OCEANOGRAPHIC: Hello Jenny and massive congratulations on being named the winner of the Female Fifty Fathoms 2026. What does this mean to you?

Jenny Stock: It’s an absolute privilege and an honour. I am really delighted to have won. It’s the sort of thing that actually really does open doors. Anything that celebrates women’s voices is incredible and to have my images shown to the world… it’s beyond words. And that’s why I do it – that’s why I come back up to the surface with all those images, because I want to share them. And this is a perfect platform for that.

OCEANOGRAPHIC: So, this isn’t the first time your name has featured among the finalists and winners at Ocean Photographer of the Year. How does this build on the success you saw with the award last year?

Jenny Stock: It’s fabulous. I think any win that you get, you really have to appreciate the time, because the wins don’t come every year. It’s an amazing feeling and I think you really have to take it to heart when it does happen and go, “I did it! I managed to share a story or an image with lots of people.”

OCEANOGRAPHIC: The FFF award isn’t a celebration of just one image, but of a portfolio of images. What story are you telling through your winning portfolio this year?

This is a portfolio that I think celebrates the underwater world. It’s got colour, it’s got beautiful reefs, it’s got interactions with animals. A lot of my photography is portraiture, and my favourite images are of animals that are looking you in the eye; where you’re sharing a moment with an animal. And that’s very intimate. They live a different life to us, but that photo of that moment is mutual curiosity, and I love that. A lot of the photos I’ve chosen because they are colour and they are vivid and they are a celebration of what’s down there.

OCEANOGRAPHIC: And is that typical of what you look for when you’re underwater?

There are lots of different personalities of photographers; some are very serious and very good at telling serious stories. They can come up with a black-and-white image that’s profound. I would say that I am on the other end of that spectrum. I have tried to fight that sometimes, but actually it’s where my heart lies – where things are really joyous and colourful and vivid and happy. I like photos that show a reef that is in a beautiful, pristine condition. I like things that are celebratory of our world, our oceans, our rivers, any of our bodies of water, and the animals that live in it. I want those animals to shine in my images. So I think I opt for those kinds of images.