Sina Ritter | Visual Voice of the Ocean

Hi, I’m Sina Ritter. For those of you who don’t know me, I grew up in the countryside of Germany, about as far from the ocean as you can imagine, but for the past 5 years, I’ve been living life between some of the most remote islands and diverse ecosystems on our blue planet. As a kid, I was obsessed with dolphins and whales. I dreamed of becoming a marine biologist. I thought it would mean swimming with them all day. Life took a different path, I studied philosophy and literature, but the ocean always called me back. That call became impossible to ignore the first time I locked eyes with a pilot whale while documenting the human connection with cetaceans for a conservation project. Not long after, I became a PADI certified Divemaster, deepening my understanding of ocean safety with some of the most seasoned dive professionals @utiladivecenter. Today, my life revolves around connecting people with the soft side of raw wilderness, and I'm closer to living my childhood dream than I ever thought possible. I specialize in creating intimate portraits of ocean giants that bring their unique personalities to the surface. Beyond photography, I lead marine life expeditions prioritizing meaningful and respectful interactions. Currently, I’m focusing on humpback whales in French Polynesia, tiger sharks in the Maldives, and other ocean giants in Baja. I’ve been fortunate to have my images internationally recognized in some of the most prestigious photo competitions like the "Underwater Photographer of the Year", the "U.N. World Oceans Day Photo Competition", and the "Close-up Photographer of the Year". My art has been exhibited around the world, and I’m proud to partner with leading dive and conservation brands, including as a @scubapro ambassador. None of this would be possible without my incredible community, all my partners, sponsors, fellow conservationists, photographers, divers, captains, and ocean lovers and most importantly my husband and business partner @fabianritter. You’re the reason I can share these stories. I see you. I appreciate you. 💙 _ first photo @roamtobewild marine portraits @palms2peaks #globaldiveteam #scubaproambassador #sponsored

Today, as we celebrate World Ocean Day, I am incredibly honored to share that my image “Guiding Fins” has won 3rd place in the 11th @undworldoceansday photo contest, in this year’s feature category “Awaken New Depths” 🐢🏆 @tom.st.george beautifully described the essence of this category and my image: “The category ‘Awaken New Depths’ is for images that appeal to new depths of compassion, understanding, and collaboration, demonstrating a commitment to the ocean and the issues it faces. It highlights how important it is that we continue to care for our oceans. In 3rd place is Sina Ritter from Germany with this image of turtle hatchlings being released into the ocean. This is an image of hope, illustrating a seemingly small action that can make a big impact. Hatchling turtles have a very small chance of making it into adulthood, so this literal helping hand gives them a much better chance.” Each hatchling navigates a world filled with predators and natural challenges. “Guiding Fins” emphasizes the crucial role we humans play in protecting our planet’s wildlife. To me, the image mirrors a moment of profound connection and hope. The ocean connects us all, and deep within us, we can all feel it. Imagine if we got it right. There’s endless potential out there waiting to be discovered. Let’s open our minds to these possibilities and embrace them. Let’s tell stories, create connections, and inspire action. Together, we can awaken new depths of compassion and understanding. Together, we can guide the fins of our blue planet’s future. Happy World Ocean’s Day to you all! 💙 ➡️➡️ Swipe to see how this story of guided fins unfolded a few moments later in my image “A New Dawn,” which won second place in the “Wonderful World of Tides” category in last year’s competition. For more of my work and to support ocean conservation, visit my website: palms2peaks.com 🐋 Thank you to the curator @underwaterellen and all the judges, as well as to @divephotoguide, @oceanic.global, and @undoalos for coordinating this inspiring event. Congratulations to all the winners!

Proud to announce to be amongst the winners in the wide angle category in one of the largest and most prestigious underwater photography contests in the world (@upycontest / Underwater Photographer of the Year). It was in summer of 2022 that I first took my camera underwater. Fast forward to today and I am more than honored to have been commended by the judges - seeing that more than 6000 images of underwater photographers from all over the world have entered. I stumbled over this contest just by chance on the closing day of entries. Despite the tight deadline, I decided to take a chance and enter. It was my first contest ever. Feedback is an artists currency. I am deeply grateful to see how far each and every single one of my images have made it in its respective categories - a precious & transparent feedback no other contest provides. The lessons I can learn from that are incredibly valuable. I am far from perfect. But I will always wholeheartedly continue to explore the many learnings every new underwater environment will teach me on my journey of showcasing the beauty and diversity of our oceans in my own artistic voice. Looking back to where I was one year ago to now, seeing how far I have come simply bends my mind. Congratulations to all my fellow underwater photographers (going through all the winners now; overwhelmingly beautiful art out there!) and thank you to the judges of @upycontest for providing us with this unique opportunity. 💙 _ shot on @canondeutschland & @seafrogs.com.hk edited with @lightroom #upy2023 #upycontest #underwaterphotography #uwphotography #divephotography #aqualungdivers #divephotos #uwphotos #uwphotographer #scubadivingmag #awardwinningphotographer #natgeowild #bbcwildlife #madewithlightroom #oceanart #ishootsalty #underwaterportrait #whalesofinstagram #ocean #marinelifeconservation #upy #awardwinning

