Posted by Aaron Schmidt (Auckland, New Zealand) on 18 July 2006 in People & Portraits.
The leopard seal stayed alive for the two days Aurelie and I were in Mount Maunganui. I guess there wasn't much the DOC could do. People would gather and observe the seal's plight as children would question why nothing could be done.
The photos above were taken on two different days by two different people (bottom shot by Aurelie). Same lens but the EXIF data is for the first image not the second.
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I like the second picture very much...it shows that the seal is at the mercy (legs of humans resembling mercy) of human beings. It needs help.
18 Jul 2006 12:40am
Sad sad story... I'm not sure the fishes think the same as I do...
18 Jul 2006 3:18am
A sad story but well documented. Aurelie - I really like your photo - illustrates the scene and the relation of the kids to the seal well.
To answer your question about vfxy - I don't win anything - it's more an ego pump to get a higher rating since I can't seem to shake my 5/10 rank but I guess I won't worry too much about it :)
18 Jul 2006 4:06am
Good photos, both.
Wow, that is some chunk of missing hide off the side of him! It is a little sad that they just left him there to be "gawked upon" as he lay dying. Wonder what was going through his mind? ("I should have turned left" ....or.....Damn, that blasted shark! I'm gonna get him in my next lifetime!! ....or....."hey kid, can you throw me a peanut, a fish, I'll take whatever you got!")
18 Jul 2006 6:52am
Looks as if the poor fella got harpooned a la Moby Dick... crazy New Zealand fisherman!
18 Jul 2006 12:08pm
This is so sad --allowing a seal to suffer like that. they should have put him out of his misery.
18 Jul 2006 8:23pm
PREVIEW ONLY
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Canon EOS REBEL1/800 secondF/6.3ISO 20070 mm