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UnderwaterPhoto Contests
JudgingHas UW category · Online

REEF Discover the Sea Underwater Photography Contest

REEF Discover the Sea 2026 · by Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF) (opens in a new tab)

Entries closed

Judging in progress

  • Closed 20 SEP
  • Fee Free
  • UW cat. 5 of 5
Add to calendar Official site (opens in a new tab) Rules (opens in a new tab)

REEF's free annual photo contest for its members, with marine-life and habitat categories decided by public online vote each September.

Key dates

  1. Final deadline

  • Public voting opens: Mon 21 Sept 2026
  • Public voting closes: Wed 30 Sept 2026

Entry fees

Free to enter

Prizes

Overall winner gets a voucher covering the REEF fee for one Field Survey Trip (worth about US$350-400)

  • dive trips

First, second and third places in each category are decided by public vote; REEF staff choose the overall winner from the category winners.

Which category to enter

This is a general contest. Underwater work belongs in these categories:

  • Fish Portrait

    Portrait

    Sea turtle portraits are also accepted here.

  • Macro

    Macro

  • Invertebrates

    Other

  • Comedy

    Other

  • Habitat/Seascape/Environment

    Wide-angle

    Restriction: Need not be underwater but must be marine-focused, e.g. over-unders, mangroves or topside water shots.

Who can enter

Open to
Open to all

REEF members only (non-members can join via reef.org/join). Up to three photos per category.

Rules at a glance

Not summarised yet — check the official rules.

Your image rights

We haven't summarised the licence terms for this edition yet.

This is our plain-language summary, not legal advice. Read the official terms before entering: official rules & terms (opens in a new tab).

Research notes

Entries closed at 12:00 noon EDT on 20 September 2026. The opening date for 2026 was not stated; Scubaverse reported entries open by early September, and the 2025 edition opened on 1 September. Winners had not been published when checked. The licence terms were not found in the sources, so rights are left out.

Provenance

Verified · 2 sources

  1. REEF - Discover the Sea Photography Contest (opens in a new tab) · accessed 2026-10-15
  2. Scubaverse - REEF opens 2026 contest (opens in a new tab) · accessed 2026-10-15

All editions

  1. REEF Discover the Sea 2027≈ mid Sep 2027Expected
  2. REEF Discover the Sea 2026closed Sun 20 Sept 2026Judging