.Jump to Main Content
Home / Galleries

Polar Regions

Pole to Pole

In June 2009 I visited the Svalbard Archipelago – often also referred to as Spitsbergen (which is actually the name of the largest island in the group) – a High Arctic wilderness of exceptional beauty. Stretching beyond 80ºN, it is one of the world’s most northerly outcrops of land, with few human settlements, although evidence of past endeavor and exploitation in the form of whaling and mineral mining is evident at numerous historical sites. 

The region is rich in wildlife, providing major breeding and hunting grounds for over 3000 Polar Bears, large colonies of Atlantic Walrus, several species of seal and numerous species of Arctic birds.

Barely seven months later I completed my polar experience and travelled south to the Antarctic to photograph the wildlife of the Falklands, South Georgia and the Antarctic Peninsula. Highlights are too many to mention, but would include bewildering numbers of King Penguins at Salisbury Plain and Gold Harbour on South Georgia, the grace of a soaring Wandering Albatross, the sinister grimace of a Leopard Seal ans the magical beauty of scuptures icebergs around the Yalour Islands.

  • Polar Bears Ursus maritimus playing ice flow Spitsbergen Svalbard Norway
    Polar Bears (Ursus maritimus) playing on ice flow. Off the coast on northern Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Arctic Norway.
  • Purple Saxifrage Saxifraga oppositifolia tundra Spitsbergen Svalbard Arctic
    Purple Saxifrage (Saxifraga oppositifolia) growing on Arctic tundra. Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Arctic Norway.
  • Purple Saxifrage Saxifraga oppositifolia tundra Spitsbergen Svalbard Arctic
    Purple Saxifrage (Saxifraga oppositifolia) growing on Arctic tundra with old whaling hut in the background. Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Arctic Norway.
  • Southern Giant Petrel Macronectes Stromness South Georgia South Atlantic
    Southern Giant Petrel (Macronectes giganteus) resting with bill tucked under its wing. Stromness, South Georgia, South Atlantic.
  • Southern Giant Petrel Macronectes Stromness South Georgia South Atlantic
    Southern Giant Petrel (Macronectes giganteus) resting on beach. Stromness, South Georgia, South Atlantic.
  • Wandering Albatross Diomedea flying sunset South Georgia South Atlantic.
    Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) flying off the southern tip of South Georgia at sunset, South Atlantic. (digitally stitched image)
  • Wandering Albatross Diomedea flying Bay of Isles South Georgia South Atlantic
    Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) flying over the Bay of Isles with Salisbury Plain glacier in the background. South Georgia, South Atlantic. (digitally stitched image)
  • Wandering Albatross Diomedea flying South Georgia South Atlantic
    Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) flying off South Georgia, South Atlantic. (digitally stitched image)
  • Wandering Albatross Diomedea flying Stromness South Georgia South Atlantic
    Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) flying over rugged coast near Stromness, South Georgia, South Atlantic. (digitally altered image)
  • Whaling mining settlement Spitsbergen Svalbard Arctic
    Old whaling and mining settlement on the shore. Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Arctic Norway.