Winners Gallery
Finalist Exploration Photographer of the Year
SJ Bennett Mexico
Two technical divers descend into the Blue Abyss, Mexico. This site is accessed by an hour-long underwater scooter ride and a 20-minute swim through a shallow cave system. “You pop through a hole and suddenly the floor drops out to around 70m,” says photographer SJ Bennett. The two divers pictured are at depths of approximately 15m and 30m deep.
BEHIND THE LENS
SJ Bennett United Kingdom (UK)
ABOUT THE IMAGE
- Camera: Sony a7S II
- Housing: Nauticam
- Taken while scuba diving
- Calm conditions
SJ Bennett works as a freelance graphic designer and photographer, a job that has enabled her to work around the globe, and giving her the opportunity to follow her fascination for diving and the underwater world. While living in Thailand, Mexico, the UK and the US, she has managed to successfully balance her design and dive careers.
Reconnect. Immerse yourself. Be inspired.
Enjoy the vibrancy, beauty and impact of each year's finalist photography, celebrated in our Ocean Photographer of the Year coffee table book collection.