The destroyed rig had six GoPro cameras attached to it which were being used to capture footage for the Discovery Channel's Shark Week

He said the sharks took turns attacking the camera 'like they were playing football with it'

Wildlife cinematographer, Andy Casagrande, witnessed the attack from a shark cage while he was filming the creatures alongside company 360Heros

just off the coast of New Zealand

More than $12,000 worth of camera equipment is currently sitting at the bottom of the sea off the coast of New Zealand.

But the owner of the equipment, 360Heros CEO and Founder Michael Kintner, is in no hurry to retrieve it from the shark infested waters.

That's because Emmy-award winning wildlife cinematographer, Andy Brandy Casagrande, watched from the safety of a shark cage as an enormous great white shark tore into the GoPro scuba diving gear.

'MIKE – I UNFORTUNATELY HAVE VERY BAD NEWS – A PICTURE SAYS A THOUSAND WORDS – SEE ATTACHED – I CAN'T BELIEVE IT – BUT THE WORST POSSIBLE SCENARIO HAPPENED YESTERDAY – I ONLY JUST NOW BUILT UP THE COURAGE TO TELL YOU,' Mr Casagrande wrote in full capitals to Mr Kintner, according to their webiste.



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A great white shark tears into over $12,000 of camera equipment off the coast of New Zealand

Footage of the destruction was captured by wildlife cinematographer, Andy Brandy Casagrande, and a 360Heros cameraman

'WHILE SHOOTING WITH THE 360 RIG- AFTER SHOOTING AWESOME TOPSIDE & BEHIND THE SCENES 360 – I TOOK THE RIG UNDERWATER & AFTER AN HOUR OF GETTING AWESOME FOOTAGE – I PUSHED THE ENVELOPE TOO FAR & AN AGGRESSIVE WHITE SHARK BIT & LITERALLY ATE THE 360 – COMPLETELY – ALL 6 CAMERAS IN ONE BITE.'

Mr Casagrande described the incident in more depth in an interview with the Mercury Press, stating: 'I watched as the first Great White Shark engulfed the rig - it realized it wasn't a natural prey item and decide to regurgitate it'.

'However, directly after the first shark spit it out a second shark rushed up and engulfed before spitting it out.

'It was almost like they were playing football with it!'

They were working in the waters to capture footage of some great whites for Discovery Channel's Shark Week

Mr Casagrande was working in the waters to capture footage of some great whites alongside the 360Heros team for Discovery Channel's Shark Week, when the incident occurred.

Luckily, he still managed to capture footage of the destruction occurring from the cage, which shows the equipment falling from the sharp teeth of one of the enormous fish.

The GoPro rig, which the shark could be seen taking a bite out of, held six GoPro cameras worth more than $400 each while the scuba diving gear was worth more than $10,000, Mercury Press reported.

Devastated by the financial loss, the company is now using the event to promote how far they are willing to go for the perfect footage.

Mr Casagrande said that as one shark spat the camera out, a 'second shark rushed up and engulfed it before spitting it out. It was almost like they were playing football with it!'

'A hungry great white had just turned months of preparation and planning into an expensive snack,' their website states.

'Thanks to one hungry shark, our gear, SD cards and the historic footage they contain are currently sitting on the ocean floor.'

However, all loses aside, 360Heros couldn't help but lighten the mood.