Secrets to Photographing Mako Sharks Underwater with Josh Blank [VIDEO]

Featuring Josh Blank

These large mackerel sharks roam the open ocean and are particularly curious subjects for underwater photography. Big Animal underwater photography expert Josh Blank shares his top tips for capturing THE SHOT during these exciting encounters.

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I'm an Ikelite ambassador based on the east coast of Australia. I'm also the face behind Wild Narrative and in the past 12 months I've released a couple of educational e-books on all things big animal underwater photography. Part of these e-books is I've gone into some underwater scenarios and detailed things like the best equipment to use, why you might change your shutter speed, aperture, ISO, and a few other useful tips and tricks.

If you're interested in learning more about my underwater photography e-books, please check out my website. If you have any questions, you can hit me up on Instagram, Facebook, or email,  I'm always willing to talk all things underwater photography and cameras. I'm going to be talking about one of my favorite subjects to photograph and that is the Short Fin Mako.

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

The best place in the world to encounter Short Fin Mako sharks is off the coast of Cabo San Lucas in Mexico. The reason behind this is the visibility is consistently excellent, the interactions are just second to none. Also, you don't have to go too far off the coast to actually encounter the sharks. A short anywhere from 30 to 40 minutes drive in the boat from the marina and you're in the perfect area to encounter these animals.

Mako sharks will get right up on your dome port so a fisheye is the best lens to capture these shots with good detail. © Josh Blank

Diving with Mako Sharks

Diving with Mako sharks is very exciting. The sharks are full of energy, they're very bold, very curious and will come extremely close to you and your camera. This makes them the perfect underwater subjects for exciting images.

The Best Lens to Use

The best lens to use when photographing Mako sharks is a fisheye lens. The main reason behind this is because of their close focusing abilities. You want a lens that can focus pretty much directly on your camera dome because this is exactly where the sharks will be most of the time. Another benefit to using a fisheye is just that wide field of view. When you've got other sharks in the areas it really helps to be able to focus on one shark but also try and include others in the background to enhance your composition.

When shooting mako sharks, the right shutter speed is going to be paramount to capturing a good image. © Josh Blank

Shutter Speed

When it comes to camera settings, the most important thing is to choose a shutter speed that's fast enough to freeze the motion of the animal. The last thing you want is to see some unwanted motion blur across the snout or the fins of the shark. The best shutter speeds to use will depend very much on whether you're shooting natural light or with strobes. If you're working with natural light, I recommend shutter speeds of between 1/800 of a second and 1/1000. If you're working with strobes, a shutter speed between 1/160 and 1/200 will do a great job of freezing the motion of the shark.

Aperture

With regards to aperture, whether you're shooting with natural light or with strobes, F/8 is a great place to start. This will be no problem if you're working with strobes. However, if you're working natural light, you may find that it's hard to balance a nice exposure since you'll be working with quite fast shutter speeds. If this is the case, don't worry about opening up the aperture a little bit wider and shooting as low as F stops like F/5, F/6. You'll still achieve plenty of depth of field and achieve that sufficient focus of the animal.

"F/8 and Be There" - start your aperture at F/8 and adjust as needed. © Josh Blank

ISO

When it comes to ISO, your main goal is to simply balance the exposure. Just keep in mind that you don't want to be shooting above 1000 for most cameras. Once you start to increase above a 1000, you can see some unwanted image noise and loss of image quality. So I try and keep it between 100 and 1000. For most Mako images, because we are working with quite fast shutter speeds, I usually sit between this range, maybe between ISO 320, ISO 600, somewhere between there. Seems to be where I sit mostly, but it will obviously depend a lot on the natural light that you have available on the day.

Continuous Shooting

Another great tip to keep in mind when photographing Mako sharks is to use your camera's continuous shooting mode. The main reason behind this is to simply increase the chances of you nailing that one perfect frame within an interaction. A typical Mako pass might last one to two seconds because they're moving so quickly. Being able to fire off images in rapid succession really helps boost your odds of capturing something special.

How fast you shoot will depend very much on your camera, as well as your personal preference and how many files you want to be dealing with in post-production. Personally, I find if I'm working with strobes, I like to shoot around 5 to 7 frames per second. If I'm working with natural light, I'll increase this to 10 frames per second and I find that to be a perfect balance.

Interactions with a mako shark may last mere seconds, continuous shooting mode will increase your odds of getting "the shot." © Josh Blank

Mako & Blue Sharks with Josh Blank in Cabo San Lucas March 1-7, 2025

Want to get in on this action in person? Spend five full days in the open ocean chasing several species of sharks with Josh. He will advise you on how to maximize your hang time and come back with killer images and video to wow your friends. Learn more.

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Josh Blank is a diver and underwater photographer based out of the Gold Coast on the east coast of Australia. Through a combination of scuba diving and freediving, Josh is passionate about exploring the open ocean and photographing the larger marine species that inhabit the deep blue. With his photography he hopes to inspire, inform, and instill an interest in the underwater world. Read more...