Australian photographer Matty Smith has been named 2026 Underwater Photographer of the Year (UPY) for his photograph of two southern elephant seal pups in a rock pool in the Falkland Islands.
The photo, titled “Rockpool Rookies,” was chosen as the overall winner of the award, which received more than 7,900 entries, organizers said in a statement.
Other awards include a shipwreck, a shrimp, a shark, and a mother octopus.
Smith said in a statement that he witnessed dozens of seal pups “awkwardly learning to swim” after their mother left.
“On my first evening, I snapped a few frames as the sky turned color and before the light faded,” Smith said, calling it a “defining moment” of his trip.
Chair of the jury, Alex Mustard, praised Smith’s work and the story it tells about the resilience of nature.
“Mr. Smith used a special dome he built to capture a perspective view from below, perfectly balancing the lighting on the pup’s fur with the setting sun,” Mustard said.
“Elephant seals were hunted to the point of extinction, and their oil-rich blubber was used for everything from lighting fuel to margarine,” he says.
“Fortunately, the hunt caught on just in time, and their recovery over the past 100 years is a great example of the ocean’s resilience,” Mustard added, calling the winning image a “beautiful and hopeful photograph.”
Winning entries in this category included stunning images of a Japanese Navy shipwreck cannon, a female octopus lovingly guarding her eggs, and a clownfish egg hatching.
Japanese photographer Kazunari Horiguchi won the behavior category for his incredible patience capturing images of clownfish hatching eggs while their parents watched.
“I’ve been photographing clownfish for over three years, but this is the only truly successful photo I’ve taken,” Horiguchi said in a statement.
Another winner in the category was American photographer Sam Brandt, who won the PADI Up & Coming Underwater Photographer of the Year 2026 award for his shot of a leopard seal charging toward the lens.
“Leopard seals exhibit a number of surprising advantages,” Blount said in a statement.
“This one took advantage of all of that and flew around me with effortless force,” he added. “Seeing that giant mouth full of sharp teeth hurtling straight at me was a thrill I’ll never forget.”
