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Photo Contest Statistics

Where do underwater photographers take the most pictures? Which country? What Sea? What are their favorite subjects?

We have all the answers here, displayed in graphical format. This analysis of our photo contest entries is surely the most unique insight into the travel habits of underwater photographers ever!

You can use the data here to decide where the utimate u/w photo destination is!

What Seas?

When you enter the contest the sea that the image was shot in is an optional field. Not everyone knows what sea they were in! And, of course, freshwater shots are excluded. We have logged seas since 2007

Mouseover the graph bars to see even more detail. Is this the ultimate trip planner? Mouseover the graph bars to see which seas produce the most medals and so should be most worth a visit? Of course the most popular seas will have more images and should statistically therefore have more medals. But note the most popular seas do not always produce the most medals!

SeasPercentageGraph
Caribbean Sea15.80%
Red Sea13.10%
Pacific10.30%
Indian Ocean7.40%
Philippine Sea4.40%
Sulu and Sulawesi Seas4.00%
Bali Sea4.00%
South China Sea4.00%
Celebes Sea3.90%
Atlantic (North American coastal)3.80%
Mediterranean Sea3.60%
Andaman Sea1.90%
Adriatic Sea1.60%
Atlantic (European coastal)1.40%
Tyrrhenian Sea1.30%
Atlantic1.20%
Atlantic (African coastal)1.20%
Banda Sea1.20%
Molucca Sea1.10%
North Sea1.10%
Asian Sea1.00%
Coral Sea0.90%
Tasman Sea0.80%
Gulf Of Mexico0.80%
Bohol Sea0.70%
Aegean Sea0.70%
Flores Sea0.70%
Mindanao Sea0.60%
Atlantic (South)0.60%
Irish Sea0.60%
Halmahera Sea0.60%
Solomon Sea0.40%
Ionian Sea0.40%
Visayan Sea0.40%
Arabian Sea0.40%
Norwegian Sea0.30%
Bismarck Sea0.30%
Ligurian Sea0.30%
Atlantic (South America coastal)0.20%
Mozambique Channel0.20%
East China Sea0.20%
Balearic Sea0.20%
Java Sea0.20%
Great Lakes0.20%
Black Sea0.10%
Baltic Sea0.10%
Sea Of Cortés /Gulf of California0.10%
Sea of Japan0.10%
Great Australian Bight0.10%
Ceram Sea0.10%
Gulf Of Oman0.10%
Gulf of Venezuela0.10%
Sargasso Sea0.10%
Persian Gulf0.10%
Koro Sea0.10%
Antarctic (Southern Ocean)0.10%
Landlocked Seas/Lakes0.10%
Sunda Sea0.10%
English Channel0.00%
Norwegian Sea0.00%
Arctic0.00%
Sea of Marmara0.00%
Timor Sea0.00%
Arafura Sea0.00%
Celtic Sea0.00%
Caspian Sea0.00%
Argentine Sea0.00%
African Lakes0.00%
Ross Sea0.00%
Camotes Sea0.00%
Sea of Crete0.00%
Sea of the Hebrides0.00%
Sibuyan Sea0.00%
Savu Sea0.00%
White Sea0.00%
Chilean Sea0.00%
Gulf Of Aden0.00%
Bering Sea0.00%
Amundsen Sea0.00%
Lake Tahoe0.00%
Labrador Sea0.00%
Laccidive Sea0.00%
Barents Sea0.00%
Great Salt Lake0.00%
Gulf of Alaska0.00%
Bay Of Biscay0.00%
Davis Sea0.00%
Weddel Sea0.00%
Alboran Sea0.00%
Greenland Sea0.00%
Bay of Bengal0.00%
Queen Victoria Sea0.00%
Bellinghausen Sea0.00%
Kara Sea0.00%
Wandel or McKinley Sea0.00%
Gulf of Carpentaria0.00%

What Countries?

Is this the ultimate trip planner? You can see which countries produce the most medals and so should be most worth a visit, then cross-reference with the seas that produce the most medals and Viola! Book now!

It is interesting to compare country taken against sea taken. Note that the Caribbean Sea rates so highly when no single island does as a country.

