Long Lost Camera Miraculously Found at Bottom of Lake with Photos Intact

Photography News

It’s a photographer’s worst nightmare—that camera you invested so much money and care into is missing. Gone. And not only the expensive equipment, but also the precious photos that you’re never getting back. That’s what happened to California-based photographer Kelly Donohue two years ago, and she never expected to see her Canon again:

In 2013, Donohue was helping coordinate an annual cycling event to benefit local charities in Arroyo Grande, CA when her camera went missing. She thought the camera and the pictures stored inside were gone for good until almost exactly two years later, when a Good Samaritan discovered the camera—muddy and rusting—at the bottom of a dry lakebed and returned it to Donohue.

Against all odds, the memory card was still intact and she was able to retrieve her pictures from the event, some of which you can see below:

How the camera ended up at the bottom of Laguna Lake in San Luis Obispo—roughly 15 miles away from Donohue’s location that day—is still a mystery.