Katrina Zarutskie got a little more than she bargained for when she attempted to get the “perfect shot”. The 19-year-old Instagram model was vacationing in the Bahamas when she decided to go for a swim. The swim was on a clear coast of the Bahamas, a picturesque scene for her nearly 30,000 followers. The scene was set, but there was one factor that added a large sense of intrigue to the shoot: she would be surrounded by a group of nursing sharks. The idea would create an experience unlike any other, but things quickly turned sour when posing for one of her shots.
Zarutskie started by standing among the sharks in the shallow water. Arms held overhead and pointing towards a clear sky, Katrina nailed her first picture. The next shot came from above Zarutskie. She floated on her back and snapped another unfathomable shot. Once the camera flash had come and gone, so had Zarutskie’s bright spirits. One of the nursing sharks had risen to the surface to bite the model’s wrist. Smiles and happiness quickly turned into panic.
Zarutskie was overcome with a feeling of survival and became tactical with her actions. She immediately stood up in the water and held her wrist above her head, pressurizing the wound to ensure that the blood would not run down her arm and into the water infested by these groupings of sharks. She quickly made her way to the ladder and was out of the water in a matter of seconds. These quick actions kept Zarutskie from facing a fate of disaster that was sure to ensue had she not acted swiftly. The model came out of the experience unscathed, only obtaining a small skin tear on her wrist. The model credits her quick thinking and adrenaline kick to her avoidance of a potentially fatal situation.
Zarutskie was originally egged on by locals who proclaimed the decision to gain these one-in-a-lifetime shots. Her brand expansion overcame her levels of fear and she took the plunge into the clear waters. Thankfully, she came out of the experience with nothing more than what can be described as a scratch. The model insists that she will not be taking the road less traveled anytime soon. Sticking to land-based shoots and reducing her risk with her production pieces. At the end of the day, the shots that were taken did turn up some incredible art. Her followers have since reached out to caution her of her risky behavior and her responses have shown enough remorse for the decision made that day. While her brand has skyrocketed since the developments from this shoot, her drive to get the “perfect shot” has since been tamed for her own health. Placing her life above her fame is something that this model credits to driving her everyday work.
