AWARDS
SUBJECT: The hydromedusan Aequorea forskalea floating mid-water
LOCATION: Trikeri, Aegean Sea, Greece.
Outerspace travels in full warp speed is something this glowing hydromedusan definately cannot do! However, with the help of its pulsating umbrella, ghost-like yet effective motion is achieved. Constantly surrounded by the element that is the base of its own existence, hydromedusans, as their name implies, are more than 95% water themselves; shallow coastal seas are often haunted by their discreet presence!
GDT European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2009
Highly Commended
SUBJECT: Anglerfish (Lophius piscatorius) larvas inside their eggs, held together by a gelatinous ribbon.
LOCATION: Vouliagmeni, Saronikos Gulf, Greece.
After a week of strong southern winds and waves that had been hammering the northern coast of Saronikos Gulf, I decided to dive and look for planktonic animals brought up from deeper waters and possibly trapped in the stand-still of the small bays of Vouliagmeni. Among other interesting encounters, I came across a gelatinous ribbon floating in the distance. Only under closer inspection did I realize that this was in fact an egg mass with thousands of eggs and little larvas moving inside them and for quite some time I just hung motionless in mid-water, awestruck in wonder by life in the making.
GDT European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2011
Highly Commended
International Photography Awards 2012, Professionals
Honorable Mention
SUBJECT: A chain of salps (probably Pegea confoederata) floating midwater
LOCATION: Aegina island, Saronikos Gulf, Greece.
These are actually pelagic tunicates that move with the help of rhythmic contractions of the circular muscles of their body walls. As water is pumped through their body, they filter it, capturing the most abundant food source of the well lit pelagic zone during springtime: phytoplankton!
Encounters like this one reminds me of how different and special life in the sea is, with every pelagic submergence feeling like an exploration trip in our planet's liquid space.
GDT European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2012
Highly Commended