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We do this yearly so that you lot get the chance to get your hands on some really nice prizes and we get the chance to stock up our image library again, so you need to be comfortable with us possibly using the photos for our content! This year we have pulled the competition under our FishCare program to help shed light on the myriad of issues facing our oceans and marine life, as well as helping educate fishers on our five principles: Reduce Wastage, Maximum Survival of Fish, Maximum Utilisation, Impact and Safety/Personal Wellbeing.

Get ready to immerse yourself in the beauty of our oceans and showcase your photography skills on the world stage (we have subscribers overseas who may see these so we can say that) while also hopefully learning a few tips and tricks along the way around our FishCare’s school of best practice. 

This year we have some impressive prizes to take away for each of the seven categories, as well as an overall prize for the best picture of the season. Our categories are all pretty special and feel-good, bar one – which is us looking for the nitty-gritty of what isn’t working in our oceans. It’s the pollution, the overfishing, the death and destruction of the marine world. Grim right? But that’s the reality!

The different categories, prizes and some inspirational photos are below.

1. Landscape Coastal Shots

Sponsored by Tides Out Maps, this category is all about those beautiful landscapes we have in New Zealand. We want to see our coast line in all it’s natural beauty!

The prize for this category is a beautifully handcrafted map of New Zealand. This map, worth $749.00 uncovers the stunning underwater contours around our country, while also showing the varied topography. Made using 11 layers of plywood, each of which has been cut using a laser, carefully painted, and assembled entirely by hand! 

This category fits best under principle four of our FishCare program – Impact. Thinking about our part in the impact we have on our oceans, beaches and the life that live there. Little changes at a personal level can make a huge difference. 

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2. Underwater Photos

The underwater category is sponsored by our good friends at New Zealand Underwater. We’re looking for the best shot you take underwater. So pull on your website and set up your underwater camera or housing and get in the water!

The prize for the best underwater shot is a fantastic Sealife SportDiver Housing for your smart phone. Rated for depths of up to 40m, this will make future underwater photos a breeze. Thanks to NZUA and Splash.co.nz for the this epic prize worth $599!

The SeaLife SportDiver is a compact and lightweight underwater housing for smartphones. The SportDiver housing will allow divers to take photos and video with their smartphone down to 40 meters. The SportDiver can encase most Android models and all iPhones from iPhone 8 & up. The free SportDiver App is available at the App Store or Play Store, and works with the current and prior generation of the OS.

This category fits across several FishCare principles, as a lot often do, but is best suited to number two – Maximum Survival. When we are out diving for kaimoana or spearing fish, we want to ensure that we are only touching and interacting with what we are planning to take for food. For example, that might mean not handling smaller crayfish or paua if you aren’t taking them.

3.Marine Life in Their Natural Environment

For this category, sponsored by Marine Deals, we would like to see any marine life (fish, birds, sea mammals, crustaceans, etc) in their natural habitat (not at the end of a line!). We want glorious photos of our wonderful wild life doing their thing.

The incredible prize for this category is HydrOforce Inflatable Stand-Up Paddleboard from Marine Deals worth $399! It’s perfect for getting into the right spot to take that perfect photo.

This is another strong contender for FishCare principle four – Impact. The way we interact with marine life is so important. From ensuring we aren’t injuring or killing seabirds and sea mammals and that the way we are conducting ourselves out while boating or fishing isn’t putting their lives in danger. Principle one is also very important here – Reduce Wastage. The rubbish that makes it to the ocean is incredibly dangerous for marine life. 

4. Collecting and Catching Kaimoana

Sponsored by Okuma, this is all about catching a feed and taking some great shots of it. We want to see some epic fishing and gathering shots, whether it’s pulling up monsters from the deep, shooting a kingi with the spear gun or gathering pipis from the beach. But please, not trophy shots. We want to see you in action, not holding up the big one!

