PHOTOS: Russian ‘Whale Whisperer’ Photographs Humpbacks Meeting, Touching People for First Time Ever

PHOTOS: Russian ‘Whale Whisperer’ Photographs Humpbacks Meeting, Touching People for First Time Ever
(Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)
Michael Wing
2/17/2023
Updated:
2/19/2023
0:00

On the first day of the expedition, Mikhail Korostelev headed straight out to sea. Even after several flights, he didn’t bother booking a hotel before casting off to spot—and be spotted by—whales amid the Polynesian island kingdom of Tonga, in the South Pacific.

A former Moscow-based IT manager, Korostelev abandoned that vocation to pursue underwater photography in 2016, and whales were foremost among his favorite subject matter. From experience, he knows these great vertebrates of the brine are often as curious of us as we are of them. The diver runs Whale Watching Expeditions and captures the tranquil beauty of whales through his underwater lens.

Calves are usually what they find swimming in these shallower waters, but two adult males surprised them this particular day. “Two male humpbacks met people in the water [for the] first time in their life,” Korostelev told The Epoch Times of the jaunt. “They researched us, watching us, touched us, and even stopped us when somebody decided to return to the boat.”

Two curious male humpbacks off the coast of Tonga. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
Two curious male humpbacks off the coast of Tonga. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)
A humpback whale off the coast of Tonga. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
A humpback whale off the coast of Tonga. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)
Humpback whales off the coast of Tonga. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
Humpback whales off the coast of Tonga. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)

Rendezvous with whales are typically brief, while such play dates as this one are rare, indeed. “When you work with whales, ninety-nine percent [of] meetings are [us] looking as whales pass by,” Korostelev said. “One percent [are] memorable encounters, contacts with whales, when they interact with you, ‘talk’ with you, research you.”

The inquisitive pair came right up to the boat and swam with them for several hours, and even “stood up vertically” when it came time to depart as if to say, “Where are you going? We don’t want to stop playing,” Korostelev said.

Besides this remarkable trip, Korostelev has sojourned to French Polynesia, South Africa, Mexico, various places throughout his native Russia, and other extraordinary undersea spots on the planet. He recalled one instance of being tethered to a small boat off the Solovetsky Islands, Russia, in the White Sea, where he sang a hymn underwater to attract several “shy” beluga whales that had been aloof. They came right up face-to-face with him and listened to his singing.

A bowhead whale seen off the Shantar Islands, Russia. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
A bowhead whale seen off the Shantar Islands, Russia. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)
A curious beluga whale gazes into the photographer's camera. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
A curious beluga whale gazes into the photographer's camera. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)
Bowhead whales seen from above, off Shantar Islands, Russia. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
Bowhead whales seen from above, off Shantar Islands, Russia. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)
(Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)

Whales are incredibly intelligent, Korostelev says. He recounts an enormous sperm whale off the Azores Islands, Portugal, which he interpreted as beckoning him to fetch a floating plastic bag nearby—Korostelev even has video proof of this. “They can talk with you,” he said. This meeting was followed by a face-to-face encounter where they literally saw eye-to-eye. “That case was amazing,” he said. “After that, you can be sure that whales are another high civilization on our planet.”

Another astonishing moment involved him photographing a mother sperm whale feeding milk to her calf—in the ocean!—surely a shot few underwater photographers have ever managed. Korostelev said he is proudly one of the first to do so; the desire to be first is one thing that keeps him diving six months of the year in all corners of the globe.
A mother sperm whale nursing a calf. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
A mother sperm whale nursing a calf. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)
A sperm whale swims over a diver. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
A sperm whale swims over a diver. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)
Sperm whales in the waters off the coast of the Azores Islands, Portugal. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
Sperm whales in the waters off the coast of the Azores Islands, Portugal. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)
Several sperm whales amid sun-kissed waters. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
Several sperm whales amid sun-kissed waters. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)
A Bryde’s whale calf and adult off the Azores Islands in Portugal. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
A Bryde’s whale calf and adult off the Azores Islands in Portugal. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)

Korostelev’s photography has garnered him accolades that include the title of European Wildlife Photographer of the Year in Germany in 2022 and Nature Photographer of the Year in the Netherlands in 2017. He said his ultimate ambition is to win the title of Wildlife Photographer of the Year in the London competition.

A mother and calf humpback whale. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
A mother and calf humpback whale. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)
A diver and humpback whale observe each other off the coast of Tonga. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
A diver and humpback whale observe each other off the coast of Tonga. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)
A mother and calf humpback off the coast of Tonga. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
A mother and calf humpback off the coast of Tonga. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)
A humpback whale calf and an adult seen off the coast of Mexico. (Courtesy of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_korostelev/">Mikhail Korostelev</a>)
A humpback whale calf and an adult seen off the coast of Mexico. (Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)

But extraordinary photography results aren’t furnished on demand. One has to stay in a place long enough—“minimum one month,” he said—before one can “expect great photos in the end of a project.” That way, one sees the same animal each day, begins to understand its behavior, and may await something truly exceptional. The adventurers sometimes stay on a yacht or catamaran or sometimes at a hotel near the shore; it varies from location to location. On Shantar Island, Russia, they lived in tents for weeks on end on a beach.

Though idyllic sounding, one might ask whether Korostelev ever gets nervous lingering so close to these giants of the deep. He doesn’t see them as threatening as he is in tune with their situation. “Whales are absolutely not dangerous if you are not touching them or thrusting harpoons into their body,” he said. They may be big and padded by tons of blubber but, like you or I, they prefer a tender touch.

(Courtesy of Mikhail Korostelev)
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Michael Wing is a writer and editor based in Calgary, Canada, where he was born and educated in the arts. He writes mainly on culture, human interest, and trending news.
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