A diver's underwater selfie off the coast of Baja California, Mexico, turned into an optical illusion after a pufferfish swam directly in front of her face at the exact moment she took the photo, making it look as though the fish's head had merged with her body.
Sumire Kamiya, who was visiting from Okinawa, Japan, was taking the photograph while surrounded by a large group of pufferfish when one of them swam between her face and the camera lens.
"I just wanted to take a few underwater selfies, but then, at the perfect moment, a pufferfish swam right in front of my face," she said. "I was taking the underwater selfies while surrounded by a large group of pufferfish when, completely by chance, one of them swam directly between my face and the camera."
A perfectly timed face-swap
Kamiya said the pufferfish lined up so precisely with her body that, for a split second, it appeared she had turned into a "pufferfish human." She said she had not planned the shot and only noticed how closely the fish's head and her body aligned when she reviewed the photo afterwards.
"I hadn't planned this animal face-swap," she said. "It was only later that I noticed in the photo just how well the fish's head and my body aligned perfectly together. I could hardly believe how perfectly the pufferfish's face sat right where my own should have been."
Baja California's marine life
Baja California is a peninsula on Mexico's Pacific coast known for its clear waters and abundant marine life, drawing divers from around the world. Pufferfish, recognisable for their ability to inflate their bodies when threatened, are commonly found in warm coastal waters.
Kamiya said the unplanned nature of the moment made it funnier. "When I looked back at the photo afterwards, I couldn't believe how perfectly the pufferfish's face matched the position of mine," she said.