The prize from Okuma for this category is an Okuma Coronado CDX 60 Tournament Concept Medium Light Boat Combo 7ft worth $379! An outstanding rod and reel combo.

FishCare’s principle two is very fitting here – Maximum Survival. It’s all about ensuring that the fish that are caught and aren’t being kept are handled correctly so that they have as much chance of surviving when put back that they possibly can. This means keeping fish in the water where possible, handling with wet hands, using de-hoookers etc. 

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5. Preparing, Cooking, and Eating Kaimoana

Now you’ve caught your feed, how are you going to make it tasty? This category, sponsored by Ironclad, is all about getting your kaimoana ready to eat, cooking it and of course eating it. We want you to capture the experience of cooking great food, with an emphasis of maximum utilisation and minimising waste.

Ironclad are giving one of their three lifetimes guaranteed Legacy cast iron pans worth $279 to the lucky winner of this category. This pan will make your seafood taste as good as it can be.

Principle three of the FishCare program is Maximum Utilisation – using as much of the kaimoana that you catch as possible. This means you’re eating more than just the fillets, and giving maximum respect to the seafood you have caught. It also means that we don’t always have to catch as much when we are eating more of what we do catch!

6. Things That Ain’t Right in Our Oceans

Unfortunately there are a lot of bad things going on in our oceans. From destructive fishing methods, like bottom trawling, to dumped fish, the rubbish and pollution. For this category we want to see photos of all the bad stuff that you see. It’s not most inspiring category, but it’s something we can’t ignore.

LegaSea is sponsoring this category and we are giving away a LegaSea merch pack worth over $300. It will include our new sunglasses from CDX, a cap, a ToadFish beer cooler and one of the very popular kingi Chopping Boards made from recylced plastic consumer waste and trawl nets.

This is a big one, and fits under all five of our FishCare principles: Reduce Wastage, Maximum Survival, Maximum Utilisation, Impact and Safety/Personal Wellbeing. Everything we do out on the water as recreational fishers has a flow-on effect and so when we take the time to make small positive changes, the results can fantastic. Our oceans and marine life are under constant pressure so it’s crucial we all play a part in helping restore abundance. 

7. Kid’s Photos

This category, sponsored by PENN, is for the budding young marine photographer. If you are 13 years or under you can enter this category with any marine shots that you would like. 

The lucky winner will get a perfect fishing set to get you catching some good fish! It includes a Pursuit IV Spining Rod & Reel Combo set with Pro Spec x8 braid and a Berkley Tackle Bag – altogether worth over $399!

The kids section is a good chance to help teach the next generation of fishers to be the best guardians of our oceans and the life that dwells in and on the salty blue. 

Overall winner

The overall winner will be judged by New Zealand Fishing News and will receive a one year print subscription. All the winning photos will be published in the April 2024 NZ Fishing News edition. 

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Entries open on the 21st of December 2023 and cruise through until the 29th of February 2024 so if this page is live and you can submit photos then it’s still underway!

This is the perfect opportunity to capture the wonders of our oceans, shed light on marine conservation issues, and revel in the joy of fishing, boating, diving and all other nautical and aquatic activities. All shutterbugs, regardless of age or skill level, are encouraged to dive into the depths and participate. 

How to Enter:
📷 Capture your best shots according to the categories.
🚀 Submit your photos HERE before the competition deadline.
🌊 Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for updates and announcements.
Judging Criteria:

Our panel of expert judges will be on the lookout for creativity, composition, relevance to the category, and overall visual impact.

Terms and Conditions:

• No photos of trophy fish – no holding of caught fish and no weigh-ins thanks!
• Each participant can submit as many photos and can enter as many categories as they would like. Some photos might fit into multiple categories anyway!
• By entering the competition, participants agree to the T&Cs.

That’s it – it really is just as simple as capturing the content, submitting it here and waiting to see if your photos have what it takes to take out some top spots! Winners will be contacted directly and announced on our FACEBOOK and INSTAGRAM pages.