The Fluke That Almost Wasn’t
Photograph by Selket Kaufman
Canon R5, 1/800 sec, F10 ISO 500, EF100-400mm lens, 300mm
Delket Kaufman knew she had the money shot without even looking. “It’s just a feeling you get as a photographer,” she said, still recalling that “happy adrenaline” rush of being in the right place at the right time.
Like most established wildlife photographers, Kaufman lives for that quintessential moment. It’s what drives her to the sea almost daily during whale season.
“There are so many factors out of your control — weather, lighting, boat position, preparation, anticipation — you have to be out as much as possible to get the good stuff,” she said.
It was late afternoon in February 2022, the last whale watch of the day. Kaufman was tired. She and her perennial tribe of whale photogs, Greg Taylor, Rob Owen and the like, had been on the water for eons, or so it seemed.
It had been mostly quiet that trip. Patience and opportunity were waning, but the light was stellar. It was a Maui sunset, after all. They waited. Nothing.
Just as the boat was turning back to the harbor, a humpback mother and calf spotted earlier reappeared with playful enthusiasm and a flurry of pec slaps and peduncle throws.
Noting the silhouette of water streaming from the adult’s tale, or fluke, each time she slapped the surface, Kaufman hunkered down at the bow, telephoto lens at the ready with Lāna‘i in the background, and hedged her bets. Jackpot.
