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Stephen Frink's South Australia Great White Shark Photo Gallery

As I was passing through Los Angeles International airport recently I ran into one of my friends, also a professional underwater photographer. No surprise there, as LAX is the gateway to the world of Pacific dive destinations. Naturally we asked where each was bound. When I said South Australia for white sharks, he said "Jeez--why waste your time? White sharks are no good there anymore. Go to Guadalupe or go to South Africa if you want good sharks." Well, in the past 9 months I've been to both South Africa and Guadalupe, and they did in fact deliver pretty hot white shark action. But the first white shark I ever saw was in South Australia. Immortalized in the late-60s film classic "Blue Water White Death," this is where cage diving for white sharks began. I, for one, was not ready to accept the conventional wisdom that the days of white sharking had past for Australia, and meant to find out for myself.

This is the 4th time I've traveled to Port Lincoln, South Australia to board a boat bound for the Neptune Islands in the Great Southern Ocean, and I'll admit my previous outings might lend credence to my friend's gloomy prediction. The first trip in the early 1990s was to Dangerous Reef and did bring a few fleeting shark encounters. But the only really cooperative shark that week was torn up from a drift net and horribly disfigured on her right side. But she was willing to come to the cage, maybe because that's about the only food she could capture right then. In a time when white shark pictures were pretty rare, I finally had some decent images, from her left side of course. I had also gained new respect for how difficult and time consuming the quest for white sharks could be. These appeared to be creatures who gave up their image grudgingly--if at all.

Regrettably, my next two trips were even less productive. On the first we saw a few sharks but none that ever came close to the cage, at least not while I was there camera in hand. On the next trip we got totally skunked. Nary a shark to be seen! Truthfully, by the mid-1990s there simply weren't as many sharks in South Australia due to overfishing.

Sport fishing was the whipping boy because of its visibility. There was always an angler proud to have their picture taken alongside a dead shark, and it usually ran in the local paper. But that wasn't the significant problem. In the decade prior to the white shark gaining protected status in Australia there were probably only a couple of sharks each year killed by anglers. Granted there was catch-and-release as well, and some of those might have died. But unless it was a record catch, the captains chose not to kill the shark. After all, they wanted to bring their clients back and catch it again. But, there's no conscience on a long-line boat, and they were killing about 200 sharks a year. Add to that the tuna farmers who killed maybe 30 more sharks a year that got inside their nets to avoid the decimation of a million dollars worth of captured fish.

Life was getting pretty tough for a white shark in Australia in those days, and the Aussies knew it. In an enlightened move, in 1997 they made it totally illegal to kill a white shark. No sport angling, not even catch-and-release. Massive fines for long-liners, and even the tuna farmers could no longer have their way with a white shark. If one gets inside the tuna pens today they have to call the National Park and ask for permission to remove or, in the worst case, kill the white shark. Now, seven years after the white shark gained protected status it was time to see if that translated to sharks at the cage.

To that end, it meant another long trip. Miami-LA, LA-Melbourne, Melbourne-Adelaide, Adelaide-Port Lincoln. Sounds debilitatingly long, but the reality is that the connections were brief and it took just over 32 hours to complete the trip. We arrived in the late afternoon, were picked up at the airport in a limo, and chauffeured to a lovely townhouse where we could shower, relax, and have an early night's sleep. The boat was docked directly behind the townhouse, making it a very simple and civilized matter to board the vessel and head out to sea early the next morning.

This time it was just a few friends out on a great adventure. Dennis Liberson, Dave Willey, and I chartered the 57-foot yacht MV Calypso Star, crewed by Captain Rolf Czabayski and deckhand Andrew Wright. The vessel has three cabins and would be comfortable for six passengers, but to maximize our available cage time we opted for a more intimate group. Of course, that was assuming we'd see sharks.

I still had some doubts, even though Rolf's previous e-mails suggested they'd been having good luck. So when Dennis suggested a betting pool for the time it'd take to see the first shark, I optimistically guessed six hours. Gratefully I lost. Big time. Following a 2-hour steam to North Neptune Island we had our first shark of the trip in just 26 minutes!

