It came after three men failed to return after setting out in a fishing boat from Leeman, 170 miles (270km) north of Perth, on Thursday, prompting a search that covered 125 square miles (320s/km) of ocean.
"When we first spotted him, one of the scariest things was there was a massive hammerhead shark not 20 metres away from him, just slowly circling around him," he told Australian radio.
"He's stark naked ... just struggling to swim and float on his back and try and keep his head out of the water," he added of the man.
"He keeps waving at our chopper trying to get us to come down and help him but there's nothing we can actually do."
Mr Taylor said an inflatable rescue raft was dropped but it drifted away from the exhausted man.
"He just keeps putting his hands together praying, but he doesn't realise there's a boat just right behind him as we speak right now. Come on mate, just turn around and have a look, you're saved. He's yelling 'help'."
Mr Taylor said the man was finally picked up by a search and rescue vessel and survived the ordeal. A second man was later found but died after being rescued.
Contains footage from Reuters
