Monkey Steals Camera and Takes Hilarious Self Portraits

It sounds like an Onion headline, but it’s actually true!

“Visiting a national park in North Sulawesi, Indonesia, award-winning photographer [David] Slater left his camera unattended for a while. It soon attracted the attention of an inquisitive female from a local group of crested black macaque monkeys, known for their intelligence and dexterity.Fascinated by her reflection in the lens, she then somehow managed to start the camera. The upshot: A splendid self-portrait.”

Most amazing to me: these things are all in focus!      Well, at least these three are. Slater says, 

“The sound got his attention and he kept pressing it. At first it scared the rest of them away but they soon came back – it was amazing to watch. He must have taken hundreds of pictures by the time I got my camera back, but not very many were in focus. He obviously hadn’t worked that out yet.”

If this is a hoax, I’m gonna cry.