Liquid silver

Ellen Cuylaerts's Image

Ellen Cuylaerts (Belgium) is surrounded by schools of glittering silversides swirling around their predators.

The moment Ellen learnt the silversides were back, she grabbed her diving gear. With the schools of the small fish zipping apart to let the larger Atlantic tarpons through, Ellen recalls how it felt like 'swimming through silver curtains'.

In summer, thousands of silversides arrive from deeper waters to lay their eggs on the sandy shores around Grand Cayman in the Caribbean. By day they hide in the caverns and tunnels of grottos between coral reefs, but even here they are not free from danger, as predatory tarpons lurk there too.

Behind the lens

Ellen Cuylaerts

Ellen Cuylaerts

Belgium

After a career in IT, Ellen home schooled her two teenagers before taking up scuba diving in 2011. In 2017, she addressed Heads of State on World Oceans Day at the General Assembly of the United Nations, highlighting the plight of photographers and filmmakers who engage in protection of the oceans. She curates the UN's World Ocean Day Photo Competition and has developed a Charter of Commitments regarding ethics for UN's World Ocean Day and UNESCO'S Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission. As a Fellow Explorer International she became a member of the Flag and Honors Committee of the Explorers Club and in 2019 she was inducted into the Women Divers Hall of Fame.

Image details

  • Nikon D800
  • 16mm f2.8 lens
  • 1/160 sec at f7.1  •   ISO 500  •   Nauticam housing  •   Sea & Sea YS-250 strobes
  • Devil’s Grotto, George Town, Cayman Islands
Copyright in WPY competition photographs remains the property of the respective photographers. You may not copy, share, reproduce or republish the photographs except as expressly permitted by copyright law. For media image usage enquiries, please contact us.

Support our important work

Help us harness the power of photography to advance scientific knowledge, spread awareness of important issues and nurture a global love for nature.

Donate now

Connections

More images from

Under Water

Discover more

Sign up to our newsletter

Receive email updates about Wildlife Photographer of the Year news, events, science, products, services and fundraising activities. We may occasionally include third-party content from our corporate partners and other museums. We will not share your personal details with these third parties. You must be over the age of 13. Privacy notice.