Female polar bear (Ursus maritimus) and two cubs on pack ice, Hinlopen Straight, Spitsbergen/Svalbard, Norway, on 28 July 2007. Polar bears primary habitat of sea ice is threatened due to global warming and rising temperatures in the Arctic regions.

This weeks photo from the archive comes from an ice floe in Hinlopen Straight in the Spitsbergen Islands, an island group north of Norway.

This photo was taken while I was working on the ice breaker the Akademik Sergey Vavilov. Chartered to Peregrine Adventures for polar expedition cruises, I was completing my first three-month trip in the Arctic, working as a guide and Assistant Expedition Leader. Not surprisingly, polar bears are a big drawcard for the people that board the ship every 10-days. Even more so given how threatened bears are due to rising temperatures and increased melting in the Arctic region.

One of the things that fascinates me about polar bears is our relationship to them.

On one hand, polar bears are the top predator in their environment. On the other, they are seen by a lot of people as these beautiful animals that are almost soft and cuddly. The truth is, polar bears are fascinating animals to be around. Polar bears aren’t dangerous to humans, until you put yourself in proximity to one. When you think of it that way, I am inclined to say that humans are dangerous to polar bears.

Personally, I think that polar bears wouldn’t be such a drawcard if you could just walk up to them with no risk of being mauled.

You can learn more about polar bears and conservation efforts at the Polar Bears International site.

[This image can be licensed for usage from Aurora Photos. Just double click on the photo to license it].

Bangkok Airways Magazine, Fah Thai published two of my images from the Maldives in the January/February 2010 edition. The images show two very different views of the Maldives. Thanks to the editorial team for running with these two views of the Maldives. Read the short article here.

Bangkok Airways Fah Thai Magazine January/February 2010 Infocus Section

Bangkok Airways Fah Thai Magazine January/February 2010 Infocus Section

I also came across the online version of Simon Calder’s article in British Airways Magazine, High Life. High Life opened this article with a double page photo of mine back in the start of December 2009. Read the article here.

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Double page spread in British Airways High Life, December 2009 Issue.

Last year I was on route from Sydney to London – on my way to the Arctic – when I picked up the British Airways Inflight Magazine, High Life.

Flicking through it, I realised I needed to get in touch with the Photo Editor at High Life. It was just the type of publication that suited the type of travel photography I produce.

Just months after returning from my 3 1/2 months in the Arctic, I received an email one day from the Photo Editor at High Life, asking for a lightbox of polar imagery (I love it when that happens).

A year later, the PE and AD decided to go with a double page opener of an image I took of the icebreaker the Akademik Sergey Vavilov, while cruising past the Seven Islands, the most northerly point of Norway.

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This photo was taken on a magically calm and sunny day in Spitstbergen / Svalbard, just north of mainland Norway back in 2007 during a three-month trip amongst the islands.

The polar bear on the left is the mother and the two bears on the right are her cubs. Given the size of the two cubs they are probably 2 to 3 years of age and not that far off being left by their mother to defend for themselves as young adults.

Polar bear encounters in the wild are tricky business.

Finding polar bears requires a good strategy and lots of patience. When you add in photography you also want good shooting conditions, which means high sun and good contrast – something you rarely get in Svalbard!.

Understanding the characteristics of the animal you are looking for goes a long way with this.

The strategy to finding polar bears is this: go to their primary habitat during summer, which is sea ice.

Why sea ice?

Seals haul out on sea ice and seals are the primary diet of polar bears. And in case you are wondering why polar bears are threatened by global warming, it is because of this very reason. No more sea ice, means no more seals hauling out, means no more food for polar bears.

Once you have found yourself a good few square kilometres of sea ice (the bigger the better), you then have to find a bear. This requires untold scanning using a high quality pair of binoculars, which just happen to be one of the best things you can invest in for serious wildlife spotting (so don’t skimp!).

A polar bear moving is the easiest animal to spot, while a polar bear lying down is the hardest. Polar bears are not white, they are in fact a distinct pale whitish yellow. This means that they do stand out in the landscape if you know what you are looking for.

It all takes patience and a lot of it. It is more miss than hit.

If you find a bear on sea ice, then chances are you will find more. On the day this photo was taken, we saw a total of 13 bears which was pretty amazing. This bear encounter above lasted for over 2-hours.  You can see the bears were clearly undisturbed by our presence, which made this encounter even more amazing.

The name of the game is to have an encounter with a polar bear with the least amount of disturbance to the actual animal.

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