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UnderwaterPhoto Contests

Directory

Every contest, sorted by deadline

Underwater-only contests, general nature contests with a dedicated underwater category, and in-person shootouts. Times show in your timezone; hover a date for the organiser's.

Status

27 contests

Timeline view
OpenUnderwater · Online

World Shootout

World Shootout (producer David Pilosof)

  • Portfolio
  • Open
  • Wide-angle
  • Macro
  • Newcomer
  • Conservation
  • +1

Deadline

17 days left

FEE
from €15
Standard licence
OpenHas UW category · Online

Memorial María Luisa

Memorial María Luisa (Infiesto, Asturias)

  • Open

Deadline

47 days left

FEE
from €22
Opens soonHas UW category · Online

Wildlife Photographer of the Year

Natural History Museum, London

  • Open
  • Conservation

Deadline

48 days left

FEE
from £35
Read carefully
OpenUnderwater · Online

Ocean Art Underwater Photo Competition

Underwater Photography Guide

  • Wide-angle
  • Macro
  • Behaviour
  • Portrait
  • Other
  • Black & white
  • +3

Deadline

52 days left

PRIZES
$50K
ExpectedUnderwater · Online

Underwater Photographer of the Year

Underwater Photographer of the Year (Dan Bolt and Alex Mustard)

  • Wide-angle
  • Macro
  • Wreck
  • Behaviour
  • Portrait
  • Other
  • +5

Expected deadline

early Jan 2027

ExpectedUnderwater · In person

Real Focus Underwater Shootout

Solitude World (Solitude Liveaboards & Resorts) · Solitude Acacia Resort, Anilao (Philippines) and Solitude Lembeh Resort (Indonesia)

  • Open
  • Macro
  • Other
  • Compact & mobile

Expected deadline

late May 2027

ExpectedUnderwater · Online

Underwater Awards Australasia

DivePhotoGuide, Underwater Australasia and UW Images

  • Local waters
  • Open
  • Conservation
  • Compact & mobile
  • Portfolio
  • Other
  • +1

Expected deadline

late Jul 2027

ExpectedUnderwater · In person

Monterey Shootout

Northern California Underwater Photographic Society (NCUPS) and Backscatter Underwater Video & Photo · Monterey, California

Expected deadline

late Jul 2027

Results outUnderwater · In person

Anilao Underwater Shootout

Philippine Department of Tourism · Anilao, Mabini, Batangas

Closed

PRIZES
₱1700K
JudgingHas UW category · Online

Nature Photographer of the Year

Nature Talks

  • Open

Closed

FEE
from €17.50
PRIZES
€25K
Standard licence
JudgingHas UW category · Online

Close-up Photographer of the Year

Close-up Photographer of the Year

  • Macro

Closed

FEE
from £5
Standard licence
JudgingUnderwater · In person

Puerto Galera Underwater Shootout

Philippine Department of Tourism (DOT Dive Philippines, Region IV-B MIMAROPA) with the Municipality of Puerto Galera · Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro

  • Macro
  • Behaviour
  • Wide-angle
  • Portrait

Closed

JudgingUnderwater · In person

CMAS World Championship Underwater Photo and Video

CMAS (Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques), with a national federation as host · Host destination changes each year (2026 — Pemuteran, Bali)

  • Portrait
  • Other
  • Close-up
  • Wide-angle
  • Compact & mobile
  • Video

Closed

Discontinued contests we track for history (4)
  • DEEP Indonesia International Underwater Photo Competition — The latest edition found is 2020 (results 26 March 2020). Searches of DivePhotoGuide, Wetpixel and underwatercompetition.com turned up no edition from 2021 onwards, though no formal announcement that it ended was found either. Checked 2026-10-15.
  • Festival Mondial de l'Image Sous-Marine — Ran in Antibes until 2008 and in Marseille from 2009; no 2016 edition after the organising body was liquidated, then a one-off relaunch as "Aquatic Festival" (43rd edition) in Marseille in 2017. Plongée Infos reported in October 2019 that the Paris diving show (Salon International de la Plongée) had taken over the festival, but no festival edition or photo competition under this name since 2017 could be found as of 2026-10-15. The old site underwater-festival.com no longer resolves.
  • Nature TTL Photographer of the Year — The official competition page states that the 2025 competition, which closed on 6 April 2025, was the final Nature TTL Photographer of the Year (checked 2026-10-15 via search extracts of naturettl.com/poty/).
  • Our World Underwater Photo & Video Competition — The 2019 edition was the last under this name. For 2020, Wetpixel and DivePhotoGuide rebranded the contest as the DPG/Wetpixel Masters Underwater Imaging Competition (listed separately), with 2020 results announced at the Wave Film Festival in Chicago. Sources - DivePhotoGuide Masters 2020 results and underwatercompetition.com, checked 2026-10-15.