Not only one shark, but we actually had six different sharks visit us this day. All were males, probably between 9 and 12 feet. As important as the quantity was the quality of the action, for these were players. These sharks were not put off by bubbles, or proximity to the cage, or sunshine, or lack of sunshine, or the profile of the boat, or the size of the wave, or the color of my jacket. All of these and more have been offered as excuses by various shark wranglers at various times in various places as to why the sharks won't come close to the boat. But here we had good bait, sharks eager to take it, and savvy wranglers able to lure the sharks close to the cage. Clearly this was a great start to what was already a terrific shark expedition.

Day #1

The ride to the Neptune Islands was pretty calm this time of year. It is the Australian summer, but this is the Great Southern Ocean and anything can happen. Miss the Neptunes and your next stop is Antarctica. 3,000 miles away mind you, but still a moderating influence on climate and sea. This trip we had air temperatures that ranged from 65 degrees at night to the mid-80s during the sunny days. Gratefully the water was warm as well, relatively speaking. I brought both a wetsuit and a drysuit, but at 68 degrees the wetsuit was far more comfortable and convenient in the cage. Of course, our trip was in February. Visit the Neptunes in August and you'll need a drysuit for sure!

Having a shark so soon after arrival was amazing luck as far as I was concerned, but Rolf and Andrew seemed not at all surprised. Apparently that's how things had been going lately.

When I asked Rolf about how the consistency had been over the last season and he said they had 5 or 6 sharks every trip except for a bad string in May when they got skunked for two trips in a row. Apparently during that time there was a tuna boat towing a huge catch back to Port Lincoln, but something weird happened to the net which in turn killed the fish. Hundreds of large tuna were dumped into the sea and, predictably, the white sharks found their way to the smorgasbord. Apparently a bit of tuna stomach and gill on a line is of marginal appeal compared to the real thing, and the sharks didn't bother with the Neptunes at that time.

Not only did we have a shark, but we had insight into their behavior. These were not tentative, spooky sharks, but instead were coming right up to the swim platform, and in many case chomping down on the aluminum for no apparent reason. I did some polecam work with my Nikonos RS and 13mm lens, and I was able to put the port within scant inches of the shark's jaws. I guess I could have done that with my housed camera as well, but I had a premonition laying on the platform with my eye to a viewfinder would not be a prudent move with that particular shark at that particular time. And then a little later when we saw a shark launch itself two-thirds of the way out of the water in very impressive breach, my caution was reaffirmed. These were not docile pet sharks, but the real thing, deserving of real respect.

This day we had sunshine, relatively calm seas, and had plenty of opportunity for both underwater and topside photo-ops with the great white sharks. For the very first in-water viewing all three of us got in the cage, and it worked fine. But the reality is that with most shark cages the corners are the best position for deploying cameras. That's where the baits hang, and then drag back to the boat. That's also where the broadest field of view happens. Room to move in a cage is a tremendous photographic asset, and with so many sharks this day we were able to work a kind of informal rotation where each had the cage to themselves.

The visibility was probably over 50 feet this day, although as always, the chum and detritus ladled into the sea to attract the sharks can be problematic. Speaking of chum (called "burley" in this hemisphere, as in "hurly-burley", as in "puke"), Rolf had the good stuff. Tuna gills full of blood and stomachs still holding sardines, plus a blood and tuna oil secret-sauce added to the mix. In my opinion, scrimping on bait on a white shark charter is a crime. One can spend thousands of dollars and days of their life traveling to where great white sharks are, spend big bucks on charter boats to find proximity to great white sharks, only to find yourself out at sea with desiccated fish carcasses that no self-respecting shark would eat. The right bait is a critical component of white shark photography.

