UPY 2024

UPY  Up & Coming - Commended
'Dental check today?'
Yinan Liu

It was the last day of the trip, the weather condition was perfect, after plenty of searching, the whale guide spotted a blow. As we approached, I noticed this sperm whale was bigger than anyone I have ever seen, I was struck by the size of this giant creature when I got into the water, this male sperm whale is more than 15 meters long, swimming leisurely with its mouth wide open, scanning me with a bell-like sound. When I looked into its eyes I knew I had been waiting for this moment the whole trip. I feel very lucky that I got this opportunity on the last day and I captured this beautiful moment.

Judge's comment: The longer you keep trying, the luckier you might get may sound obvious but, the truth is, you still need the talent to capture the shot and this is a perfect example of an iconic subject with it’s hard life history etched on his huge echoing domed head. A real ‘wish I was there too’ image.
Peter Rowlands