For those who’ve heard me talk endlessly about this shot - today I got as close as never before. Literally. The eye of the tiger, the soul of the shark. This is what I fell in love with when I first started diving here. The way the tiger sharks look back at you. The soft side of a predator. The quiet intelligence behind those eyes. And for those who have never locked eyes with a tiger shark… I hope this image brings you one step closer. _ shot on @sonyalpha a1 ii & @nauticamhousings shoutout to my safety guide @anott3y for knowing how much I’ve been chasing this shot and for always having my back so I could actually get it!

Some things you can plan for. Others, the ocean decides. You might hope for a thresher shark in Fuvahmulah. You might manifest it, scan the blue, convince yourself that maybe today is the day. But unlike Malapascua, where threshers are almost a guarantee, here, they are something else entirely. They are elusive. Shy. Deep. There one second, gone the next. And most of the time, that’s all you get. A glimpse. A ghost in the blue. A what if. So when you do see a thresher, you feel it. The rush. The disbelief. The way the whole dive shifts in an instant. And when it’s not just a thresher, but a shallow, curious, close thresher, gliding right into clear water with perfect visibility... That’s the kind of moment that stops time. The kind that makes your brain short-circuit. Because it is happening. Right in front of you. And that’s the thing about Fuvahmulah. It doesn’t just give you what you hope for. It gives you moments that catch you off guard, stop time, and leave you breathless. _ shot on @sony Alpha a1 ii & @nauticamhousings

THE VERY FIRST PHOTO WITH MY NEW SETUP! After shooting with Canon since the very beginning of my photography days, I’ve now officially made the switch to Sony & Nauticam. This decision didn’t come easy. When you’ve built your entire creative process around one system, change feels huge. I’ve never had any issues with my old Canon x Isotta setup, but for the projects I have in mind long-term, this change felt like the right next step. Every setup shift is also an opportunity - to rethink, to adapt, to grow as a photographer. New tools, new challenges, new ways to see, perceive and capture the ocean. To say I am excited is an understatement. A huge, heartfelt THANK YOU to @lukecoley for helping me decide on my new primary lens (the struggle was real!), to @doc0li & @kerezia for being the best friends ever and bringing my housing (as carry-on!) all the way to Fuvahmulah, to @rickyrikquaro for guiding me through the absolute chaos of setting up this new system for the first time, and to my @fuvahmulahcentraldivecenter._ family for listening to me babble about this switch for months 🤣 You guys are legends! Now it’s time to put this setup to the test. Let’s see what it can do. 💙 _ proudly shot on @sonyalpha & @nauticamhousings

Direction > Speed. Rushing gets you nowhere. When I first started underwater photography, I wanted to be everywhere, capture everything, improve fast. But the ocean doesn’t work that way. Neither does growth. Sharks don’t waste energy chasing blindly. They move with purpose. Whales travel across entire oceans, guided by instinct, not urgency. The most powerful moments underwater don’t happen when you force them, but when you align yourself with the flow of what’s already happening. It’s easy to get caught up in the race. But speed means nothing if you’re not heading in the right direction. And direction is built on intention. On knowing WHY you do what you do. On choosing quality over quantity, impact over algorithms, and depth over quick wins. Moving with the ocean, not against it. _ shot on @canonusa & @isotta_underwater_housings in the water w/ @blueworlddharavandoo

