Teen Captures Drone Footage of Great White Swimming by Unsuspecting Beachgoers

A teenager in New South Wales, Australia recently captured some drone footage that’s somehow both benign and unsettling. While flying his DJI Spark over the beach, he spotted what appears to be a Great White Shark moseying by a pair of unsuspecting swimmers.

As originally reported by 7NEWS Australia, the footage was captured at Main Beach in Forster by young man named Cameron Grace. The 17-year-old was flying his Spark drone along the coast when he spotted the shark near some swimmers. Seeing the video as it was being captured, his aunt Rachel rushed down to the water and waved for the two boys nearby to get out.

The story and footage are reminiscent of the images captured by YouTuber Dan Watson last July, when he spotted the shadowy figure of a shark approaching his own family at the beach. Like then, it’s important to note that the swimmers in this case were likely in no real danger.

As Rob Townsend of Sealife Sydney tells 7NEWS, this probably happens all the time. “For every one shark that you see, there might be 10 or 100 sharks that see you, and you just don’t realize,” says Townsend. “They’re not mindless killers.”

Of course, in a situation like this, it’s probably better to be safe than sorry. But if Townsend is right about the numbers, then these kinds of “false alarms” are only going to become more frequent as consumer camera drones become ever-more popular and affordable.