PHOTOS: Diver photographs up-close encounter with 600-pound pregnant bull shark

JUPITER, Fla. (NewsNation Now) — Captain John Moore isn’t afraid to get face-to-face with one of the sea’s largest predators. The Florida diver and photographer recently captured an up-close encounter with a pregnant bull shark.

“I do it because I love it,” Moore said. “I’ve been a water guy my whole life and I’ve totally fallen in love with the sharks.”

Moore says the average size of a bull shark in Jupiter, Florida is about 200 to 250 pounds, but the one he photographed was much larger.

“This female was double that at least. I would guess 600 pounds,” Moore said. “She got pretty close. She was rubbing her nose on the dome of my camera on several occasions.”

Moore is a freediver, which means he goes underwater with no protective equipment or cage.

Bull sharks are known to be one of the more aggressive sharks, but Moore says keeping a low heart rate and calm body language protects him while shooting.

“I think bull sharks are one of the easier sharks to swim with if the waters are clear. They are actually cautious, very intelligent sharks and if anything it’s harder to win their trust over the trust of most other sharks,” Moore said.

He believes freedivers are less intimidating to sharks than other types of divers because “you’re more like one of them.”

“It’s a privilege to be trusted that much by the shark,” Moore said.