So in my last blog, I had just boarded the Sylvia Earle ship and we were sailing through the night to arrive at our first location in ‘proper’ Antarctica.

As much as I’d like this to be a blog for every day of the trip, I would be here writing for hours and you would need a coffee and a comfortable seat to get through it all, so I’ve chosen to share a few key or favourite moments of the trip with you, and of course lots of photos!

Learning early lessons.

I woke on the morning of our first full day on the ship and quickly realised this would be unlike any other photography trip I had experienced.

There were two lessons I learned quickly on that first morning, the first was never miss a sunrise - foolishly I presumed we would still be ‘at sea’ with very little to see, so I didn’t set an alarm to wake at dawn, especially given the hangers in the wardrobe had been rhythmically chiming* throughout the night, thanks swell of the Bransfield Strait. (*This is British sarcasm, they were clattering until I forced myself to move unsteadily across the room to take them out and wrap them in bath towels to silence them!).

My mistake was quickly pointed out to me at breakfast as a small group had gathered on the deck at 5 am to witness a magical misty sunrise as we sailed through the mountainous spine of the Antarctic Peninsula on our port side and Trinity Island to starboard.

Just as I was consoling myself with a delicious breakfast and coffee, my second mistake swiftly followed - which was the announcement of a small pod of orcas, and as everyone lept up to run out on deck - I realised I hadn’t bought my camera or coat to breakfast so I was somewhat ill-prepared! I ran out on deck anyway to experience the excitement and cold Antarctic air on my cheeks and fingers; before running back inside to defrost. (The temperature was about 4 degrees Celsius, with windchill from the moving ship on top!)

This moment brought the reality to me just how unique this experience would be. With previous photography trips, I had been used to waking up for a sunrise shoot and having breakfast in the hotel before heading back out for the day for more photography. Antarctica would be different - we were sleeping in a moving hotel, where the light, views and wildlife were continuously changing, so there was always something to witness and photograph! Needless to say, I always bought my camera, coat, hat and gloves for every meal after that!

There was also an unspoken understanding across the group of 90 Expeditioners that as we dined together, we weren’t being rude or distracted from the conversation, someone would always be glancing out of the full-height windows of the restaurant, looking for whales or magical conditions to then announce it to the group. Many a meal was abandoned temporarily as we ran outside to feast on visual spectacles.

Large mountain in Anarctica — My first photograph of the trip - despite my lazy morning, and missing sunrise! (Please click to see the full expanded shot)

The First Steps on Antarctica

After lunch, the time arrived for us to take our first zodiac ride and step onto Antarctic soil in Recess Cove. As we boarded our zodiacs light snowfall began and it really dawned on me that we were in Antarctica! We stepped onto land for a small hike, as the snowfall became heavier obstructing most of the view, but providing that still silence that snow creates. It added to the sense of how remote and desolate we were.

The zodiac ride back to the ship gave us a taste of how special this trip would be, as it wasn’t long before we witnessed two fur seals (play?!) fighting with each other, and then before long, a humpback whale was spotted breaching near an iceberg. I attempted to photograph both of these encounters but the snowfall was playing havoc with my autofocus, so I was quickly adjusting settings and taking as many shots as possible in the hope I had captured something on this first day. Back in the warmth of the ship, I wasn’t so sure I had got the focus right, it was only with a larger screen and a second set of eyes that I realised I had indeed managed to capture both of these wildlife encounters!

Wildlife Encounters

The next morning, fresh with the lessons learned the previous day, I woke for sunrise to the view of the infamous Lemaire Channel, This is one of the ‘top destinations’ in Antarctica, famous for its rugged peaks rising 1000 meters high - but the weather had other ideas. These peaks were cloaked in low clouds and mist meaning we couldn’t get a full sense of their scale, however; being a lover of moodier and dramatic weather conditions I didn’t feel disappointed at all! Standing out on deck at 5:30 am, with a chilly 3 degrees Celsius to wake me up before breakfast I marvelled at the scale and majesty of the channel we were sailing through.

