(CNN) — Within the shimmering warmth of the Saudi desert, it might be dismissed as a mirage — however photographer Khaled Al Enazi. has the photographs to show he actually did spot an enormous fish-shaped rock rising from the sands.
Al Enazi captured photographs of the weird formation utilizing a drone whereas recording the archaeological treasures of Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ula county — an space identified for historic buildings that rival Jordan’s Petra metropolis.
“Whereas I used to be documenting the realm, a view of a mountain appeared in entrance of me, its form suggesting a fish within the coronary heart of the desert,” he instructed CNN by way of e-mail.
Al Enazi says he is in all probability not the primary individual to come across the rock formation, however he believes his aerial perspective meant he was the primary to notice its curious form.
“A photographer’s eye sees what folks don’t see,” he stated.
The photographer fittingly named the rock Desert Fish.
In drone footage recorded by Al Enazi in June this 12 months, the rock formation resembles an aquatic creature swimming by way of the golden sand, its dorsal fin-like buildings additionally suggesting it might be a shark rising from the depths to stalk its prey.
Viral sensation
Since his photographs had been shared, Al Enazi has needed to disappoint imaginative social media customers who claimed the rocks are literally the stays of an enormous sea beast.
“Some have talked about that it’s a actual fish that was fossilized thousands and thousands of years in the past, however that is not the case,” he stated. “It’s sandstone shaped by many components.”
Video of Desert Fish shared in a tweet in July has amassed greater than 29,000 views.
The photographer is presently engaged on creating his personal YouTube channel devoted to documenting the Al-Ula area and its fascinating panorama.
Overlaying practically 9,000 sq. miles (22,500 sq. kilometers), Al-Ula county is residence to one of many world’s most dramatic desert scenes.
Historic Nabataeans established their main southern metropolis simply north of Al-Ula valley and carved spectacular tombs into rocky outcrops at Mada’in Salih, now a UNESCO World Heritage Web site.
A few of Al-Ula’s rocks, carved by the weather, have taken on surprisingly sculptural — and human — types.
One rock, identified regionally as Jabal Al-Fil, is known for its resemblance to an elephant.
High picture credit score: Khaled Zaad Al Enazi
