williambuchheit
FollowGreat White takes seal in False Bay, South Africa
Great White takes seal in False Bay, South Africa
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Awards
Chatter Award
Member Selection Award
Staff Winter Selection 2015
Thumbs Up
Featured
Jaw Dropping
Absolute Masterpiece
Outstanding Creativity
Superb Composition
Top Choice
Magnificent Capture
All Star
Superior Skill
Peer Award
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jimboz
September 11, 2012
This is one of the best captures I've seen of a great white out of the water. The action of the fighitng seal and the background makes it a magnificent shot. Are you posting any other ones soon?
ChristinaFreak
September 18, 2012
Not that I'm a fan of this, but it's a great shot, nature is what it is. This capture needs to be awarded by ViewBug. Keep your amazing photography going, want to see more!
Chaddikat
September 19, 2012
Wow this is a winner ! Captured wildlife perfectly ! I love sharks and seals :( like the others said its nature !
Great capture for you and the shark :)
Great capture for you and the shark :)
edazz
September 21, 2012
Outstanding Capture,well done! Awarded for Jaw Dropping and favorite!
If you like photographing cars, trucks or motorcycles, you are invited to join the
"Motor Heads" group...http://www.viewbug.com/photo-communities/motor-heads
If you like photographing boats, boating or beaches, you are invited to join the "Boats and Beaches" group....
http://www.viewbug.com/project/boats-and-beaches.
Click on "community" tab, "projects " tab, and paste the group name in the search box.
I would be honored if you would visit my View Bug gallery and my personal website at www.photo-pixart.com
If you like photographing cars, trucks or motorcycles, you are invited to join the
"Motor Heads" group...http://www.viewbug.com/photo-communities/motor-heads
If you like photographing boats, boating or beaches, you are invited to join the "Boats and Beaches" group....
http://www.viewbug.com/project/boats-and-beaches.
Click on "community" tab, "projects " tab, and paste the group name in the search box.
I would be honored if you would visit my View Bug gallery and my personal website at www.photo-pixart.com
If you like photographing cars, trucks or motorcycles, you are invited to join the
"Motor Heads" group...http://www.viewbug.com/photo-communities/motor-heads
If you like photographing boats, boating or beaches, you are invited to join the "Boats and Beaches" group....
http://www.viewbug.com/project/boats-and-beaches.
Click on "community" tab, "projects " tab, and paste the group name in the search box.
I would be honored if you would visit my View Bug gallery and my personal website at www.photo-pixart.com
If you like photographing cars, trucks or motorcycles, you are invited to join the
"Motor Heads" group...http://www.viewbug.com/photo-communities/motor-heads
If you like photographing boats, boating or beaches, you are invited to join the "Boats and Beaches" group....
http://www.viewbug.com/project/boats-and-beaches.
Click on "community" tab, "projects " tab, and paste the group name in the search box.
I would be honored if you would visit my View Bug gallery and my personal website at www.photo-pixart.com
snowdon
October 12, 2012
Capture of a lifetime, raw power and such good composition, congratulations on our feature
melissa3339
October 12, 2012
Unbelievable capture! I hate to see this, but it is amazing. That's life... Congrats!
mstoltz1022
October 12, 2012
congrats on the feature. some of us feel you should have won the contest!
helen_marie
October 12, 2012
Amazing shot, nature at its best/worst ;) such detail and action. Amazing!
disneymamom
October 12, 2012
congrats on feature!! amazing.. makes many think on this... can't stop the food chain... :-) congrats! peer award also.. wow.. you have more peer awards on this one photo.. I'm happy for you.. blessings..
RodneyKoch
October 12, 2012
AWESOME SHOT!!! This didn't make runners up or honorable mention in the Wildlife Contest and shots that were obviously animals in the zoo did ???!!!! You were robbed!!!
KRPoole
October 12, 2012
Congrats on feature, poor seal! Would love to have one of those teeth!! Awesome shot!
JimDavis143
October 12, 2012
much faster than clubbing them!!! Excellent job, what a terrific memory that was made im sure!!! CONGRATS!
lindseyapril6
October 12, 2012
Brilliant! This is the best great white shark picture ever! I love it!!!!! I can't stop looking at those massive jaw muscles! Absolutely WONDERFUL!
nerophoto
October 12, 2012
WOW!!!! Amazing capture of nature!!! Great work!!! Congrats on a well-deserved feature and award!!!
SusiStroud
October 12, 2012
What an amazing capture!!! Clarity and composition are excellent. Great Shot!! Congratulations on your Feature!
chrisrgivens
October 14, 2012
this shot is amazing!!! kinda sucks for the seal but, Sharks gotta eat too haha
jrphoto
November 14, 2012
Wow, this is an incredible shot. Great action all around. I bet this was something to see in person.
karlvoss
April 19, 2013
This shot is superb. I know how hard it is to get a shot like this. A winner.
hollyhaberern
July 27, 2013
I'm so impressed with this shot...and envious...South Africa is on my bucket list..so see the sharks breaching of course! This is beyond amazing. :)
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Discover more photos See all
Behind The Lens
Location
I got this shot while on a shark expedition near Seal Island in False Bay, South Africa. We were on a boat a few miles from shore when we saw this shark lunge for a seal about 180 feet from the vessel. It missed the first time but not the second, bursting like a space shuttle through the spray with the panicked seal in its mouth. Following the entire event through my lens, I clicked off six shots when the shark came up. The first three were blurry as the camera autofocused, but the last three were money shots. This photo was the second of those three.Time
Around 8:00 am.Lighting
We had bluebird skies that morning, and our captain was Chris Fallows, probably the most renowned great white photographer in the world. Having shot the sharks for nearly two decades, Fallows is a master of positioning the boat so that the guests on his boat can get the best-lit viewpoint. I therefore have both him and God to thank for the perfect natural light of that moment.Equipment
I used a Canon 7D with shutter speed of 1/2500 and an F stop of 5.6. My lens was a Canon 70-200 zoomed to 165 mm. My ISO was 800.Inspiration
I've been obsessed with great whites since childhood. I've dedicated much time, money and energy over the years photographing them from boats and cages. There's nothing like being near them in the wild.Editing
The RAW photo was a little bright, so I darkened it and then decreased the highlights so that you could better see the contours of the shark's belly. I also lightened and sharpened the seal for maximum emotional impact. I did all of this in Adobe Photoshop CS5.In my camera bag
Nowadays I keep a Canon 5d Mark 3, Canon EF series 70-200mm F4 Zoom Lens, Canon 24-70mm 2.8 EF Lens, Speedlight 580X, polarizing filters for both lenses and a lightweight Manfroto tripod.Feedback
Photographing from a small boat on rocky waters in the African winter is not easy, and you have to protect your equipment when you are heading towards a hunting event at nearly 45 mph. This was the third day of photographing hunting sharks, and the only predatory event close enough to us to really capture on camera. In short, this shot required lots of patience, focus, preparation and luck.