The school of basking sharks - the second largest fish in the world - were filmed by County Cork photographer James McCarthy using drone technology.
The sharks were spotted close to the beach at Caliso Bay on 12 May.
James said he had no idea the sharks would be there and that the footage was the result of "unbelievable timing".
"I had just upgraded to a new drone. I went down to the beach to test it and just as I pulled up onto the beach you could see all the fins - they were just off the shoreline," James said.
"So straight away I put the drone up. I think there was 12 of them [sharks] there altogether."
He said since the footage, which was taken last week, was posted on his Facebook page he's had a media inquiry every day asking to use it.
"The drone gives you a perspective that you can't see from the ground, regardless of what you're shooting," he said.
James was also quickly contacted by the Isle of Man-based Manx Basking Shark Watch.
The group's Jackie Hall said that she believed one of the sharks had been tagged by them off the Isle of Man a number of years ago - an eight-metre-long (26ft) fish they named Flowrider.
"They said the Irish coast is probably the best place to see them, but it's rare to see them them that close to the surface and that close to the beach as well," he said.
"So it was definitely a case of being in the right place at the right time."
The whale shark is the only fish larger than the basking shark. They can grow to 11m in length (36ft) and weigh up to seven tonnes.
They have no teeth and feed on microscopic plankton by opening wide their huge mouths. Despite their size they are considered harmless to humans.
In 2011, crowds gathered to see a 14ft long basking shark which swam round Portrush harbour for several hours.
Among those enjoying the recent spell of spring sunshine over Ireland was a group of sharks pictured off the coast of County Waterford.