Face to face with sharks
Lauded for up-close-and-personal portraits of the rich and famous, photographer Michael Muller has for the past decade directed his lens at the pearly whites -- make that 15 rows of pearly whites -- of more unlikely subjects: sharks. His new book, "Sharks: Face-to-Face with the Ocean's Endangered Predator," is full of strikingly beautiful, intimate shots of the animals.
Photographing them with Hollywood-style lighting and free from a cage, Muller has been on a mission to help conserve these much-feared and misunderstood ocean dwellers.
Interview with Michael Muller on CBS News
Mako shark and Morne Hardenberg, 40 miles south of Cape Town, January 2014
Sharks by Michael Muller
Bull sharks, Beqa Island, Fiji, May 2011
Muller explained in his book that the camera often doubled as protection - he would use it to bat the sharks away when they got too curious or decided they might want to take a nibble.
"Fiji was the first time I tried to get my strobe lights down to 80-plus feet in rough, surging seas. This particular dive has the possibility of seeing up to seven different species of sharks at one location"
Sharks by Michael Muller
Whale shark, Isla Mujeres, April 2014
Muller says he learned that we humans aren't on the menu and that sharks are vastly misunderstood.
Sharks by Michael Muller
Great white, Guadalupe Island, October 2015
Muller's book includes essays by Philippe Cousteau, Jr., and marine biologist Alison Kock, focused on the need for protecting these creatures and their habitats.
Sharks by Michael Muller
Great white, Guadalupe Island, August 2012
Muller: "Shark behaviorist Brocq Maxey uses his Jedi Master skills to interact with this feisty 15-foot male shark. No camera, no stick, no nothing, but his hands and his calm, cool demeanor, always moving back and forth and letting the shark know that he is the boss."
Sharks by Michael Muller
Great white, Guadalupe Island, October 2009
The photographer learned how to swim with sharks from mentor Morne Hardenberg, who has been swimming with great whites for 25 years and whom he describes as "the shark whisperer."
"There are only 30 or 40 people that have the ability to swim with them [great whites] outside a cage."
Sharks by Michael Muller
Lemon shark, Beqa Island, Fiji, May 2011
Muller had a custom-built 1200-watt waterproof strobe lighting rig developed with the help of NASA engineering for his project.
The photographer describes the set up as the strongest strobes in the world, allowing him to "bring a full-blown studio to the ocean."
Sharks by Michael Muller
Great white, False Bay, South Africa, August 2013
Muller: "Since no one had ever seen a great white breach at night, and nobody had ever filmed or photographed one, we weren't even sure if sharks breached at night ... but I had a hunch. I just felt it in my gut."
"We went out every day at 3:30 a.m. and hit the sea. Day after day no breach until the sun came up and then the sea would come to life. On the last day I got the whole crew to pray with me, believing we would witness the night breach and capture it for all the world to see. It was a foggy morning. Trying to focus all day on a small part of the sea is hard enough, but doing it in pitch black is next to impossible.
"Then it happened - with about an hour to go before the sun came up, we had our first breach! Unfortunately, I was too excited and took the photo prematurely, which is almost worse than not getting the shot at all. Within thirty seconds the same shark breached again and hit the decoy, this time even harder, and completely came out of the water. I got the shot. To capture a moment that no one has ever seen is one of the highlights of my career."
Sharks by Michael Muller
Blue sharks, 40 miles south of Cape Town, January 2014
Muller describes sharks as "intelligent, emotional beings" - amazing animals.
Sharks by Michael Muller
According to Muller, "Cat Island was one of those trips we rolled the dice on. Our goal was to photograph oceanic white tips, and with these sharks there is no regular 'spot' to visit where you're likely to find them. We had to go out in the middle of the ocean and start chumming hoping we would get lucky. Not only did we see half a dozen white tips but also got to work with bulls and a solo lemon shark."
Sharks by Michael Muller
Great white, Guadalupe Island, October 2007
Sharks by Michael Muller
Lemon sharks, Tiger Beach, November 2014
Sharks by Michael Muller
Michael Muller, September 2009
Muller is well-known for his celebrity portraits, including those of Robert Downey, Jr., Joaquin Phoenix and Alec Baldwin, as well as his advertising work.
He has long been fascinated with sharks, since the days he surfed as a teenager in northern California.
Sharks by Michael Muller
"Sharks: Face-to-Face with the Ocean's Endangered Predator" is available from Taschen in a signed Collector's Edition and two Art Editions, each including a signed and numbered print.
Read more: Photographer gets up close and personal with great white sharks