Matthew Smith, The Arch (LANDSCAPE & ENVIRONMENT 2025)

A lone female diver glides through a natural coral arch on a deep reef, surrounded by vibrant marine life and the electric blue clarity of tropical waters in Papua New Guinea. Scenes like this are becoming increasingly rare—an estimated 80% of the world’s coral reefs have been bleached in the past two years alone, a stark indicator of warming oceans and an unfolding environmental crisis beneath the waves.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.