Armed with a snorkel, flippers and her skimpy bikini, an intrepid female free diver swims alongside an array of reef sharks. These amazing photographs were captured by American ocean photojournalist Tim Rock, on a trip north of Papua New Guinea to Vertigo Reef in Yap, Micronesia. ‘I had the pleasure and privilege to team up with diver Ai Futaki for two weeks of photography during an event called Manta Fest in Yap, Micronesia,’ says Tim, of Minneapolis, Minnesota. ‘She is a world champion free diver who wanted to try free diving with sharks and asked if I would document her swimming in Yap's waters.
A kingfisher’s bright blue and orange feathers glisten in the sunlight as the bird dives into a lake .
SAT with his arms folded and a cross look on his face, this Gorilla looks like he's had enough of the Christmas holidays already .
A brave praying mantis makes an unusual friend in an Oriental garden lizard .
MASKED intruders look sinister but really they are a gang of urban exploring pranksters .
A GIRL nicknamed JAWS by bullies who taunted her because of her underbite is em-bracing her new post-surgery life .
LYING back in the snow, these two polar bears share a cuddle as they call time out on playtime .
IT'S the iconic TV show that influenced a whole generation in the 1990s .
PERCHING on top of a gate, this young barn swallow waits patiently for his mum to return with dinner .
A woman with a rare condition that means she collapses every time she laughs fears she may have passed the rare illness onto her young son .
A SPECTRUM of colours fills the sky during this spectacular and natural display of light .