Shark Trust Unveils Successful Photographers in Its 2025 Contest
On July 14, 2025, the Shark Trust, a UK-based charity dedicated to safeguarding sharks, skates, and rays, announced the winners of its annual Shark Photographer of the Year competition. The event, which showcased the diversity of marine life and highlighted the urgent need for conservation, attracted entries from 34 countries and featured 76 different species, including chimeras, great hammerhead sharks, and zebra sharks.
The competition, a key component of the Shark Trust's broader mission, aims to raise awareness about the importance of these marine creatures and inspire solutions to the threats they face. Many shark species are at risk due to overfishing and habitat loss, and the competition serves as a platform for showcasing the beauty and fragility of these animals to a global audience.
In the Oceanics Programme category, Byron Conway won with a striking image of silky sharks (Carcharhinus falciformis) taken using a slow shutter speed and Snell's Window technique. Silky sharks are heavily impacted by overfishing, and Conway's work adds urgency to calls for protecting pelagic species.
Panitbhand Paribatra Na Ayudhya won the Young Shark Photographer of the Year award for a captivating photo of a whale shark feeding at the surface. Hector Clarke, from the UK, clinched the British and Overseas Winner category with an image of a small-spotted catshark in Scotland's Loch Carron.
The competition recognized a total of two winners: Julian Hebenstreit and Hector Clarke. Hebenstreit's winning image, shot in Australia, featured a zebra shark, while Clarke's photograph showcased a rare sighting of a small-spotted catshark in UK waters.
Martin Broen, the Overseas Winner, captured a school of rays off the coast of Mexico during a mobula ray migration. Grant Evans won the Great Eggcase Hunt category for a photo of a pyjama shark eggcase in South Africa, illustrating the importance of seafloor for shark reproduction.
Linda Mazza won under the Mediterranean Programme with a photo of a Critically Endangered angelshark in the Canary Islands. Gillian Marsh won the Living with Sharks category with a photo of a blue shark (Prionace glauca) interacting with an underwater photographer.
The Shark Trust's CEO, Paul Cox, expressed gratitude to all the photographers for their participation and sharing their love for sharks. He emphasised that the photographs entered into the competition, whether they won or not, will be used to support shark and ray conservation efforts for years to come.
The Trust's efforts are founded on science, education, influence, and action. Their key themes and focus areas include Science and Research, Education and Awareness, Community Engagement, and Sustainable Influence. The Trust places strong emphasis on scientific research to understand shark and ray species, their habitats, and conservation needs. They raise awareness about the importance of sharks and rays, including British species like the lesser-spotted dogfish, starry smooth-hound, spurdog, and protected species such as the basking shark and angel shark.
The Trust actively involves the public in conservation through citizen science and educational projects, fostering community participation in protecting these marine species. They work to influence policies and consumer behavior to reduce threats to these species. The Trust's flagship citizen science project, The Great Eggcase Hunt, encourages people worldwide to search beaches for egg cases of skates and sharks, contributing valuable data towards scientific understanding and conservation efforts.
The winning image was praised for its subtle storytelling and evocation of the delicate state of shark survival. The Shark Photographer of the Year competition is part of a larger movement to raise awareness about these threats and inspire solutions. The competition is more than just a photography contest; it's a testament to the power of artistry and conservation, a celebration of the beauty of sharks, and a call to action for their protection.
[1] Shark Trust (2023). About Us. Retrieved from https://www.sharktrust.org/about-us/ [2] Shark Trust (2023). Key Themes and Focus Areas. Retrieved from https://www.sharktrust.org/key-themes-and-focus-areas/ [3] Shark Trust (2023). Key Conservation Projects. Retrieved from https://www.sharktrust.org/key-conservation-projects/ [4] Shark Trust (2023). Shark Photographer of the Year. Retrieved from https://www.sharktrust.org/shark-photographer-of-the-year/ [5] Shark Trust (2023). The Great Eggcase Hunt. Retrieved from https://www.sharktrust.org/the-great-eggcase-hunt/
- The Shark Trust, an environmental-science organization based in the UK, has been advocating for shark awareness day, highlighting the importance of these species in the face of threats like overfishing and climate-change.
- The trust's mission is not limited to marine life; they also promote sustainable-living and encourage home-and-garden practices that reduce impact on the environment.
- In sports betting circles, one might find a unique event that supports the Shark Trust - a sports-betting competition themed around the Shark Photographer of the Year, showcasing the beauty of sharks and inspiring conservation efforts.
- The science division of the Shark Trust conducts extensive research on shark and ray species, their habitats, and conservation needs, offering insights into how these creatures cope with the effects of climate-change.
- For those with a passion for photography and a desire to contribute to environmental-science, the Shark Trust's annual Shark Photographer of the Year competition offers a platform to share their work and help raise awareness about the importance of these apex predators in our oceans.
