Photojournalist Captured Image of Bullet Whizzing by Trump

New York Times photographer Doug Mills stunned Americans with the iconic image he captured of a bullet whizzing past former President Trump after grazing his ear at a Pennsylvania rally over the weekend.

The moment remains a focal point as the Republican National Convention kicks off Monday, where Mills sat down with Fox News to share his firsthand account of the shocking ordeal. 

"I just happened to be down, shooting with a wide angle lens just below the president when he was speaking. There was a huge flag waving right above his head, and I just happened to be taking pictures at the same time," he told "America's Newsroom" in Milwaukee.

Photographer who captured iconic image of shooting speaks out: Trump was 'so mad, so defiant' | https://t.co/46xIFXB5Sn

— Tom Benson (@Tombenson1) July 16, 2024

"Then, when I heard the pops, I guess I kept hitting on the shutter, and then I saw him reach for his [ear]. He grimaced and grabbed his hand and looked. It was blood, and then he went down, and I thought, 'Dear God, he's been shot,'" he continued.

Mills, like many others present, failed to initially realize the sounds were gunshots. 

He recalled watching as Secret Service swarmed the former president in a few "split seconds," obstructing his view of Trump.

"All I could see was them, and [they're] holding their guns and guns are out everywhere and everybody's yelling, ‘Get down, get down, get down! Active shooter, active shooter!’" he recalled.

"I probably did not do the smartest thing by running right at it, but that's what [photojournalists do.]."

Doug Mills, a New York Times photographer, appeared to capture an image of a bullet streaking past Donald Trump’s head, a former FBI agent said. He took the photo while documenting the rally that turned into an attempt on a former president’s life. https://t.co/nhtORaXDZj pic.twitter.com/32UI1GDcoO

— The New York Times (@nytimes) July 14, 2024

Mills said the moment he discovered he had captured an image of the bullet whizzing past Trump was a "surprise" to him.

It happened after he was ushered into a tent and began sending photos of the former president's now widely-circulating defiant fist pump to an editor.