Wildlife / Animals nominee

In Tonga, I encountered a mother whale and her calf.
With no diving gear-only breath and stillness -I waited underwater.
The calf approached me curiously, and we shared a gaze.
In its eyes, I saw the vast ocean and felt completely embraced
I used a fisheye lens; without it, they were simply too close to capture.
It was like a martial artist sensing the line between contact and no contact.
I passed beneath the giant fin, feeling calm rather than fear.
I knew -they saw me not as a threat, but as a friend.
Then they drifted away, leaving only silence behind.

Rintaro Ukon is a Japan-based photographer known for capturing the harmony between humanity and nature. With more than a decade of experience, he specializes in wedding, landscape, and underwater photography, blending cinematic composition with emotional authenticity.

He began his career as a photographer at five-star hotels in Tokyo before establishing his own practice. Today, he travels globally to document love stories and natural wonders, from Japan’s landmarks to the South Pacific. His signature approach transforms familiar moments into timeless icons, revealing the extraordinary within the ordinary.

Ukon has earned international recognition such as the PX3 Paris Photo Award 2025 (Gold, Silver, Bronze), the European Photography Awards 2025 (Category Winner of the Year in Wildlife and Architecture, Platinum in Wedding, Underwater, Fine Art), and the World Photographic Cup (Best of Nation for Japan in 2024 and 2025, Top 8 in Wildlife, Finalist in Commercial). Earlier, he received the APA Award 2017 and was named a SONY Alpha Professional Photographer & Instructor (2015–2019).

Guided by the belief that “by reframing the everyday, we may discover gratitude and reverence for life itself,” Ukon continues to seek unseen windows around the world and share them through his photography.