Close Encounter

With a doctorate in marine ecology and 30 years of experience taking pictures underwater, British photographer Alex Mustard knows how difficult it is to get just the right aquatic shot. His subject here—a Suwannee cooter in Ginnie Springs, Florida—is an especially tough catch, since freshwater turtles are typically more wary of people than marine turtles are. Mustard guesses that this individual may have allowed him to get so close because it lives near a popular tourist destination and has become habituated to people.