Brian Skerry can be called many things – explorer, journalist, conservation advocate – but he is first and foremost a photographer. His journeys to capture amazing underwater photographs have taken him across the world’s oceans, where he has witnessed some of the most beautiful, diverse, and threatened environments on the planet. Read more about his adventures with sharks and life in the field on his blog.

We asked for your votes to choose the five photos that best represent a "vanishing world" for a crowd-curated section of the exhibit. They, along with 15 of Brian's other photographs, were displayed at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC from September 17, 2013 through October 4, 2015. Hear from Skerry about capturing some of the images for the exhibit and see what photos won, and what didn't. 

Two additional ocean exhibits also opened in September 2013: "Fragile Beauty: The Art & Science of Sea Butterflies," which shares the story of how ocean acidification is affecting sea butterflies, and the "Living on an Ocean Planet" gallery, which focuses on the human relationship with the ocean. Their opening coincides with the five-year anniversary of the opening of the Sant Ocean Hall.

Thanks for your help!

You can see beautiful images of ocean wildlife that were submitted to our Flickr group! The best photos, chosen by Brian Skerry himself along with museum curators, were displayed at the exhibit in the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. Read the stories behind some of these photos on our blog.