Day #2

Our sunny skies went away and we awoke this day to heavy overcast and cooler temperatures. We also now had competition for our sharks. Yesterday we were the only shark boat at North Neptune but this morning the Falie skippered by Rodney Fox and his son Andrew pulled into the bay. Rodney of course is the white shark legend, famed for surviving a horrific shark bite suffered during a spearfishing competition in his youth. The Falie is a 100-plus foot steel motorsailer with 16 white-sharkers and two cages aboard. Unlike South Africa where there might more than a dozen white shark boats on the horizon, or even Guadalupe where there could be three boats competing for the same sharks, we truly enjoyed that first day with the Neptunes all to ourselves.

Predictably, we had fewer sharks this day as a result. Only three all day, but each of us managed more than an hour alone in the cage with aggressive, cooperative sharks. Given that I've done weeks at sea looking for white sharks and not had even that single hour, I was very happy. Plus, we had a nice shore excursion to photograph the colony of New Zealand fur seals. Last year they estimated 4600 pups born to this colony, so obviously it is a sizable group.

This is a difference between South Australia and other white shark destinations, for you can actually go ashore to visit the real reason the sharks are there. The sharks don't come to the Neptunes because we offer them bait. They come to the Neptunes to eat New Zealand fur seals. In South Africa they come to Dyer Island for the sea lions, but we were not allowed to land because it is a nature preserve. Any photography needs to be done from the boat towards the shore, admittedly a more difficult proposition than being stable and mobile on land when composing a shot. In Guadalupe there is a population of elephant seals and a tuna migration that attracts the sharks, but you can't land on the island due to customs issues. The islands belong to Mexico, and unless the charter boat wants to take a day clearing immigration and customs in mainland Mexico, landing is illegal. Here I enjoyed the great privilege of sitting on a rock and having a fur seal pup come up and sniff my leg. In the overcast I couldn't take all the photos I envisioned, but it was not for lack of access. And of course, with three more days to go, surely the sun will shine and we can try again.

Day #3

This is a good news/bad news morning. The sun still does not shine but the Falie moved off to South Neptune Island, 5 miles away. We were rewarded with 5 sharks this day, and for the very first time I was able to look through the viewing port of the cage and actually see 4 sharks at once. In Guadalupe I saw 3 at a time, which is pretty impressive indeed in the crystalline water found there. In South Africa the visibility is such that even if there were multiple sharks you'd likely see only one. But no matter where in the world you are, seeing 4 great white sharks at once is a rare and inspirational thing.

Four sharks added something else to the mix--competition. This really seemed to ramp up the action and the sharks added velocity to their approach to the bait. The seas were bumpy today, and it was pretty rocky-rolly inside the cage, but the action was to die for. Figuratively that is, so long as you kept your arms inside the cage. I know I succumbed to the temptation of leaning outside the cage a few times to get just that extra little bit closer to the shark taking the bait, and then taking my eye from the viewfinder only to see an even bigger, badder shark just inches from my elbow, totally outside my peripheral vision or field of awareness. At least once it was only the shark's indifference to me that saved me from being maimed or worse.

Had the unthinkable happened it would have been only my own stupidity that got me in trouble. Never, ever forget these are the ultimate in-water stealth predators. You'll never hear them coming, nor will you predict the direction of their approach. Except to know that they are most successful striking from your blind side, and you will lose.

Today the sharks were eagerly hitting the bait, and the photo-ops were outstanding both topside and underwater. Actually, I think my strongest images today might be from the sharks lunging at the bait on the surface. Dennis, Dave, and I lined the aft rail of the boat with motordrives racing as time-after-time the shark pursued the bait, while Andrew kept it tantalizingly out of reach. Well, mostly out of reach, for these sharks are pretty canny and usually figure a way to nail their fair share of bait.

Day #4

This one starts out to be a bad news/bad news kind of day. The clouds are still sitting on the Neptunes and the Falie is back. I guess the swell was too big to work the cages at South Neptune and they can find better protection in the sheltered bays of the northern islands. Whereas we had a shark in less than an hour upon our arrival, and by 8:30 each morning thereafter, here it is almost 10:30, no shark yet, and I'm pecking away at this journal. Here I sit all broken hearted, came to shoot, but only--ah, you know the rest.

Well, actually, I take it back. The time is 10:24 and we have our first shark. Off to the cage!

