Mike Smits/Supplied
Smits wasn't sure what he was seeing in the Nelson Haven, until he saw both wing tips break the surface.
Smits was out with his camera for the first time in several months after breaking his arm.
The injury had made it difficult for him to manage his camera equipment and as luck would have it, his camera with a teleconverter lens on it had a flat battery, so he made do with his other camera.
Smits managed to capture another shot of it framed by the mountains in the background.
“I would have loved to have got both wings raised with the Western Ranges in the background but when I was ready it didn’t want to co-operate any more.