Alexander Forrest, Cloudpiercer (ANIMALS 2026)

Web:

https://forrestmedia.com.au

As voluntary breathers, humpback whales must return to the surface, despite the conditions. Fortunately, they are incredibly adaptable. When confronted with harsher weather they might be more calculated in their travel, dive for longer and avoid lingering at the surface. The winds and swells also create noise underwater. Whales, reliant on sound as their primary tool for communication, may expend more energy on surface language when attempting to converse with other pods - perhaps the use case for the breach pictured. The surface may be dramatic, yet it has been the humpback whale’s domain for ~50 million years.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.