The moment when the setting sun touched the horizon, the sky was lit
with a golden hue. It painted a spectacular backdrop for pelagic silky
sharks that came out to hunt. Whereas silky sharks are classified as
near-threatened due to shark-finning and bycatch, they are aplenty in
the marine sanctuary of Jardines de la Reina, Cuba.
It was a stroke of good fortune that the sea was calm, which allowed
the sunrays to pierce distinctly through the water. I wanted to capture
the grace of the silky sharks, in contrast with the dramatic setting sun.
I was under a lot of time pressure take the shots. As the window of
the golden light shrunk, the boatman was hurrying me to exit the
water. Shark waters can be dangerous on the surface when it gets
dark. Given what time that could be afforded to me, I took this series
of pictures.
Mok Wai Hoe is a photo enthusiast with a special interest in underwater photography and marine life. A member of Ocean Artists Society, he has been placed in photography competitions, such as Underwater Photographer of the Year, Sony World Photography Award and Ocean Geographic Photos of the Year, with his most notable accolade being the Master of Ocean Geographic Competition Wyland Award. His images have appeared in NatGeo online, Ocean Geographic, with a special feature of "OGX Emerging Pro Wildlife Photographer". In 2018, Mok was named Singapore Nature Photographer of the Year.
Awards https://www.mokwaihoe.com/about
