The Ocean Photographer of the Year exhibition is preparing to make its grand return to Sydney’s iconic Darling Harbour where, for the next six months, it will once again take up residency in the Australian National Maritime Museum.

More than 100 photographs capturing some of the most exhilarating and heart-stopping imagery of life above and below the ocean from the world’s leading ocean photographers, will be open to public viewing when the Ocean Photographer of the Year exhibition goes live from November 28th 2024 to April 27th 2025.

Tickets to this year’s exhibition will go on sale here.

The Ocean Photographer of the Year 2024 exhibition will showcase all of this year’s category winners and finalists, and will feature stunning images from such talent as Rafael Fernandez Caballero, Shane Gross, Jade Hoksbergen, and Ipah Uid Lynn all of whom captured the world’s imaginations this year with their depiction of life and connection to the ocean.

“We’re thrilled to be working with Oceanographic Magazine again, following the spectacular results of the inaugural exhibition in 2023,” said the Australian National Maritime Museum’s director and ceo, Ms Daryl Karp.

“Once again, we’re overwhelmed by the beauty, power, and impact of the images – drawn from the most talented photographers around the globe – showcasing the diversity, variety, and fragility of our blue planet.”

The Awards invites photographers of all disciplines and experience levels – from amateurs to professionals – to submit their most impactful imagery to be judged by a panel of some of the world’s leading ocean photographers. There are ten categories into which photographers can enter their submissions, with the overall winner crowned the Ocean Photographer of the Year.

This year, that accolade went to Spain’s Rafael Fernandez Caballero and his image of a Bryde’s whale feeding on a bait ball of sardines in the waters of Baja California Sur in Mexico (main image, pictured above).

The Ocean Photographer of the Year Awards aim, each year, to tell the stories of the ocean by bringing its spectacle to audiences around the world. The awards’ partnership with the Australian National Maritime Museum plays a key role in platforming both the photographers and their ocean stories on the world’s stage.

“The vision of the team at the magazine has quickly established this photographic competition as one of the best in the world,” added Ms Karp. “As Australia’s ‘museum of the sea’, we have embraced the opportunity to display these amazing images from ocean photographers globally, creating an immersive exhibition experience, while encouraging visitors to consider their role in preserving the oceans around us.”

Produced by Oceanographic Magazine in partnership with Blancpain, the Ocean Photographer of the Year Awards is a celebration of the blue planet while bringing to the forefront the many issues it currently faces.

Winning photographs from this year’s awards will span categories including the Ocean Conservation Photographer of the Year (both in Hope and Impact divisions), the Ocean Adventure Photographer of the Year, Ocean Wildlife Photographer of the Year, and the Young Ocean Photographer of the Year among others.

Will Harrison, editorial director at Oceanographic Magazine and the Ocean Photographer of the Year, said: “”We are delighted to be collaborating with the Australian National Maritime Museum again to showcase this year’s beautiful and thought-provoking ocean imagery in a ground-breaking event.

“The exhibition marks the second time all imagery – finalists and winners alike, totalling more than 100 photographs – will be featured together in a physical gallery. It will be a spectacle; I can’t wait for the public to see it.”

Ocean Photographer of the Year opens at the Australian National Maritime Museum in Sydney on Thursday, November 28th 2024. The images will be on display until Sunday, April 27th 2025.

You can view all this year’s winners and finalists via the Ocean Photographer of the Year Winners Gallery.

Tickets to the exhibition will be included in an all-access ticket to the museum. More information on ticket prices can be found here.