Ross Gudgeon Wins Close-up Photographer of the Year 7 (2025)
Australian photographer Ross Gudgeon is the seventh winner of Close-up Photographer of the Year.
His stunning underwater image taken from the inside of a cauliflower soft coral caught the judges attention and earned him the competition trophy and £2,500 prize.
Read on to find out how Ross took the picture.
Fractal First | Ross Gudgeon
Name: Ross Gudgeon
Picture title: Fractal Forest
Category: Underwater
Nationality: Australian
The inside of a cauliflower soft coral in Lembeh Strait, Indonesia.
Ross says:
‘Named for its characteristic cauliflower-like appearance, this coral has numerous small, rounded, bump-like polyps that give it a puffy texture.
This unique perspective was made possible by the Nauticam EMWL (Extended Macro Wide Lens), an underwater version of the probe or insect-eye lens. Due to its long length, small diameter, close focus, and wide field of view, this lens allows for perspectives impossible with conventional lenses.
I decided to experiment with the EMWL on the soft coral to capture a different view of a common life-form. I carefully threaded the end of the EMWL through the branches of the soft coral so as not to damage them, creating an image looking from the inside out.’
Technical information:
Sony A7R IV
Sony FE 90mm f/2.8 Macro G OSS
f/9, 1/100 sec, ISO 400
Nauticam EMWL with 160 degree objective lens and 2x Retra Pro flashes
DXO Pure Raw, Topaz Photo AI
Instagram: @ross_gudgeon
Facebook: Ross Gudgeon
The Top 100 images and all shortlisted photographs are collected in the CUPOTY 7 digital book, with full captions and tips from every awarded photographer.