South American fungus - ok so this is technically not in Antarctica, but this is the stepping-off point for the adventure - Ushuaia
My first time so far to see that I can't see land - the light on the surface of the ocean is magic
Beautiful prions in flight!
So lucky with this shot of this beautiful sooty albatross
He's just stunning
All angles!
My first magical misty view of Antarctica
Half Moon Island - my first land in Antarctica
The welcoming party - Gentoo penguins!
These gentoo's seem to be looking a bit lost, but in fairness this island is actually a Chinstrap breeding colony.
There's an Argentinian station on the island - but mostly I love this photo for the clouds.
Kelp Gull just popping against the sky
Kelp Gull over Half Moon Island
Kelp Gull coming into land
Chinstrap penguins taking a break on their way up to their nests
Chinstraps defending their nests from a low-lying Skua looking for a snack
Chinstrap penguin portrait
Penguin silhouette
And again
... and again...
Gentoo meets Chinstrap
Old whaling boat washed up on the island
Iceberg Arch!
All of the gentoo penguins - and this was the day I first got to drive the boat also
Leaping
Waddling
The brash ice where I learnt to drive a boat - beautiful in black and white texture
Penguin porpoising! - almost flying
What's better than one penguin porpoising? Three!
Polar molars!
Ice spire!
And the third species of commonly seen Antarctic Peninsula penguin - the Adeline penguin!
Whale tail - or rather an iceberg shaped like a whale tail!
I love the blues of the ocean and icebergs - Antarctic Blues.
My first Whale Tail!
Whale fluke waterfall
They are just such amazing creatures
Another stunning waterfall
Water droplets!
This was when I discovered that whales are also pink!
I love this photo of the splash made by half a fluke!
Bubble net feeding - we were so lucky to witness whales feeding like this - spiralling and blowing bubbles underwater to drive the krill into a close-knit group, then they come up through the middle and swallow the whole group.
To achieve this they work as a group
Look at his baleen smile!
Rarely do you see more than a fraction of a whale above water - but the fin underwater give you a bit of an idea just how large these magnificent creatures are!
Such a lucky photo - capturing a whale blow
This magic moment of surface tension before the whale breaks through
Black and white whale textures
Isn't his blowhole beautiful?
The spine of a whale
Bubble-net feeding!
Such power
Swallow!
More baleen mouths
and again
finishing their mouthfuls.
Whale texture
A whale's chin - with barnacles
More whale textures with the ocean
So cool
Textures of Antarctica
There are so many beautiful mountains in Antarctica
Handsome Chinstrap penguin
Textures of penguin feathers
My home in Antarctica, the Ocean Victory
Gentoo penguins - looking rather filthy for sitting on the eggs!
Taking a break from lying on the egg and standing up for a change
The clean one has just arrived back from the ocean
Penguins and snow!
Layers of penguins
Off for a short march to the ocean
What a handsome gentoo!
Chinstrap having a nap on the snow!
Looks like it's a nice stop for a rest
Weddel seal just chilling
Cutie
Oh hello, didn't see you there.
...
My bosses
One of our happy campers
Well this is a rather nice campsite
Weddel seal - heading for the water
Weddel seal swimming away
Seems like a very french way to stand on a boat!!
Ocean Victory in Antarctica
Campers setting up to camp on Antarctica for the night
Beautiful lighting
Antarctica is just amazing
Two pintado in the sky!
I love the way his wings are backlit
There's a whole bunch of them!
So many!
Cape petrels!
Doesn't he have beautiful plumage
The texture of the ocean is also amazing
Southern Fulmar
Close-up of a southern fulmar
He also has beautifully lit wings
More ocean textures
Beautiful wings
Group grooming session
Got to get clean and tidy
Ice dripping on the shore
It's beautiful
Some icebergs just seem to be magically lit from within
The most Antarctic picture ever
Beautiful ice in black and white
I love the layers in this piece of ice
The bubbles frozen in the ice seem to give a sense of movement
It's like a gateway to a magic world
Just after the glacier calves
Glacial textures
Kayak in Antarctica would be pretty amazing
Some days the water is just so still...
So incredibly still
Incredible reflections
Black and white reflections
Mariam demonstrating the ultimate toilet with a view - for camping use only!
Nice iceberg
Antarctic tern in flight
And finishing with another spectacular mountain in beautiful light