Every underwater photographer knows this feeling. You have the shot in mind, a vision, this photo of your dream encounter. One of the shots I’ve been chasing since Jawgina made her return to Tiger Point is a close-up of her. At first, she kept her distance. She was shy, cautious, just a fleeting silhouette in the blue. Over the past few days though, something shifted. She’s been bolder, more curious, coming closer. Jawgina is one of our most iconic tiger shark ladies. Her jaw has been displaced since she was young, likely from human fishing activity. And yet, she’s still here. She’s adapted, learned to survive, to fight for her meals alongside the others, against all odds. But even with Jawgina growing bolder, getting that dream shot is anything but easy. Divers move into frame, conditions aren't always ideal. And even when everything aligns? Guests go first. (Plus, I'm currently shooting with a 16-35mm lens 😉) So no, this isn’t the shot I’ve been dreaming of (yet). But it’s the closest I’ve gotten so far. And honestly? I love it. Because that's what makes underwater photogrpahy so exciting. The chase. The near-misses. The way the ocean makes you work for it. And capturing shots, you've never even dreamed of. _ shot on @canonusa & @isotta_underwater_housings

I believe split shots pull us in because they make us question where we belong. They show us that the surface isn’t a boundary - it’s a bridge. That the ocean isn’t some distant world, but our world. A world we’re tied to with every breath. And somewhere between those two worlds, we find something deeper, a truth we’ve always known but too often forget: We were never meant to be separate. _ shot on @canonusa & @isotta_underwater_housings in the water w/ @moorea_expedition

It all started with dolphins. Nothing I do would exist without the deep love I’ve always felt for them. As a teenager, I often fell asleep to a CD my mom once gifted me: the clicks and songs of dolphins and whales. Whenever I had a hard time drifting off, I’d press play, close my eyes, and let their voices carry me into a dreamlike state. Their sounds felt like a secret language, like something just beyond our understanding, yet deeply familiar. Maybe that’s why I’ve always felt drawn to them. Maybe that’s why I listen so closely. But now, their world - the one I used to dream of - is drowning in noise. The ocean was never meant to be silent, but it was never meant to be this loud either. Ships, speedboats, sonar, drilling: human-made noise fills the water, making it harder and harder for dolphins to find each other, to communicate, to hunt, to live. Imagine trying to talk to your family in a room where the walls are shaking from endless construction, where every word gets lost in an overwhelming, inescapable hum... Sadly, that's their reality now. Dolphins don’t just exist in our childhood dreams, in movies, in the stories we tell about them. They are real, and they need us to listen - not just to their voices, but to the silence we’ve stolen from them. Choose the quiet route. Slow down. Support organizations fighting for marine noise regulations. Be the person who listens. Because they deserve a world where their voices don’t just echo in our dreams, but in the ocean where they belong. _ shot on @canonusa & @isotta_underwater_housings

As a kid, I always wanted to fly. Not with a rocket, not with wings, just by sheer will. The idea of lifting off the ground, effortlessly gliding in any direction, felt like the ultimate freedom. I never really grew out of that dream… but I did find a way to make it real. Diving is the closest I’ve ever come to flying. That's one of the reasons why I love an “all blue” dive, where the only reference points are the bubbles of my dive buddies drifting upward. There’s no ground, no ceiling, just infinite potential in every direction. I navigate with nothing but my breath. A slow inhale, and I rise. A gentle exhale, and I sink. No gravity, no resistance. Just gliding, suspended in a world that isn’t air, but sure as hell feels weightless. 💬 What about you, do you prefer the vast, endless blue or the colors and life of a reef dive? _ equipped and supported by @scubapro #scubaproambassador #sponsored #globaldiveteam shot by @anott3y

Why are we so drawn to whales? Why do we feel this undeniable pull to be close to them, to understand them, to somehow bridge the vastness of our worlds and communicate with them? Maybe it’s their sheer size? A presence so immense it makes you feel small in the best possible way. They carry the weight of ancient oceans, gliding through the water as if time moves differently for them. They remind us of a pace of life we’ve forgotten, a rhythm that feels deeply primal and connected. Or maybe it’s their silence that calls to us? That sense of knowing they’ve seen and heard things we never will, living lives steeped in mystery just beneath the surface. And yet, when they breach or spyhop or glide beneath your fins, there’s this feeling, isn’t there? Like they’re trying to tell us something. We look at them and see reflections of ourselves in their playfulness, their maternal care, their curiosity. We hear it in their songs, long, haunting, beautiful calls that feel like they come from the very soul of the ocean. And we wonder: What are they saying? What could we learn if we only knew how to listen? Whales remind us of wonder. They make us feel small and infinite all at once. And maybe that’s why we seek them out. Not to master their world but to remember our place in it. 💙 ➡️ 3 spaces left for our whale expedition this summer! DM for details. _ shot on @canonusa & @isotta_underwater_housings