Photographers South Georgia Island and Antarctic 2014 Polar Photography Expedition

I am very excited to announce that after months of organisation and planning Andy Biggs and I are now opening bookings for a brand new and very exciting photography expedition to South Georgia Island and Antarctica. This twenty day (yes, 20 days!) photography expedition will depart Ushuaia in South America on the 3rd of November 2014 has been designed to provide the definitive South Georgia Island photography experience. We will cross the Drake Passage where we will spend time photographing amazing icebergs and the spectacular Antarctic Peninsula. We will visit Elephant Island, home to twenty two of Shackleton’s men for four months. We will then enter the Scotia Sea detouring to the remote and rarely visited mountainous South Orkney Islands. We will zodiac cruise through a maze of icebergs before landing ashore on a beach bedecked with penguins, seals and lichen encrusted boulders. This location alone promises fantastic wildlife and landscape opportunities. We will then continue across the Scotia sea bound for South Georgia Island where we will see and photograph the world’s largest King Penguin rookeries, majestic albatross nests, seals and a plethora of bird life. Kelp strewn beaches are cluttered with basking elephant seals, feisty fur seals and hundreds of penguins that will prove a wildlife photographers dream. Stromness and Grytviken harbour 3000 metre rocky peaks that rise up from the ocean to form amazing backdrops to the remains of whaling stations that will fulfil every landscape shooters wishes for dramatic landscape. South Georgia’s remote, untamed landscape is simply stunning. Scattered across the mighty Southern Ocean, the tiny arc of windswept islands and harbours are some of the world’s greatest wildlife sanctuaries set against world class landscapes. Famed for its abandoned whaling stations and Shackleton’s heroic journey, South Georgia is home to literally millions of fur seals and penguins, wallows of elephant seals, and nesting albatross. After we finish photographing in this breathtaking area we will sail back to Ushuaia where we will dock on the 22nd of November and conclude our once in a lifetime expedition.Andy, and I wanted to put together a dedicated photography expedition to both Antarctica and South Georgia Island that really gave photographers the best possible opportunity to photograph big icebergs, and amazing wildlife. We wanted to ensure sufficient time in both Antarctica and South Georgia Island so this is a brand new itinerary that has been planned from the ground up to really maximise the opportunities for photography. We have specifically timed our expedition early in the season in order to give us the best opportunities for plenty of icebergs as well as wildlife at South Georgia Island. The ice and snow at South Georgia island will be pristine and as yet unvisited by man after the Antarctic winter. If you can only travel to Antarctica and South Georgia Island once in your life for photography then this is most definitely the trip you want to be on.KEY FEATURES

Dates : 3rd of November 2014 to the 22nd of November 2014 : 20 days / 19 nights
Ship : Ice Hardened Expedition Class Ship ‘Polar Pioneer’ Regarded by many as the best vessel for polar photography for its ability to get really close to big ice and ample deck space for photography.
Leaders : Andy Biggs, Joshua Holko
Dedicated to Wildlife and Landscape Photography

If you would like to register your interest to secure a place on this trip you can email Andy or I at andybiggs@andybiggs.com or info@jholko.com. Places are very limited on this trip and given the unique nature of this expedition we do expect to sell out quickly. Due to early expressions of interest the Captains Suite and Mini Suites are already sold out and there are only limited twin private and twin share rooms remaining. We have the entire vessel so this trip is solely for photographers and is 100% dedicated to both landscape and wildlife photography. Places are booked strictly on a first come first served basis. Additional information and a detailed itinerary can be downloaded from my website at www.jholko.com