebrate Incredible Marine Animals

The 2026 Ocean Conservancy Photo Contest winners celebrate the beauty of the world’s oceans and their inhabitants, delivering colorful photos of cuttlefish, serene walruses, and more.

This year’s Judges’ Choice Winner is Walrus Nursing by Richard Rothstein, a lovely portrait of two female walruses and young calves.

“Our group was in a small skiff slowly moving among the icebergs when we came upon the scene in the image. Two female walruses were in what appeared to be a protective posture as one of the females was nursing a small calf,” says winning photographer Richard Rothstein. “We remained a very respectable distance and did not approach. The walruses seemed to completely tolerate our presence as there appeared to be no alteration of their natural behavior. This was my first encounter with walruses, and it was truly an experience of a lifetime!”

“There’s such tenderness in this Arctic moment—two adult walruses framing the calf nursing between them, all mirrored in the glassy meltwater below. That reflection doubles the impact and gives the composition a beautiful symmetry, and the soft, even light shows off every wrinkle and whisker. A quiet, intimate family portrait set against the fragile backdrop of the sea ice these animals depend on,” says 2026 Ocean Conservancy Photo Contest Judge and two-time winner, Angela J. Farmer.

Rowan Dear was named this year’s Staff Choice winner for the photo, The Lone Ranger. Dear’s photo shows a large male Giant Cuttlefish off the coast of Australia.

“Most of the Cuttlefish here are smaller and similar size to the females, however you will see some very large males who are three to four times the size of some males who will swim around and bully and dominate the other males and sometimes guard up to three females. The larger males are probably two years old and have been eating their way through summer waiting for the mating season in winter,” says the photographer, Dear.

“This is an absolute showstopper — the sunburst breaking through the surface turns an ordinary dive into something almost cinematic. The cuttlefish’s intricate textures and shifting purple-to-copper tones are stunning, and the way the light rays guide your eye right down to it shows real mastery of natural underwater lighting. A rich, immersive image that makes you feel like you’re in the water with him,” Farmer remarks.

Nicole Pellegrino was named this year’s People’s Choice winner for her photo of a seal pup on Long Island in New York.

Alongside the three award winners above, the Ocean Conservancy Photo Contest also selected eight Honorable Mentions, all featured below.

Image credits: Ocean Conservancy. Individual photographers are credited in the captions.