UPY 2023

UPY  Black & White - Runner Up
'Jaws reborn'
Victor Huertas

I wanted to achieve two goals with this image of a newborn blacktip reef shark. First, I aimed to recreate the iconic poster image of Jaws with a much less intimidating and more accurate portrayal of a shark. Secondly, I wanted to display the array of tiny dots with sensitive organs called ampullae of Lorenzini with which sharks can detect electric fields such as those produced by their prey. I hope that this image elicits both fascination and respect for sharks and contributes to inspire people to want to learn more about these interesting animals. This image was taken at the Centre des Recherches Insulaires et Observatoire de l’Environnement (CRIOBE) station in Mo’orea, French Polynesia, where the Physioshark research team studies the impact of climate change on sharks.

Judge's comment: Victor’s simple, symmetric composition invites us to savour the structure and details of this striking shark, and by evoking iconic imagery, to contemplate our relationship with these predators.
Alex Mustard