3rd place, pool/conceptual category, ‘The Dancing Manatees’: Gietler said, “What happens when you mix an artistic vision with great photography and Photoshop skills? Dancing Manatees, of course.” | www.piclectica.in #piclectica
1st place nudibranchs category, ‘Sunny Day’: Nudibranchs are soft-bodied marine mollusks, aka sea slugs, known for their bright colors and striking forms. They are so photogenic that an entire category is devoted to them in the Ocean Art contest. | www.piclectica.in #piclectica
1st place, compact wide angle category, ‘Cetaceclipse’: This majestic image of a dolphin was snapped at Deshaies, Guadeloupe. Photographer Brian Christiansen had been enjoying coffee on a sailboat in this part of the Caribbean when a pod of curious dolphins swam around the craft. | www.piclectica.in #piclectica
1st place, compact behavior category, ‘Fast Strike of a Tylosorus Crocodilus on a Juvenile Kyphosus Vaigiensis’: When a predatory houndfish (also called a crocodile needlefish) nabbed a brassy chub at Ouemo Bay in New Caledonia, photographer Jack Berthomier was there to capture the moment. Berthomier likes to dive and take images in this eco-rich location.| www.piclectica.com #piclectica
1st place compact macro category, ‘The Fluorescent Cerianthus’: This photo shows a glowing Cerianthus, which is a type of tube anemone. The creature, from Noli, Italy, takes on an otherworldly appearance in the image due to clever use of lighting and camera filters| www.piclectica.com #piclectica
1st place, mirrorless wide-angle category, ‘Wood Turtle’: Photographer Matthew Sullivan spotted this juvenile wood turtle at a mountain creek near the Bridge Waterfall in Pennsylvania.| www.piclectica.com #piclectica
Honorable mention in mirrorless behavior category, ‘More than a Mouthful’: Parental care can be a literal and figurative mouthful for marine life, as this jawfish with a mouth crammed with eggs shows. Photographer Yen Ngee Koh took the photo on a dive at Tulamben in Bali, Indonesia.| www.piclectica.com #piclectica
1st place, mirrorless macro category, ‘Shyness’: Winner Simon Chiu took this photo of a filefish camouflaged in coral at Mactan in Cebu, Philippines.| www.piclectica.com #piclectica
5th place, novice DSLR, ‘Ma’o Mauri’: This photo of a pregnant blacktip shark (“ma’ o mauri” in Tahitian) was taken during a shark-monitoring project with the French Polynesia Shark Observatory. Photographer Lauric Thiault was to capture images of tiger sharks, but had no luck during two lengthy dives at La Vallée Blanche, Tahiti.| www.piclectica.com #piclectica
1st place, marine life behavior, ‘Egg Release’: Look closely, as this image captures a moment that has only been seen by a handful of people. A female Striated frogfish is shown rising toward the surface of water at Lake Worth Lagoon near Riviera Beach, Florida | www.piclectica.com #piclectica