Matthew Smith (UK/Australia) carefully photographs a curious leopard seal beneath the Antarctic ice.
It was late in the day and Matthew had to work quickly in the fading light. He squeezed into his drysuit and quietly slipped into the waters of Paradise Harbour on the Antarctic Peninsula with his camera.
To get this split image, Matthew used a specially made dome port he designed for the front of his underwater housing. This put more distance between the lens and the water, making the waterline thinner and less obtrusive.
It was his first encounter with a leopard seal. The young seal made several close, curious passes. “When it looked straight into the lens barrel, I knew I had something good.”
For Photonaturalist and Competition Judge Tony Wu, “the grey, sombre mood sets an otherworldly tone, accentuating the divide between terrestrial and aquatic. A single leopard seal staring straight into the camera seems almost like a sentinel, admonishing humanity for the shrinking sea ice on which it depends.”
Leopard seals are widespread and abundant. However, krill and penguins – their main food sources – are in decline. This is because of overfishing, retreating sea ice and warming waters.
UK/Australia
Matthew is a UK-born-and-bred underwater photographer who’s now based in Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. After emigrating down under in 2007 in pursuit of furthering his photography career, Matthew fell in love with the Pacific Ocean and has now made it his permanent playground. He likes to use his skills as an underwater photographer to try to amaze and educate.
Help us harness the power of photography to advance scientific knowledge, spread awareness of important issues and nurture a global love for nature.
