Marine Photography alumnus wins Wildlife Photographer of the Year award
03 November 2026
“To have my work recognised at the Wildlife Photographer of the Year awards is such an honour, one I have dreamed about ever since starting my journey in underwater photography,” says Aaron Sanders, the underwater cinematographer whose image of a common octopus, ‘A Watchful Eye’, won this year's Animal Portraits category.
Speaking of his pinch-me moment, the BA(Hons) Marine & Natural History Photography alumnus added: “Over the last two years I’ve been documenting the octopus bloom across the southwest of the UK, spending countless hours underwater and encountering so many individual octopus.
“What has stayed with me most is the unique personality of each animal. Some are shy, others endlessly curious, but this one (in the winning image) was torn between the two. Using the kelp as a veil, it peered out at me cautiously, until eventually its curiosity won and it revealed itself. With this image I hoped to capture a sense of character and depict the moment the octopus shifted from caution to curiosity.”
Aaron’s octopus image landed him his Animal Portraits award, but it wasn’t his only work that was celebrated. His image of a grey reef shark entangled within a ghost net also received a Highly Commended recognition in the Oceans: The Bigger Picture category.
“My second image tells a very different story,” Aaron explains. “Ghost nets do not discriminate, and they do not stop. Lost at sea and left to drift, they continue fishing long after anyone intended them to. This one, hanging from the surface down to thirty metres in a remote corner of the Forgotten Islands in Indonesia, had already claimed many lives. The image shows a grey reef shark tangled within the massive net. It was a sobering reminder of how destructive ghost gear can be, even in some of the most remote places on Earth.”
Prior to his win at Wildlife Photographer of the Year, Aaron spent his time developing his portfolio on a liveaboard boat in Indonesia, where he experienced diving at an active volcano in the middle of the ocean while building his career in videography. He has also been named Young Photographer of the Year 2025 for his image of a mating bobtail squid captured during a night dive.
When asked how his time at Falmouth acted as a springboard for his creative career, he shared: “My time at Falmouth gave me the foundation to my craft, and I am incredibly grateful for all the networks and ongoing support I have gained since.
“Falmouth gave me access to equipment I would never have had the chance to use otherwise, paired with teaching from industry professionals who genuinely cared about developing our skills. The contact time with lecturers was invaluable, and being able to ask questions, fine-tune techniques, and get honest, practical advice about the industry helped lay the technical and creative foundation I rely on today. The lecturers’ unwavering passion for underwater photography was contagious; they were always excited to lend their knowledge and experience to help improve our work and guide us.
“Whether it’s documenting the natural world through moving image or stills, writing articles and books, honing fieldcraft skills, mastering underwater photography, or experimenting with microscopy and macro, at Falmouth there’s space to find what drives you. At the same time, it shapes you into a well-rounded photographer, giving you experience across a breadth of practices that you might not have discovered otherwise.”
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