The Manta Fest ended with the judging of the photo contest and Manta Man Bill Acker giving out some pretty great awards. Judges were Andy Sallmon, Tim Rock, Ray Bullion and Peter Schneider and they saw some images sublime and other ridiculous. But one thing was clear by the submissions. Everyone had great diving and a great time. The judges enjoyed a variety of images and were amazed that many of the nicest shots came from simple point-and-shoot cameras.

The grand prize went to four-time Manta Fest attendee Judy Bennett of New Orleans with her divers and clownfish image. She used a Nikon D200 camera in and Aquatica housing with Nikon strobes to garner winners in two categories. This honor her a great new dive computer from Ray, a free week with diving at Manta Ray and lots of other stuff.

So start gearing up now for 2011 and more great prizes.

The winners of the photo competition were:

Land/Culture

Honorable Mention: Diana Bullion

3rd Place: Judy Bennett

2nd Place: Joe Penna

1st Place: Doris Robohm

Reef Scenic

Honorable Mention: Judy Bennett

3rd Place: Doris Robohm

2nd Place: Diana Bullion

1st Place: Judy Bennett

Behavior

Honorable Mention: Doris Robohm

3rd Place: Diana Bullion

2nd Place: Michael Martini

1st Place: Michael Martini

Macro

Honorable Mention: Judy Bennett

3rd Place: Doris Robohm

2nd Place: Michael Martini

1st Place: Judy Bennett

Mantas/Sharks

Honorable Mention: Joe Penna

3rd Place: Judy Bennett

2nd Place: Joe Penna

1st Place: Doris Robohm

Grand Prize

Grand Prize: Judy Bennett