After breakfast, the plan was to visit our first Adelie and Gentoo penguin colonies on Petermann Island. Petermann Island is famous for the hut that Charcot himself overwintered in 1909. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see the hut as much as I would’ve liked to as I prioritised visiting and photographing the penguin colonies - another lesson learned, I get far too distracted by penguins and need to plan my time better!

It was a beautiful location, but the wildlife was the real magic here, I was struck by the fact the penguins didn't seem to care or notice that we were there. They carried on their normal routines, and if they waddled towards us and we were in their path, our job was to get out of their way - they had the priority here, and we were visiting their home. For me, this was the sentiment and feeling of the whole trip, and what made it so special.

A Day in Paradise (Bay)

I couldn’t write this blog without talking about one of the most incredible days of the trip. It was a day that left me running on adrenaline, pacing back and forth in my cabin with disbelief at what I had been so fortunate to witness and experience.

I also know, for those who were on the same zodiac as me, I wasn’t alone in this feeling, and moments like this are why I enjoy photography group travel so much - sharing a memorable, or life-changing moment with people that you then stay in contact with to re-live that moment, over and over. These trips do make for some fantastic photos, but they are more so about the experience and memories that I take away with me.

We had already been treated to an absolutely spectacular morning with sunrise at an iceberg ‘graveyard’, a visit to another penguin colony on Port Charcot with ‘penguin highways’ and fur seals, followed by a revisit of Lemaire Channel with slightly less low cloud but brutal winds; so I already had full memory cards and a full heart. I couldn’t see how the trip could get any better, but it did.

Majestic mountain peak in Antarctica — Majestic peaks (Please click to see the full expanded shot)

Black and white image of penguins marching in Antarctica — March of the penguins (Please click to see the full expanded shot)

In the afternoon we anchored off Base Brown, to visit the very aptly named Paradise Bay on a zodiac cruise. The water was still, with reflections like mirrored glass; there was a real sense of peace in this location. This peace was short-lived as soon the air was filled with our ‘as quiet as possible, not to disturb the wildlife’ excitement.

The first encounter to trigger this reaction was a Weddell Seal who posed for us in this waving yoga pose for what felt like several minutes looking directly at us. I couldn’t believe this seal's facial expression and poses, as it stretched after its nap, before settling back to snooze again.

As we cruised deeper into the bay, we spotted a Leopard Seal, sleeping on a small drifting iceberg with the backdrop of the stunning landscape behind it. I really wanted to capture ‘environmental wildlife’ shots on this trip, and this was a perfect location and subject to do this with. The Leopard Seal stirred from its sleep, and yawned, before having a look around then went back to sleep again.

Brown Base - seasonal Argentine research station — Workers hiking back to Brown Base, a seasonal Argentine research station (Please click to see the full expanded shot)

After some more cruising in the zodiac and marvelling at the majesty and scale of the bay, we finally saw one of the sights most of us were hoping for on this trip; a lone penguin on an iceberg. What made this particular penguin and iceberg special, was the large blue carved iceberg sheet behind it; really adding to the shot.

Again, we were treated to this penguin posing for us for what felt like minutes, but it was probably seconds as he or she raised his head in the air, flapping its wings up and down several times. I was fortunate as I happened to be on the side of the zodiac closest to the penguin and I was crouched low with my camera resting on the side of the zodiac, to allow those behind me to shoot - but also to try and get as close to eye-level with the penguin. Going back to my earlier blog about skills I practised for the trip, I could see as the zodiac was floating gently in the water the mini-iceberg the penguin was floating on would potentially align with the carved element of the iceberg adding something unique and planned to the shot, but I could also see the mini iceberg may align nicely with another smaller carved part of the iceberg so these were planned in my mindseye of things I intended to shoot.

The shutters of the cameras in the zodiac fired off as we all hoped we’d captured that moment.

I think this is probably one of my favourite shots of the trip because it was such a special moment, on such a special day, but it was also one of my ‘goal’ shots I’d hoped to capture. I’m also really proud that some of the planned aspects and compositions I’d hoped for and, as mentioned earlier, had paid off.