CountryPercentageGraph
Indonesia13.70%
Egypt11.10%
United States7.80%
Philippines7.40%
Malaysia3.60%
Australia3.50%
Mexico3.40%
Italy3.00%
Maldives2.80%
United Kingdom2.70%
Netherlands Antilles2.30%
Cayman islands2.30%
Bahamas2.20%
Puerto Rico2.10%
South Africa1.90%
Thailand1.80%
Switzerland1.60%
Spain1.50%
Turkey1.30%
Honduras1.30%
Croatia1.10%
Canada1.10%
Papua New Guinea0.90%
Portugal0.80%
France0.80%
Micronesia0.70%
Fiji0.70%
Taiwan0.60%
Palau0.60%
Norway0.50%
Ecuador0.50%
Belize0.50%
Malta0.50%
Czech Republic0.50%
Solomon islands0.40%
French Polynesia0.40%
Greece0.40%
Cuba0.40%
Northern Mariana Islands0.40%
Mozambique0.40%
Sudan0.40%
Dominica0.30%
Oman0.30%
Virgin Islands U.S.0.30%
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines0.30%
Israel0.30%
United Arab Emirates0.30%
Germany0.30%
Netherlands0.30%
Ireland0.30%
East Timor0.30%
Turks and Caicos islands0.30%
Virgin Islands (British)0.30%
Saudi Arabia0.30%
Brazil0.30%
Seychelles0.20%
New Zealand0.20%
Sri Lanka0.20%
Denmark0.20%
Grenada0.20%
Mauritius0.20%
Costa Rica0.20%
Guam0.20%
Russia0.20%
Vanuatu0.20%
Ukraine0.20%
Guadeloupe0.20%
Japan0.10%
Vietnam0.10%
Jordan0.10%
Cape Verde0.10%
Austria0.10%
Madagascar0.10%
Cocos Islands0.10%
Cyprus0.10%
Dominican Republic0.10%
Sweden0.10%
Bermuda0.10%
Barbados0.10%
Saint Lucia0.10%
Chile0.10%
Myanmar (Burma)0.10%
Singapore0.10%
Tanzania0.10%
Tonga0.10%
Poland0.10%
Saint Kitts and Nevis0.10%
Colombia0.10%
Slovenia0.10%
Aruba0.10%
Marshall Islands0.10%
Brunei Darussalam0.10%
Argentina0.10%
Qatar0.10%
New Caledonia0.10%
Trinidad and Tobago0.10%
Jamaica0.10%
Romania0.10%
Antarctica0.00%
Martinique0.00%
Venezuela0.00%
Anguilla0.00%
Belgium0.00%
Palestine Territory, occupied0.00%
India0.00%
Djibouti0.00%
China0.00%
Hong Kong0.00%
Finland0.00%
Kenya0.00%
Antigua & Barbuda0.00%
Panama0.00%
Iran (Islamic Republic of)0.00%
Bulgaria0.00%
Nambia0.00%
Reunion0.00%
Mayotte0.00%
Serbia and Montenegro (Yugoslavia)0.00%
Hungary0.00%
Cook islands0.00%
Iceland0.00%
Greenland0.00%
Tunisia0.00%
Nicaragua0.00%
French Guiana0.00%
Pakistan0.00%
Niue0.00%
Lithuania0.00%
Morocco0.00%
Guatemala0.00%
Samoa0.00%
Libyan Arab Jamahiriya0.00%
Latvia0.00%
Syrian Arab Republic0.00%
American Samoa0.00%
Malawi0.00%
Peru0.00%
Iraq0.00%
Angola0.00%
Nigeria0.00%
Luxembourg0.00%
Korea, Republic of0.00%
Bolivia0.00%
Montserrat0.00%
Haiti0.00%
Kazakhstan0.00%
Eritrea0.00%
Mali0.00%
Cambodia0.00%
French Southern Territories0.00%
Christmas Island0.00%
Bosnia and Herzegowina0.00%
Bahrain0.00%
Faroe islands0.00%
Azerbaijan0.00%
Slovakia (Slovak Republic)0.00%
Monaco0.00%
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands0.00%
Belarus0.00%
Comoros0.00%
Cote d’Ivoire0.00%
Korea, Democratic Peoples's Republic0.00%
Guinea-Bissau0.00%
Norfolk Island0.00%
Senegal0.00%
Saint Helena0.00%
Kuwait0.00%
Svalbard and Jan Mayen Islands0.00%
Pitcairn0.00%
El Salvador0.00%
Afganistan0.00%
Central African Republic0.00%
Macau0.00%
Togo0.00%
Uganda0.00%

What Subjects?

Please bear in mind that we introduced several new categories in January 2008 so the figures may be skewed towards older categories. As time goes by this should even out and become more accurate.

Mouseover the graph bars to see even more detail. You should be able to deduce not only the most popular categories to enter but also for vistors to look at from their average vote. Note that new category Nudibranchia punches way above it's weight in this respect!

Photo contest categoryPercentageGraph
Macro - not swimming19.80%
Wide Angle - Marine Life16.50%
Macro - swimming12.90%
Macro - Close-Up8.90%
Wide Angle - Natural Light (no strobe)5.70%
Wide Angle - Divers5.70%
Topside (above water but marine related)4.90%
Macro - Nudibranchia4.80%
Wide Angle - Wrecks3.20%
Wide Angle - Close Focus2.80%
Freshwater2.60%
Creative - Manipulated (Photoshopped)2.30%
Macro - Super macro2.20%
Sharks1.80%
Temperate Waters1.80%
Over/Under (shots half topside, half U/W)1.20%
Humorous0.70%
Macro - Last years entries0.40%
Wide Angle - Year 2000 entries0.30%
Out Of Contest0.10%
Places0.00%


More stats - who takes the hot shots?
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