A Joshua Holko Polar Photography Experience Short Film

Posted in Antarctica, Arctic, Media, News and Updates, Travel Photography, Video, Workshops and Expeditions4 Comments

If you follow my blog you may recall that in August this year I took a small two person film crew from Untitled Filmworks with me to the Arctic to film what it was like to travel with and be part of a dedicated polar photographic expedition. During the fourteen days we spent in the Arctic we travelled from the north of Iceland across the Denmark Strait to Greenland where we explored many of the wondrous fjords and amazing geology of this primordial arctic land. We encountered some incredible icebergs and wildlife and even visited a small native Inuit village. We then sailed across to Svalbard and Longyearbyen in search of Polar Bears, whales and seals. We spent fourteen days travelling and filming in the arctic using a combination of RED Epic 5K Cinema Camera and Canon 1DC Cinema cameras. We gathered more than 10 Terabytes of footage including a spectacular iceberg collapse and glacial calving and I am extremely pleased to now have the final short film back from editing and to be releasing it for everyone to enjoy. One of the most common questions I am often asked via email is ‘What is it like to go on a dedicated photographic expedition to the Arctic or Antarctic?’ Well, just sit back and watch this video to experience it for yourself.  Make sure you click on the image to watch it full screen in  High Definition – dim the lights and crank the volume! And be sure to share with your friends.

Photo of the Month November 2013: Lemaire Channel Antarctica

Posted in Antarctica, Landscape Photographs, News and Updates, Photographs, Travel Photography, Workshops and ExpeditionsLeave a comment

I recently returned from my 2013 photography expedition to Antarctica and have started to edit and process the images I shot during this remarkable trip. I will have a full report on this expedition over the coming days here on my blog but wanted to share this photograph from the Lemaire Channel in Antarctica as my photograph of the month for November. The Lemaire Channel experience on this expedition was nothing short of breathtaking with incredible reflections in the dark still Antarctic waters. This was our longest day of shooting during the trip and saw us rise before 4am and shoot through until well after midnight. The conditions on arrival at the entrance to the Lemaire were anything but ideal. Low cloud and clagged in conditions had me more than concerned as the sun began to rise. Then as if someone flicked a light-switch the cloud lifted and we were greeted to an incredible experience as we glided through the Lemaire Channel where we were treated to an incredible photographic display of light and reflection. To top it off we took the 2013 honours as the first ship of the season to navigate this amazing passage of water. A higher resolution copy of this photograph can be seen on my website at www.jholko.com

Testimonial from Nita Gulbas – Antarctica 2013

Posted in Media, News and Updates, Testimonials, Travel Photography, Workshops and ExpeditionsLeave a comment
What can you say about an expedition of a lifetime? We had many opportunities on this trip that came our way due to Mother Nature. Take her work, add Joshua, and you have a dynamic duo. This is the second trip I have taken with Josh, and after both, I came away with the same feelings: amazing, fulfilling, fun. Josh has extensive knowledge and experience in the areas he travels to. As a result, the trips are extremely well organized, yet have a looseness allowing the participant to freely pursue the environment in very personal ways. His chosen expedition company provided us with skilled, knowledgeable staff who went out of their way to meet the needs of photographers. This meant having Zodiacs ready to launch at five am, asking the chef to call for meals at altered times, or being allowed to stay longer on site (weather permitting) when the  conditions were tantalizing for a group of photographers.

Attendees varied from professional photographers, award winning amateurs, to point and shoot individuals. Josh was always available for input if one needed, and no matter how tired, he was there for his group whether during active shooting, or in the evening for review if one wanted his input.  I think everyone came away with images to be proud of.
In short, having been on other photo tours, Joshua’s rank #1 in my book.

Jewels of the Arctic 2014 Open for Bookings

Posted in Arctic, News and Updates, Photographs, Travel Photography, Wildlife Photographs, Workshops and Expeditions1 Comment

Jewels of the Arctic Expeditions for 2013 are done and dusted (watch for the video here in the next few days). The good news if you missed out is that I will be leading back-to-back Jewels of the Arctic expeditions again in August and September next year 2014. These expeditions are designed to take in the very best of the Arctic and are geared towards Arctic photography. As per the sold out trips this year I will be leading both expeditions. My friend and Pro Photographer Antony Watson will be assisting me on both trips with lectures and photographic instruction. The first expedition departs from Longyearbyen in Svalbard and takes us across to Greenland and Iceland. The second begins in Iceland and sails to Greenland and Longyearbyen in Svalbard. The two expeditions are identical; but are run in reverse order.

The 2013 Jewels of the Arctic trips sold out quickly and many places for 2014 have already been filled from those who missed out this year (the first trip is almost sold out and only a few places are remaning). If you are interested in joining us on one of these photographic adventures you can download a detailed itinerary and PDF flyer from my website or contact me for additional information.

Look for a short film I am excited to be releasing very soon here on my blog of our Jewels of the Arctic experience this year.

Finalist: Natures Best Photography & Travel Photographer of the Year 2013

Posted in Antarctica, Iceland, Landscape Photographs, Media, News and Updates, Photographs, Travel PhotographyLeave a comment

I returned home a couple of days ago from an expedition I lead to Antarctica with my friend Daniel Bergmann and am starting to catch up on all of the missed correspondence whilst I was off the grid. I will have a lot more to say about the Antarctica expedition over the coming weeks as this was an extraordinary trip with some of the best weather and light I have experienced in this part of the world – including an absolutely incredible journey through the Lemaire Channel. In the meantime, I was very pleased to learn that two of my photographs were selected as finalists in Natures Best Photography and another in the Travel Photographer of the Year competition. This is the second time I have had images in the finals in both Nature’s Best Photography and Travel Photographer of the Year and am honoured to have had my photographs selected.  The overall winners for Natures Best Photography have already been selected and can be seen on the Natures Best Photography website. Travel photographer of the Year is still in its last round of judging and final winners should be announced in a few days time. Finalist – Natures Best Photography 2013: Landscape Category

Finalist Natures Best Photography 2013: Landscape Category

Finalist Travel Photographer of the Year: Single Shot Extraordinary Image Category