Beauty of the beast in deep sea photo contest

A MORAY eel gets up close and personal with the camera and sunshine sets aglow a jellyfish in stunning images featured at two major underwater photography competitions.

Judges have selected winners in several categories from thousands of entries in the Our World Under Water competition and its sister event, the tourth annual Deep Indonesia International Underwater Photo Competition.

Organisers said the aim was to showcase the art of underwater photography and underline the mystery, beauty and delicacy of the underwater realm.

The categories for Our World Underwater included macro -or close-up - and wide angle shots, compact cameras and novice photographers.

Deep Indonesia categories included compact cameras, divers, animal portrait, animal behaviour, reefscapes, environment and conservation, and Indonesia residents.

The two competitions attracted more than 5,000 entries and winners the were picked from 20 countries across the world. Prizes for the events make up the largest prize pool in the world for underwater photography.