Professional surfer Tyler Warren was competing at a surfing contest in San Onofre Beach, California, when something unexpected leaped out of the water behind him.
A great white shark jumped out of the water just feet behind the surfer as he rode a wave — and Warren had no idea.
Photographer Jordan Anast captured the moment and told NBC News he had never seen anything like it — despite taking more than 2 million photos throughout his career.
"It's the photograph of a lifetime," Anast told NBC News. "I've never seen a shark breach out of the water like that."
Anast said that at first he thought it was a dolphin. "I've seen dolphins jump over surfers, I've seen them knock surfers off," he said.
But it wasn't until he was reviewing the photos that he realized that it was an apex predator.
"I would say it's probably 12 feet, you know, it's a nice size little shark," he said with a smile.
Anast said Warren had no idea what was happening behind him until he got to shore and someone told him. Warren later asked him for a print.
"He wanted a copy of it so he could show his mom," Anast said.
Anast said in an Instagram post his phone and email had been blowing up since he released the photos.
"Over the decades I have captured some memorable moments for others, but this one was for me. My passion has always been to stop time for 1 second, capture a memory for someone or something that will last forever and show the world my pics through my lens," he wrote.
"These shots will always be a part of San Onofre history and that is pretty cool."
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