Claim: An image shared on social media appears to capture an accurate depiction of a close up view of a humpback whale’s eye, according to research conducted.rov for Ratings and Verdicts.
Social media users’ attention has been focused on an image purporting to show a detailed close up view of whale eye.
One Reddit user who received more than 32,000 upvotes as of this writing shared the image along with this caption: “French photographer Rachel Moore captures an astounding close-up shot of whale’s eye!”
Other examples of the image were shared online during October and rapidly gained traction across social platforms including Instagram, Facebook and Reddit.
At its heart, this photograph is genuine. It was taken by Rachel Moore – an ocean advocate and photographer from San Francisco – near Tahiti on October 6, 2024.
Moore estimated “Sweet Girl” to have been three to four years old before she was struck and killed by a “fast-moving ship,” two days following their encounter.
Moore served as judge in 2024 Ocean Conservancy’s Annual Photo Contest and as finalist in 2023 United Nations World Oceans photo Competition, while being appointed 2022 Ambassador by Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI). Her underwater photography has been showcased by Forbes and The Atlantic publications.
On Oct. 8 2024, she first shared the image on both Instagram and her website.
Snopes reported on Moore’s post noting the close-up pictures had been “cropped in from their original frames.” Unfortunately, she failed to identify what species of whale they were seeing and when and where she took this particular photo. Her Instagram caption read in full as follows.
Galaxies in Her Eyes
There’s much to be said about this season’s encounters and swimming with whales generally, however I have noticed over the years that many visitors come solely for show rather than truly experiencing what the whales can provide.
As humans, our primary aim should always be to respect these animals and their space while watching without disrupting their behavior. Whales use this habitat for resting, mating, giving birth and raising young. Chasing whales drains energy that they require during a six to eight month fast.
Swimming alongside whales is an amazing privilege and respecting their space is of the utmost importance if one wishes to do so safely. No need for forced interactions here–a whale may approach and choose how it interacts if that is what he/she feels is best!
I never could have anticipated such an extraordinary encounter! Never before have I met an animal quite so magnificent and beautiful as this whale, making eye contact was beyond anything in my wildest imagination – truly breathtaking experience captured with Sony Alpha A1 camera.
Moore directed Snopes to an Instagram highlight section where she posted images from their interactions over two days; Moore considered “Sweet Girl” an “incredibly special whale,” writing in her caption that when “I finally stopped swimming, she stopped. She wanted eye to eye.”
Sources. Here’s some additional reading material.
2023 Photo Competition – United Nations World Oceans Day on 8 June 2023 is hosting its 2023 Photo Competition; please go here for details: unworldoceansday.org/photos/2023-photo-competition/”About.” Rachel Moore Photos can be contacted through their website Rachelmoorephotos.com/about which can be accessed November 2nd 2024 https://instagram.com/paulrosolie/p/DA3lpnWRjUn/?img_index=5 Accessed November 2, 2024—. https://instagram.com/p/DA1BJJzPNUY/?img_index=4 Accessed November 2 2024—. “Meet the Judges (Photo Contest).” Ocean Conservancy’s Photo Contest Judge Bios. Accessed November 2, 2024.”Rachelle Moore’s Portfolio.”: Rachelmoorephotos.com/portfolio (accessed November 2, 2024 ). Rodriguez, Cecilia “Beauty Under The Sea: 24 Photos From the Finalists for Ocean Photographer of the Year.” Forbes. Accessed 2 November 2024.Taylor, Alan. Winners of Ocean Photographer of the Year 2023 | The Atlantic (https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2023/09/winners-ocean-photographer-of-year-2023/675387/). Accessed on 2 Nov 2024. Wormald, Sarah. Introduction of 2022 PADI AmbassaDivers (15 Feb 2022, https://blog.padi.com/2022-padi-ambassadivers/).
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