Winner, photojournalism. Elephant in the room, by Adam Oswell, Australia Zoo. Visitors watch a young elephant performing underwater. Oswell was disturbed by this scene, and organisations concerned with the welfare of captive elephants say performances like this encourage unnatural behaviour. In Thailand, there are now more elephants in captivity than in the wild. With the Covid pandemic causing tourism to collapse, elephant sanctuaries are becoming overwhelmed with animals that can no longer be looked after by their owners. (Photo by Adam Oswell/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2021)

If you’ve had the unique privilege of witnessing bioluminescent plankton while diving at night, you know firsthand how beautiful the underwater light show can be. For those of us who haven’t experienced it, this unique phenomenon. So what makes this beautiful show possible? In a recent post at online scuba site AquaViews they share some insight we thought you all would find interesting.

Photographer Mark Tipple captured the underwater pictures with his friend Mike as the surfer. But the rough waves of the coast of the Cook Islands slammed Mike into the sea bed during the shoot, causing him to slice his skin open and badly bruise his body. Photo: Mike diving beneath a shallow wave. (Photo by Mark Tipple/Caters News Agency)

Ace Wu searches the deep to photograph stunning underwater creatures. Against their predominantly black backdrops, Wu’s breathtaking subjects glow with sublime vibrancy. In one, a fearsome fish glares at the camera with rows of sharp teeth showing, while in another, a translucent octopus looks like an extraterrestrial. Here: Wunderpus larva. (Photo by Ace Wu/Caters News Agency)

Impressive images of these alien-like creatures were captured underwater – photographer Cai Songda is a keen diver and did not miss the chance to snap pictures of the unique “aliens”. Here: A Tremoctopus Gracilis in the waters around Anilao, Philippines. (Photo by Cai Songda/Caters News Agency)

These unique photos capture the moment a boy has his teeth picked clean by amazing underwater shrimp. These fascinating creatures spend their lives diving inside the mouths of fish to remove the parasites that lurk there. Russell Laman imitated the behaviour of the surrounding fish swarm to entice the cleaner shrimp into his mouth whilst snorkelling with his father Tim Laman in Bali, Indonesia. The 13-year-old queued with the waiting fish and then opened his mouth when the shrimps came near. (Photo by Tim Laman/Caters News)

Underwater photographer Sarah Lee uses a technique known as “duck diving” to capture these stunning photos of surfers in Hawaii. Surfers “duck dive” under the water to avoid incoming waves so they can get further out to sea. Photo: A surfer comes free from her surfboard. (Photo by Sarah Lee/Caters News)