UPY 2025

UPY  British Waters Wide Angle - Highly Commended
'Octopus and the sunstar'
Mark Kirkland

This was my first ever encounter with an Octopus and it couldn’t have happened in a more beautiful underwater landscape. I was on the liveaboard MV Halton, exploring the crystal clear waters of the far north coast of Scotland when we dropped onto the reef walls of Eilean Nam Ron. The visability and abundance of life made wide-angle photography a dream. I kept my distance from this small curled octopus as it traversed the reef wall. It kept it’s gaze on me as I followed it before it eventually stopped and changed from bright orange to pale yellow to blend in with the surrounding soft corals. I took this as a hint that I was outstaying my welcome and took this last photograph before leaving it to it’s day.

Judge's comment: The Octopus takes centre stage against everything else. The wide angle vista is very well lit with just a hint of green water at top right. The more I look at it, the more the green water colour comes into play. It gives the viewer a sense of depth which keeps their eye in the picture.
- Martin Edge