“Jaw-Dropping Photo” Of Giant Whale Shark With 50+ Fish In Its Mouth Wins Underwater Photo Contest

3rd Place, Macro

Robert Stansfield

Behind the Shot: In November 2019 I signed up for 14 days diving on Banco Chinchorro with my good friend Heiko of Amigos del Mar, Mahahual. As a joke, Heiko set me a goal of seeing how many different species I could capture during my time there, so I opted for a 105mm to give me a bit more reach even though diving there lends itself much more to a wide-angle lens. On my second dive, I was setting myself up for a low-angle photo of a group of garden eels when I felt something nuzzle under my arm. Looking down, I saw this very confident 7-foot nurse shark looking back at me. I slowly moved up and back, repositioned the strobes and took a series of photos with the denticles slightly backlit. The nurse sharks around Banco Chinchorro are very bold and a joy to watch.

Camera Gear: Nikon D500; Nikon 105mm lens; Nauticam housing; Inon Z-330 strobes
Settings: f/40; 1/250; ISO 500
Prize: SeaLife Sea Dragon 2000F photo-video light