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Hammerhead On



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One of the Great Hammerheads of Bimini. It takes a while for them to let their guard down but if you sit still on the bottom long enough, not breathing then eve...
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One of the Great Hammerheads of Bimini. It takes a while for them to let their guard down but if you sit still on the bottom long enough, not breathing then eventually they begin to trust you enough to come in for a closer look. This was the first pass, very confidently swimming head on then turning away with a powerful flick of the tail at the last second.
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cameraSONY ILCE-6000

settings Aperture f/11 ISO 100 Shutter 1/200 Focal Length 160/10 

upload_dateMar, 2017

Views

4864

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Awards

Contest Finalist in The Wonders of the World Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Celebrating Nature Photo Contest Vol 4
Contest Finalist in Wildlife And Water Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Our Natural Planet Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Animals And Water Photo Contest
Peer Choice Award
Runner Up in Covers Photo Contest Vol 38
Contest Finalist in Covers Photo Contest Vol 38
Featured
Contest Finalist in The Animal Kingdom Photo Contest
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Peer Award
richardeaton_9707 davidjprosser Vorster TonyGuzmanG arcrem NancyFlemingPhotography jorgealbertopealozapealoza +311
Absolute Masterpiece
Paul_Joslin Devanpayne russellnicholson Herbertahollybaker rhuffsmith alicemacdonaldtaylor BlackRoseOfMercy +45
Top Choice
kenkast2 Cuttrax dabe1965 Georgeipoolie mandivincent rosefosterhunt StavruDaniel +39
Superb Composition
James-Evans patriciahoran annesim jillfisher_9872 Aeri terryacregan-leidigh arturkubik +34
Magnificent Capture
shanecorby Mumsley PeteSavagePhotos LeeBennett FrancoisHorne KristinaOers sarahking +33
Superior Skill
hiyahercfarm Rebecca_Mitchell juliepokorny FeatherstonePhotography richelkanakanangi JeffinerRosie audreykronkaitis +2
All Star
noneoftheabove Taratwist LeaFoster Chrisbinns1999 michellemace Quade13 alansmith_9411 +2
Outstanding Creativity
Agirlandhercamera kymlewis RevMarc_0713 michaeljohnerson nickpeterash wendyroske_9600 OxReth +1
Genius
texaaronpueschel ruudvdhorst photoflea
Virtuoso
dixons6photography rhiannyn breannabreese

Emotions

Impressed
Herbertahollybaker
Happy
Mumsley

Top Ranks

Color Explorer Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Color Explorer Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
All About Water Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Change Of Seasons Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Change Of Seasons Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
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Rule of Thirds Photo Contest vol6Top 10 rank
Rule of Thirds Photo Contest vol6Top 10 rank week 1
The Wonders of the World Photo ContestTop 10 rank
The Wonders of the World Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Celebrating Nature Photo Contest Vol 4Top 20 rank
Celebrating Nature Photo Contest Vol 4Top 20 rank week 3
Celebrating Nature Photo Contest Vol 4Top 10 rank week 2
Celebrating Nature Photo Contest Vol 4Top 10 rank week 1
Wildlife And Water Photo ContestTop 10 rank
A Low Vantage Point Photo ContestTop 20 rank
A Low Vantage Point Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
Wildlife Photo Contest 2018Top 10 rank
Wildlife Photo Contest 2018Top 10 rank week 1
Anything Water Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Anything Water Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Everything Nature Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Everything Nature Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Our Natural Planet Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Our Natural Planet Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
ViewBug Photography AwardsTop 10 rank
ViewBug Photography AwardsTop 10 rank week 1
Animals And Water Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Celebrating Nature Photo Contest Vol 3Top 10 rank
Animals And Water Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Celebrating Nature Photo Contest Vol 3Top 10 rank week 2
Celebrating Nature Photo Contest Vol 3Top 10 rank week 1
My Best Shot Photo Contest Vol 3Top 10 rank
The Ocean Photo ContestTop 10 rank
The Ocean Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 2
My Best Shot Photo Contest Vol 3Top 10 rank week 2
The Ocean Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
My Best Shot Photo Contest Vol 3Top 20 rank week 1
Wildlife Photo Contest 2017Top 10 rank
Wildlife Photo Contest 2017Top 10 rank week 1
World Photography Day Photo ContestTop 10 rank
World Photography Day Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 2
World Photography Day Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Compositions 101 Photo Contest vol3Top 10 rank
Compositions 101 Photo Contest vol3Top 10 rank week 2
Compositions 101 Photo Contest vol3Top 10 rank week 1
The Marine Wildlife Photo ContestTop 10 rank
The Marine Wildlife Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Wildlife Portraits Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Wildlife Portraits Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
The Blue Hour Photo ContestTop 20 rank
The Blue Hour Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Covers Photo Contest Vol 38Top 20 rank
Covers Photo Contest Vol 38Top 10 rank week 1
Water Photo Contest 2017Top 10 rank
Water Photo Contest 2017Top 10 rank week 1
Social Exposure Photo Contest Vol 7Top 20 rank
Covers Photo Contest Vol 37Top 20 rank
Social Exposure Photo Contest Vol 7Top 20 rank week 1
Covers Photo Contest Vol 37Top 20 rank week 2
Covers Photo Contest Vol 37Top 20 rank week 1
My Best Shot Photo Contest Vol 2Top 10 rank
My Best Shot Photo Contest Vol 2Top 20 rank week 2
My Best Shot Photo Contest Vol 2Top 10 rank week 1
Isolating The Subject Photo ContestTop 10 rank