Gentoo penguin floating on an iceberg in Antarctica — Possibly one of my favourite wildlife shots of the trip - the posing Gentoo penguin who enthralled us with his display (Please click to see the full expanded shot)

After the penguin had finished his/her poses, he jumped in the water and swam alongside us in the zodiac before disappearing. The group of people I was in the zodiac with was buzzing, we couldn’t believe how fortunate we had been and what we had seen already on this zodiac cruise; surely there couldn’t be more….

But there was, as we moved around the bay, we spotted a Crabeater Seal resting on a piece of ice, with an impressive backdrop of mountains and ice. This seal, again, put on a display for us, rolling in the snow, and pushing its nose through the snow on the iceberg. The animal behaviours we witnessed on this zodiac trip, let alone the rest of the trip were incredible.

It was time to head back to the ship and reflect on what we had just experienced, but Antarctica wasn’t done with us yet. As a group of zodiacs got closer to the ship a humpback whale surfaces in front of us. Displaying its huge, tail/fluke, before surfacing close to one of the other zodiacs where we see the faces of the other photographers drop with awe and amazement at how close this majestic creature is to them. Again, there is an electricity of excitement in the group at what we are witnessing. In these moments of excitement, I am trying to think what shots would capture this moment and show the scale of what we are witnessing, and I can see the whale about to raise its tail/fluke between two of the zodiacs in the group - knowing this would make for a really special moment and showing the proximity of what we are experiencing I take the shots that I can see in my mind - hoping I’ve captured what my mind was planning for.

And with that, we were back to the ship; in the muck room as we removed our muck boots and jackets, the energy and excitement in the group was indescribable. It felt like we had seen all that Antarctica could offer us in the space of a 2-hour zodiac cruise. Of course, we hadn’t - but I don’t think my body and mind could handle that level of excitement and amazement for the rest of the trip, after all, this was only our third full day!

Polar plunges and Changing weather

In my opinion, no trip to Antarctica is complete, without earning your ‘Polar Plunge' certificate - 37 other people agreed with me, so after another day of admiring all Antarctica has to offer, it was time for us to feel the invigoration of a different kind, by plunging into the -2 degrees celsius water. Our backdrop was Borgen Bay which had treated us to brash ice, seals and whales earlier in the day.

Again, filled with anticipation, we waited in our bathrobes for our turn to leap into the icy water followed by a warming shot of alcohol to defrost us from within. That evening, we were treated to a BBQ on the top deck of the ship, surrounded by the warm glow of sunset as we sheltered in Orne Harbour.

Over the next few days, the weather began to change - we had been so fortunate with conditions until this point, but slowly the wind started to increase making for bumpier zodiac rides and cold spray in our faces. The photography leaders and expedition leader Christian, worked together on Plans A, B and sometimes C to look for landing sites where we could still make the most of the days, and we explored the likes of Cierva Cove, Graham Passage, Telefon Baym, Half Moon Island, Ezcurra Inlet & Potter Cove.

One thing I hadn’t appreciated before this trip, was that the ships pre-book their landings many months and even a year in advance for some of the ‘favourite’ destinations of Antarctica. This planning gives a sense of truly being the only people there as you rarely see another ship but also protects the landscape and wildlife from being too disturbed. It does make for logistical challenges when the weather changes, as the expedition team and captain, are looking for alternative locations or bays to shelter from the winds; a game of chess takes place, as one ship releases a booking, another ship takes that booking and so on. I wasn’t privy to the full logistics of all this, but I’m so grateful for those involved and every day was filled with beautiful locations and varied conditions.

However, sometimes even with all the planning, things are beyond our control….

Antarctica’s farewell

On the final days of the trip, our landings at Ezcurra Inlet & Potter Cove were cancelled because the winds had increased, but we still enjoyed photography from the ship and lectures from both the expedition team and the photography leaders.

For many people on this trip, the deciding factor in booking this particular voyage was that we would fly both ways between Punta Arenas and King George Island. As we know from my previous blog, sometimes the weather has other ideas, causing delays due to the very specific conditions required.

As we dined on our farewell Captain’s dinner, a few of the group had begun checking weather forecasts for our flight back to Punta Arenas the following day, and it wasn’t looking promising.

