Underwater filmmaker John Roney has completed around 1,500 dives in his career, but a dive earlier this month off the coast of Vancouver Island will likely remain a highlight of his career spent underwater – because an octopus borrowed his camera and proceeded to take footage of its web of suction-cupped tentacles.
Roney (@roneydives) was diving with friend and diver Chris Mullen in an area known for housing large octopus when a particularly large Giant Pacific Octopus took an interest in the camera equipment. The creature had begun exploring the equipment with its tentacles when Roney made a decision: to let go of the camera.
“The moment it reached out, I could see it was curious,” Roney told Digital Camera World. “It quickly engulfed my entire camera rig, exploring it with its suckers. I realized this was a rare chance to see what it would do if I stepped back completely, so I let it have the camera and take the lead. That choice gave us a perspective you almost never get.”
The decision to let go of the camera resulted in a rare glimpse of an octopus’ underbelly as the create took the camera and swam with it while continuing to explore the equipment, eventually hitting the button to stop the recording with one of its suction cups and, once its curiosity was satisfied, dropping the camera to the ocean floor.
The camera in question was a Panasonic Lumix GH6, which was encased in a Nauticam housing, and survived the animal encounter. “It’s a tough setup, which is lucky because an animal that size can be incredibly strong,” Roney said.
That’s particularly lucky considering one biologist says the way the octopus handled the camera is similar to how the animals act when they find something “potentially edible.” Marine biologist Jennifer Mather told CBC News said the octopus wasn’t actually trying to take a selfie, but that octopuses are curious creatures and will often pick up objects and put them underneath their web of tentacles.
After the large octopus explored the camera, the creature then explored Mullen, reaching out to give the diver a tentacled “hug,” which, naturally, Roney caught on camera.
The resulting video footage has garnered the attention of news outlets and racked up thousands of likes on social media. “It’s been amazing to see how many people are fascinated by it,” Roney said. “I think it’s the combination of a giant Pacific octopus’s intelligence, its otherworldly nature, and the unusual perspective from inside its arms that really captured people’s imaginations. If the video gets more people curious about these animals and the ocean they live in, that’s a win.”
Out of the roughly 1,500 dives that he’s completed over the course of his career, he estimates that he’s only had two encounters with an octopus that close. The octopus approached the two divers after they went by – an important distinction, as approaching an octopus on a dive can distress the creature.
Along with being an underwater filmmaker, Roney is also a television editor, including editing work on a series with Cristina Mittermeier and Paul Nicklen. Roney’s underwater films have taken him all over the world and have been part of several documentaries.
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