Man Captures Incredible Photos Of Great White Shark Just Inches From Its Mouth

The incredibly close-up photos of the 3000lb beast were captured by commercial abalone diver Luke Thom, in the waters off the Neptune Islands in South Australia. His pictures show the 16-foot-long predator emerging from the water and showing off its terrifying set of razor-sharp teeth.

Another snap captures the beast biting on the corner of a metal cage, exhibiting the raw ferocity of the species.

The intrepid 26-year-old, from Margaret River, said: "I was watching Andrew Fox taking these incredible photos of Great White sharks so I thought I'd try to get a shot of him getting his photo because of how close he gets to them with the fish-eye camera.

"'Holy shit' is probably the most common reaction. I see a story and a moment in the photo. It's not like watching a video. You can look at a photo and imagine what is going on.

"These sharks are pretty incredible animals and they need protection and minimal human impact."

The unnaturally intimate photographs also offer us an unusually detailed look at the mush of the massive fish, which is covered in cuts, scratches and scrapes.

How they got there, I don't know; I certainly can't think of many ocean animals that would get up as close as Mr Thom and claw the beast in the face. Perhaps these are the self-inflicted wounds of the kind of animal that enjoys biting cages? Or could these be the marks of a fellow Great White?

The Neptune Islands are comprised of two groups of islands - known as the North and South Neptunes - which are located near the entrance to the Spencer Gulf in South Australia.

Male Great Whites inhabit the waters around these islands all year round, while females only frequent the area when seal pups start entering the waters between April and August.

Who are these people?