This was well and truly a great day for white sharking. We had five different sharks and apparently Falie had 4 as well. I'd still rather have the islands to ourselves, but the company didn't hurt us this day, at least not with them anchored inside the bay and us working the outside. The swell made it a bit uncomfortable in the cage this morning, but nothing a fast shutter speed and some extra weight in the DUI shoulder harnesses couldn't cure.

By this time I had plenty of shark portraits, from wide-angle fish ID compositions to tight head shots. With those in the can, my objective this day was teeth. I wanted the bite shot. The sharks were aggressive, and the sun finally came out as well. With the shark-shooter galaxy in alignment (cage/bait/sharks/wrangler/clear water/calm seas/plenty of film and digital capacity) I was in great white heaven. By the time the action peaked in the late afternoon we'd all had ample solo time in the cage with cooperative sharks.

Dave was shooting film, so we didn't get to see his take on the day, but Dennis and I were both capturing in digital, and simply the sheer quantity of extraordinary images was most impressive. In fact, we both felt confident enough in our week's portfolio to try some discretionary shots. Dennis went to his 60mm macro lens to try some very tight teeth shots, and I went to the fisheye to force the perspective on these already massive fish, hopefully to make them loom even larger. With most shark adventures, getting the fish in the frame is accomplishment enough. It speaks to the incredible access we enjoyed this week to find us trying some more creative applications by the fourth day.

With the sun still shining we had a chance to revisit our New Zealand fur seal shoot. In gorgeous afternoon light with white puffy clouds along the horizon, the pups were as trusting and playful as before, although Mom and Dad had come back from hunting and were a bit wary of our presence. Not in an aggressive manner at all, but the adults kept their distance, far more so than the pups.

Day #5

This is our last day at sea and we have a decision to make. We can either stay at the Neptunes until 2:00, and then begin our steam home, or we can wrap up by 11:30 and do a dive with the Australian sea lions at Hopkins Island on the way home. We know of course that if the white shark action is fast and furious, the sea lions will probably be eliminated from the itinerary. So, it is up to the sharks to make up our minds.

By 8:30 the sharks have arrived again, but curiously have left their attitude behind. They are making some lazy passes and some half-hearted strikes at the bait. The sun is shining, the seas are calm, but the sharks just aren't into it today. I think they are full, as well they should be for we have fed them plenty of tuna over the past 4 days.

I don't even get into the cage this day, instead opting for polecam work from the stern. I was hoping to try some over/unders if we could find a cooperative shark, but they weren't hitting the swim platform at all today. We had three sharks, and by most standards they were performing reasonably well. But the bar had been significantly elevated for us this week, and the Australian sea lion shoot was now looking pretty promising. By noon we had the cage tethered to the swim platform and we were making way for Hopkins Island.

The Australian sea lion is a beautiful animal. While the New Zealand fur seal is dark brown, the Australian sea lion is a light, tawny color. They also are exceptionally playful in the water. Kind of skittish on land, but in the water they are inquisitive, almost to the point of nuisance. Not that you'd ever really find anything that cute to be a nuisance, but they'll nip at your fins, stare in the dome from just inches away, or bump into your strobe just for the fun of it.

The water wasn't wonderfully clear at Hopkins Island, maybe only 20 foot visibility, but that's quite good enough when the sea lions allow camera proximity of a foot or less. We were only in about 12 - 15 feet of water, and the sea lions were clustered in large groups, apparently just to see us. Wherever we'd go, they would follow, rolling in the kelp, dive-bombing by us, or just hanging motionless in the mid-water staring at their reflections in the dome. The visit to Hopkins was a nice change of pace from the frenetic white shark activity we'd had all week, and a welcome addition to the South Australia portfolio.

In retrospect, we all realized we were very lucky this week and enjoyed the best access to white sharks I've ever had. Will it be the same next time I come, or even the same for the next group, I can't predict. White sharks are a capricious animal and much remains a mystery regarding their range and habits. It is a comfort to know the populations are coming back in the absence of fishing pressure, and to know that in South Australia, where cage diving for white sharks all began, the whites are back for sure.