In many ways, the ocean is the Earth’s last frontier. We just don’t know what lies and lives on the bottom of the Mariana Trench and other oceanic depths across the world. And for the everyday person, even the shallow areas of the ocean are a complete mystery.
Luckily, we have international photo contests like the Ocean Photographer of the Year competition that encompass the best marine photos of every year. This way, we can peek into this mysterious and unknown marine world from the comfort of our own homes.
We begin this list with the winning image, which was taken by French Polynesian photographer Ben Thouard as he was freediving in the ocean. The image captures a surfer trapped under a Teahupo'o, translated as “place of skulls,” which is one of the heaviest waves in the world.