The following morning, Christian the expedition leader, who had shared the daily briefings and recaps through the trip, broke the news. The forecast for the next 3 days meant the likelihood of our flight back was unlikely, and so the decision had been made to sail to Puerto Williams, via the Drake Passage!

This news was met with mixed reactions, for some this meant missing their flights home, extending childcare arrangements, or nerves of how bad this most treacherous ship crossing would be; and for others, like myself excitement that I would get to experience the infamous Drake Passage, which in some ways is a rite of passage to visit Antarctica.

(I was fortunate that my flight home was a week later, as I had planned to visit Patagonia after this trip, so letting hotels know I’d be a few days late was no hardship or inconvenience; but I had so much empathy for those with disrupted travel plans and nervousness at the sea conditions we would experience).

They say, you either experience the Drake Shake or Drake Lake, and as the ship prepared for our crossing by shutting down the lifts and placing sickness bags along the corridors and staircases, anticipation began to build.

Wanting to make the most of the circumstances and once-in-a-lifetime moments, I asked whether the on-deck jacuzzis were still operating and fortunately, they were, so I grabbed a couple of photographers who were as crazy as me and off we ran to experience the Drake Crossing from a jacuzzi followed by a steam room! (Thanks Rick and Jeroen for indulging my craziness, keeping me company and braving the slight rocking of the ship as we began our crossing!).

The crossing takes 2 days and we were incredibly fortunate that ours was more of a ‘lake’ crossing, even though this was a relatively smooth crossing - not long after the decks and jacuzzis were closed for safety, and many of the guests and photographers took advantage of the travel sickness medicine available on the ship; or stayed in their cabins laying horizontal. The dining room was suddenly emptier for meals, and the buzz of excitement and anticipation had simmered.

Even with this 3 out of 10 crossing (as shared by the Captain) you found yourself holding on to handrails as you walked down corridors as you swayed back and forth, the horizon dipped up and down through floor-to-ceiling windows, and items rolled across the table at meal times. I can’t imagine what a Drake Shake crossing must be like - and I tip my hat to you if you’ve done this!

Even with a smooth crossing over the Drake Passage, the swells and mist made for some atmospheric photos

(Please click to see the full expanded shots)

For those of us who were bearing up (myself included), there was time to catch up on editing photos, resting and attending more lectures by the knowledgeable expedition team and photography leaders.

Aurora Expeditions runs a Citizen Science Programme, to educate guests - but more importantly, participate and share knowledge with others. One of the projects I learned and participated in was the Happywhale project - we were encouraged to upload photographs and the locations where we had seen whales. Using software that compares unique markings on animals, Happywhale can track individual marine life globally which, over time, helps scientists learn about migratory and home-range movements; population growth and decline, and even an individual whale’s survival rates.

The warm welcome back to civilisation

After the two-day crossing, we woke early on our final morning to a firey sunrise in Puerto Williams. Low clouds weaved their way around the hillsides as we saw signs of civilisation for the first time in 11 days.

Seeing houses, cars and boats again felt surreal. We had been somewhere where we had seen very little signs of civilisation, other than the occasional ship and the colourful bases at some of the locations we had anchored.

Puerto Williams Sunrise — The unexpected sunrise in Puerto Williams was a beautiful way to end the expedition (Please click to see the full expanded shot)

Thankful

I feel so incredibly fortunate to have seen a glimpse of what I’m sure Antarctica has to offer the wildlife, conditions and people I shared this with have all left a mark on me, and I hope some of this has been conveyed in this blog - but I don’t think there are enough words for me to do this trip justice.

I would like to say a huge thanks to the professional photographers who led this trip with great expertise and humour (Nigel Danson, Mads Peter Iverson, James Popsys, Jeroen Van Nieuwenhove, Rick Bebbington, Rachel Bigsby, Adam Gibbs and Dani Connor), the crew and team on the Aurora Expeditions ship, the Sylvia Earle; and lastly to the rest of my fellow expeditioners who shared such memorable experiences with me.

Glassy reflections

Snow curves

Ice castles

Algae snow abstracts

Golden Antarctic sunrises

Photographing & Exploring Antarctica

Learning early lessons.

Wildlife Encounters

Travelling to The White Continent