Meet the winners of the Mangrove Photography Awards 2024

Explore the 51 winning shots from the landmark 10th edition

Purification rituals, climate refugees, SpaceX, and orange lagoons – these are just some of this year’s powerful images.

Following weeks of deliberation, we’re excited to reveal the winners of the 10th Mangrove Photography Awards, hosted by Mangrove Action Project. 

Today, less than half the world’s original mangrove forest cover remains, and it has never been more important to promote the conservation of these fragile ecosystems. The Mangrove Photography Awards is a vital platform for creatives to captivate our imagination and spark action.

Every year, we’re inspired by the incredible submissions, which help raise awareness of the people and wildlife that rely on mangrove forests, the threats they face, and why urgent action is needed to protect them. 

This year’s awards saw a record-breaking 2,500 entries from 74 nations, showcasing the beauty and global significance of mangrove ecosystems around the world.

In the end, it was India’s Supratim Bhattacharjee who captured the judge’s attention with his powerful photo of a young girl in the aftermath of a devastating storm.

In addition, winners have been selected in 6 categories – People, Landscape, Underwater, Threats, Wildlife, and Stories (a portfolio category) – while photographers under the age of 24 competed to become the Young Mangrove Photographer of the Year.

The photos are a compelling reminder of the importance of mangroves for the diversity of life across our coastlines as photographers captured unique relationships and moments from mangrove ecosystems both above and below the water line. They’re also a stark reminder of our need to protect these unique and precious ecosystems. 

Selecting our finalists was no mean feat, even for our international panel of judges. This year conservation photographer Dhritiman Mukherjee, wildlife photojournalist Morgan Heim, and photojournalist Christian Ziegler made up our expert jury. 

“Stories are how we come to understand, remember and learn from the world,” says Morgan. “And conservation as a story, is a complicated one. Photography has the ability to help us receive and feel close to those stories no matter our language. Every time I look at this kind of photography, I think, there’s still hope.”

Christian said: “I was particularly drawn to the Wildlife and Portfolio selections. There were many fascinating stories about life in the mangroves, ranging from scientific insights to restoration of the ecosystem and the difficult conditions people face.”

Nature’s Ribbon – Winner – Ammar Alsayed Ahmed, United Arab Emirates

Mud Bath Ritual – Winner– Johannes Panji Christo, Indonesia

Mangrove Walls Broken – Winner – Dipayan Bose, India

Guardians of the Mangroves – Winner– Olivier Clement, Bahamas

Mud-Ring Feeding – Winner – Mark Ian Cook, USA

To view all the winners, runners-up, and highly commended in each category please visit the 2024 gallery on Mangrove Photography Awards.