Mar. 03, 22

As part of our annual World Oceans Week, The Explorers Club & OctoNation, the world’s largest octopus fan club, are excited to announce a global octopus photo competition! The Octographer awards aims to amplify octopus, and ultimately ocean, education and awareness.

“The other-worldly beauty and strangeness of these brilliant, sensitive creatures, can’t help but inspire our wonder. I’m confident that honoring some of the dazzling images underwater photographers have captured of octopuses’ secret lives will help re-awaken our reverence for the ocean–and help summon the will we need to protect it.”

  • Sy Montgomery, author of the New York Times Bestselling book “The Soul of an Octopus”

Winning images will be recognized during World Oceans Week and displayed physically at Explorers Club Headquarters in New York and virtually.

This open and free photo competition will help broaden and achieve World Oceans Week goal of “sailing the five C’s: Creativity, Conservation, Collaboration, Community, and Celebration”.

The photo competition has thematic categories open for photographic submissions:

  • Behavior. This category aims to showcase everything from camouflage, motherhood, octopuses interacting with other species, mating, predation. Octopuses in action!
  • Details. Send us your best images highlighting octo-details. This category is designed for those inspiring images of octopus eyes, arms. Close ups!
  • Photo Techniques. This category was created for all of those images showcasing stellar photo techniques including land and sea split-shots, wideangle, blackwater and depth. Cutting edge images!
  • Portrait. Not sure your work fits within any of the other categories? Submit your awe-inspiring glamor shots of octopuses here!

The entries must be submitted electronically through the photo competition portal in accordance with the competition guidelines and subject to the competition rules.

Additionally, recognition and diffusion of images, finalists, and honorable mentions will be widely exposed throughout the contest websites, the media and the informational materials related to World Oceans Week. Other exciting prizes to be announced!

Deadline for submissions is Friday, April 1 at 5:00 pm ET

For inquiries please contact [email protected]

Header and footer art by Chris Adams