I have just published Episode 66 of my Wild Nature Photography Podcast. In this episode, I briefly discuss the realities of travel delays during travel in the high Arctic during Winter and the exciting news that multiple photographs from my entries have been selected as finalist images in the 2023 Bird Photographer off the Year competition.
The photograph of the month for March 2023 comes from my recent expedition to Mongolia to photograph the elusive and rare Pallas Cat in the Steppe region of Mongolia in Winter. This is my favourite photograph from this expedition as it captures the Pallas Cat in a wonderfully dramatic moment as it bounds through the deep snow. Shot with the Canon EOS R3 and the Canon RF 600mm F4L IS, this photograph would have been virtually impossible prior to the incredible autofocus found in the latest generation of mirrorless cameras. Although the cat is not coming directly toward the camera (the most challenging scenario for the camera’s autofocus), it was moving extremely quickly. With only a shallow depth of field set, it was critical to nail focus on the eyes. Before mirrorless and eye tracking, I would have stopped down the lens significantly more to ensure adequate depth of field and a safety margin for missed focus. With eye tracking, the camera could track the eyes of the cat as it bounded up and down through the snow.
A few days back in Australia have already come and gone, and in a little over an hour, I am departing for the airport (again) and the long haul of eight flights to Grise Fiord in Ellesmere Island, high in the Canadian Arctic. It has been a year since I was last in the Canadian Arctic, and I look forward to returning to this fantastic, remote location. Ellesmere Island is one of the very last truly wild places on earth, and it offers a unique opportunity to experience the harsh but beautiful Arctic winter. Of course, we are hoping for extraordinary encounters with wildlife, but cognisant of the realities of trying to find and photograph one of the hardest-to-find animals on earth, the white Arctic Wolf. The eve of an expedition such as this is always full of excitement and anticipation, and I look forward to meeting up with the team in Canada and heading out into the field.
I will be offline for most of March while I guide several expeditions for White Arctic Wolves and Polar Bars on Ellesmere. If you are trying to contact me during this time, please be patient, and I will get back to you on my return as soon as possible.
As my time here in Australia has been so limited between trips, I have not made a formal packing list for these expeditions; but I briefly discussed the equipment I am taking in my latest podcast HERE. If time permits, I will try and record a podcast or two during the expedition for later upload. See you in Ellesmere!
I have just published Episode 65 of my Wild Nature Photography Podcast. In this episode, I briefly discuss my preparations for the upcoming back-to-back expeditions to Ellesmere Island in the high Canadian Arctic for both White Arctic Wolves and Polar Bears; as well as the follow-on winter ship-based expedition to Svalbard. The main topic of the podcast is my thoughts on the art of cropping in Wildlife and Nature Photography. This episode also debuts the new podcast artwork.
Some sad news; I learned very early this morning that ‘Basil’; the old male Arctic Fox I have been photographing for years in the far north of West Iceland (that I posted a video of a few days ago) has passed away. From what I have been able to find out, he passed in his sleep. His body has been taken back to the Arctic Fox research centre for aging and further research. Rest in peace Basil. You were a great friend and will be greatly missed.
