Indian Photographer Gaurav Patil Wins Mangrove Photography Awards 2026
A Striking Winning Image
Indian marine biologist and photographer Gaurav Patil has won the overall Mangrove Photographer of the Year 2026 award for his image “Tangled Glow: When Life Meets the Ruins,” captured near Nandgaon village in Maharashtra, south of Mumbai.
How the Shot Was Taken
The winning photograph shows an abandoned fishing net, known as a “ghost net,” glowing under ultraviolet light while tangled in a mangrove’s canopy, captured using a 13-second UV exposure at night.
Raising Awareness Through Art
Patil said he had been watching ghost nets get trapped in mangroves for several years and wanted to document the issue artistically to draw attention to it. Ghost nets can break down into microplastics, choke coastal trees and disrupt mangrove ecosystems over time.
A Global Competition
The award carried a prize of $1,000. The competition drew 5,258 entries from 87 countries across categories including Wildlife, Landscape, Underwater, Threats, People and Conservation Stories.
Sourced from CNN and MyModernMet Mangrove Photography Awards coverage, 1 October 2026.
