A curious diver recently met a curiouser octopus in the Red Sea off of Dahab, Egypt. Vitaly Bazarov, a professional scuba diver with more than 5,000 dives in his logbook, was diving solo in deep water early in the morning — 6 a.m., to be exact — when the incredible encounter happened.

“The octopus was hunting along with the Krylatkami on the grass, at the depth of about 26 metres (about 85 feet), and when it saw me he went to hide,” Bazarov told Daily Mail.

He was filming the hiding octopus when it reached out a tentacle and went straight for Bazarov’s camera.

“It was a big male, and very curious when I started work with the camera,” Bazarov said. “He tried to take the camera from me.”

The octopus continuously tried to wrestle the camera to the sea floor, but luckily for Bazarov, it’s grip wasn’t strong enough to keep the rig forever. Octopus tentacles are covered in suckers that can pry objects from human hands without a problem — a number of divers can tell horror stories of these creatures stealing anything from masks to lights to thousand-dollar camera rigs.

“'We had three rounds with the octopus, and I realised that he is much stronger and more of a clever creature than I originally thought,” Bazarov said.

Bazarov is a seasoned underwater shooter, and he has an affinity for Egypt’s waters. He advocates for safe soloing to get top-quality photos and videos.

“The Red Sea is one of the best places for an underwater photographer but, to get the best shots, it is important to dive alone.”

The octopus could not be reached for comment.

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