Forrest Galante and Mark Romanov got up close and personal with the deadly predators by pretending to be one of them
A PAIR of fearless filmmakers have been pictured swimming with massive crocodiles – wearing only flimsy wetsuits for protection.
But although they’re not reinforced with bullet-proof Kevlar, these are no ordinary wetsuits.
The outfits are cleverly designed to mimic the scales of a crocodile – with larger, darker patches on the back and smaller, lighter ones on the front.
Wildlife biologist Forrest Galante and cameraman Mark Romanov believe this could be what allowed them to get so terrifyingly close to the deadly predators without being torn to pieces.
Forrest said: “The theory was by looking like a crocodile, acting like a crocodile, we might actually be a little bit safer and be able to get closer to the crocodiles.
“I don’t know if those things played into it or not but either way we got really close to the crocodiles and we were safe.
“When I was swimming with the crocodiles I was in this excited, tranquil, nervous, happy state all at once – I mean it was just every kind of emotion you can imagine all at once while being in the water.”
One heart-stopping still image shows Forrest almost nose to nose with one of the toothy reptiles as he records the beast in its domain.
But the pair swam with more than one of the animals – with six of the crocs around them in the intense footage, filmed in June this year.
Surrounded by the dangerous predators, both Forrest and Mark had to remain on high alert.
Mark said: “These creatures are just phenomenal, when you see them up close, the power they have, the grace they have, it’s incredible to see.
“We’re always looking to show stories about animals that people haven’t seen before.
“This was a really interesting one to us because it showed animals that are thought of as dangerous, in a capacity that we could interact with them.”
It was nothing but their love for crocodiles that inspired the team to get so close to the sneaky predators.
“Both Mark and I are huge reptile nerds, we both grew up having tons and tons of reptiles and the crocodile is the ultimate reptile,” Forrest added.
“So in our quest to make this nature film, and to explore this new perspective of crocodiles, we found this clear water area.”
But the pair refused to reveal the precise location of their filming so others do not try and replicate their astonishing feat.
Forrest said: “Mark and I would really like to stress that this is not something for everybody.
“We are trained professionals, we’re wildlife biologists – this is what we do for a living.
“This is not something that just anyone should go out and try and jump in the water with the crocodiles. You will get hurt or you will hurt the animal.”
The footage forms part of a longer film the team are making called Dancing with Dragons.
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