Categories

13 Comments |
Merbert
 
Merbert March 16, 2017
Impressive!! Love to be there one day and see them for myself.
thanks for sharing.
Norbert
edandaniphone PRO+
 
edandaniphone May 19, 2017
Such a cool shot.
Michael_Higgins
 
Michael_Higgins May 19, 2017
Perfect contrast going on here, and you can almost see the tail paddling back and forth. great movement with your composition.
Pjerry
 
Pjerry May 21, 2017
I don't say often wow, But now I do.... ;)
Pjerry
 
Pjerry May 21, 2017
Voted.
MaryannR
 
MaryannR May 21, 2017
Wow, great capture!
rawmeyn
 
rawmeyn May 28, 2017
Crazy good shot! Congrats!
johnchilver
 
johnchilver June 30, 2017
Fantastic shot
rhiannyn
 
rhiannyn August 04, 2017
Brilliant! Outstanding capture! Such an amazing experience! (am now suffering from *green gills syndrome* ;) maybe one day :) )
susiblu
 
susiblu December 01, 2017
Awesome capture. Beautiful all round
emilybeech
 
emilybeech December 06, 2017
Wow....... super pic
briandawnsutter
 
briandawnsutter January 30, 2018
Awesome
MichelleAnnHarrison
 
MichelleAnnHarrison April 01, 2018
Nice capture gorgeous hammerhead

Submitted to Photo Contests
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Behind The Lens

Location

Bimini, Bahamas, one of the world's best shark diving destinations.

Time

It was early afternoon on a mostly clear sunny day. This was about 8-9m underwater at a time when the sun was out so the white sand reflects a lot of light that you would otherwise lose as you go deeper.

Lighting

Bahamas is great for shooting with natural light. The clear water and sun reflecting off the white sandy bottom gave me all the light I needed for the Great Hammerheads.

Equipment

Shot with my Sony A6000, 16mm lens in a Nauticam housing. Shutter 1/200, ISO 100. Natural light.

Inspiration

I love taking photos while freediving. It allows you to get much closer to marine life and interact with them in a totally different way to scuba. Sharks especially are a lot less intimidated when you remove the noise and bulk of scuba gear and dive slowly on a single breath. The Great Hammerhead is listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List, and all sharks are a vital part of the marine ecosystem. Sharing photos like this one will hopefully allow people to see that they're not mindless killers that should be feared, rather they are a highly evolved predator that deserves respect and help from humans.

Editing

Using Lightroom and Photoshop to remove the blue tint that happens in underwater photography. The sand provided the perfect white balance.

In my camera bag

For the photos I like to take I prefer to keep it simple - freediving gear to get underwater and then a camera and housing to get the shot. The A6000 is great for freediving as it is light and compact.

Feedback

Bahamas is one of the best shark diving destinations in the world - the water is warm and the conditions and visibility can be amazing. It should still be kept in mind that these are wild animals in their natural environment, and anyone looking for this kind of experience should go with an experienced and responsible guide/operation, who respects the animals and has a conservation focus. And ALWAYS freedive with a trained buddy.

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