{"id":496391,"date":"2026-06-26T10:07:12","date_gmt":"2026-06-26T10:07:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/496391\/"},"modified":"2026-06-26T10:07:12","modified_gmt":"2026-06-26T10:07:12","slug":"remarkable-detail-in-photo-of-huge-crashing-wave-off-aussie-coast-pretty-fantastic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/496391\/","title":{"rendered":"Remarkable detail in photo of huge crashing wave off Aussie coast: ‘Pretty fantastic’"},"content":{"rendered":"

An Aussie photographer has made a remarkable discovery after zooming into his image of what he described as a “10-metre high” wave<\/a> crashing onto a rock in Victoria.<\/p>\n

Allen McCauley recalled there was a “hell of a crashing sound” below as he snapped a series of pictures near Portland’s Cape Nelson Lighthouse on Victoria’s far southwest coast.<\/a><\/p>\n

So grand was the spectacle that he didn’t notice a key detail at the bottom of the frame \u2014 a fur seal<\/a> breaching the surface.<\/p>\n

“I didn’t even see him in the photo until I got home later,” he told Yahoo News.<\/p>\n

“At first, I thought there was a bit of dirt on my phone. I tried wiping it off, and then I thought it might have been a bird.<\/p>\n

“So I blew it up a bit and realised it was a seal \u2013 it was a surprise.”<\/p>\n

Zooming in, McCauley could see the seal gracefully arching his back moments before he was swallowed by the wave.<\/p>\n

Second picture shows seal facing giant wave<\/p>\n

A second picture, taken a heartbeat before, shows the animal staring at the approaching wall of water.<\/p>\n

“He did a little jump, but I don’t think he realised the backwash from the wave was going to be as big as that,” he said.<\/p>\n

“That’s the highest I’ve seen a wave in that particular position.”<\/p>\n

Do you have a story? Contact newsroomau@yahoonews.com<\/a><\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A second picture, taken a moment earlier, shows the seal staring at the wave before it broke.<\/p>\n

(Allen McCauley)\"A<\/p>\n

The seal gracefully jumps as the wave approaches.<\/p>\n

(Allen McCauley)<\/p>\n

Portland is home to permanent colonies of Australian and New Zealand fur seals<\/a>, and is regularly visited by a Southern elephant seal named “Sammy”.<\/a><\/p>\n

RELATED<\/p>\n

During the winter, wildlife photographers stand on the clifftops, watching the migrating whales, including humpbacks, southern wrights and even gigantic blues.<\/a><\/p>\n

Orcas are also regularly seen in Portland’s waters. In 2023, the pod famously killed and decapitated a 4.7-metre-long white shark.<\/a><\/p>\n

“It’s a pretty fantastic place for wildlife,” McCauley said.<\/p>\n

You can also follow us on Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, TikTok<\/a>, X<\/a> and YouTube<\/a>.<\/p>\n