Hard to Believe: An End to the Best... And Hard to Believe Beauty...

What’s Up?

I enjoyed a long day of hard work and enjoyed sleeping in my own bed. I still have my cold. Yesterday I did something that I should have done weeks ago: on the advice of Dr. Cliff Oliver I purchased a steam inhaler and inhalant pads (at CVS) and enjoyed three 15 minutes sessions of breathing steam. I am feeling much better already.

Today I am working on image labels for the San Diego exhibit at the Natural History Museum.

All images on the card were created on the 2015 Cheesemans’ South Georgia Expedition. From top left clockwise to center: King Penguin resting on Snow, Fortuna Bay; Macaroni Penguin in snow, Cooper Island; Grey-headed Albatross, Elsehul; King Penguin neck abstract, Godthul; Northern Giant Petrel, Undine Harbor; adult Wandering Albatross, Prion Island; Elephant Seal, Undine Harbor; South Georgia Pipit fledgling/thanks Joe Kaplan! Fortuna Bay; high key King Penguins in snow, Fortuna Bay. Card design and all images copyright 2015: Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Hard to Believe: An End to the Best…

I have been to the Southern Ocean five times, the last four with Cheesemans’ Ecology Safaris (CES). It is common knowledge that they offer the finest ship-based photographic expeditions to South Georgia and the Falklands. Nobody else is close. They will make landings in tough conditions. Always. Their experienced staff and crew of zodiac drivers will get you on and off safely. You will enjoy so much time on a given landing that you will often want to head back to the ship early! Sorry, not me (though I did go back to the ship an hour early on our 2015 St. Andrews Bay landing. I quit after only 12 1/2 hours to go back to the ship on the 5pm zodiac when I could have stayed till 6pm…. My excuse? I could not raise my lens anymore.)

I learned recently that their October 22-November 6 (on the Sea Spirit) will be their last trip down to wildlife heaven on earth. Here is what Ted Cheeseman had to say:

The 2016 October/November expedition will be our last to South Georgia. Market changes, regulation changes, and as big of a part of our lives as it has been, we realize this next will indeed be the last.

When I asked him if he was sure that the 2016 trip would be the last, he replied:

To be honest, we have been known to go back on our statement of ‘last trip ever’. But for South Georgia, I don’t see how we could do it in the future. We want to continue but the costs are skyrocketing, regulation is threatening in a way that I think after 2016 may very well make it impossible to have free roaming folks ashore, i.e. possibly guided groups only – no thank you. So though I am loathe to say it, the Oct/Nov 2016 trip will be our last. If we do another before the end of 2018, I’ll see to it that you get free passage aboard. How’s that for a commitment?

BIRDS AS ART and the 2016 Cheesemans’ South Georgia/Falklands Expedition

When I got off the Ortelius at Stanley and told Ted that the just concluded voyage would be my last to the Southern Ocean, I meant it. But once I heard that the 2016 trip would be their last, I realized that I had to make the trip. As soon as I sign up a single participant for the expedition’s BAA group, I will be sending my deposit check.

If you would like to join me on what will be an amazing trip to a wondrous place, please shoot me an e-mail with the words “Cheesemans’ Last South Georgia Expedition” cut and pasted into the Subject Line.

All of the images on this card were created in the Falklands on the 2014 Cheesemans’ Southern Oceans Expedition. From top left clockwise to center: Black-browed Albatross tending chick, Steeple Jason Island; Black-browed Albatross courting pair, New Island; the Black-browed Albatross colony at Steeple Jason Island; Black-browed Albatross landing, New Island; King Cormorant head portrait, New Island; hull detail/derelict minesweeper, New Island; Rockhopper Penguin head portrait in bright sun, New Island; Striated Caracara, Steeple Jason Island; Magellanic Snipe chick, Sea Lion Island.

An Expedition Overview

Experience the vibrant spring of South Georgia, a true Antarctic wildlife paradise. Observe and photograph wildlife behaviors seldom seen beneath the towering, snow blanketed mountains (see image below) that dominate the island’s landscape. Southern Elephant Seal bulls fight for breeding rights while females nurse young, overlook vast colonies of loafing King Penguins, watch Macaroni Penguins cavort in the snow, photograph handsome Gray-headed Albatrosses in flight or attending to their cliffside nests and awkward Wandering Albatrosses attempting first flight. The itinerary includes six landing days on South Georgia and three landing days in the Falklands to observe too cute Rockhopper Penguins, Magellanic Penguins standing watch at their nesting burrows, and more Black-browed Albatrosses than you could ever imagine. To commemorate Shackleton’s famous self-rescue crossing South Georgia, CES also offers an optional trek retracing his steps. With Cheesemans’ twenty years of experience in the Antarctic region, they commit to an in-depth exploration of one of the densest wildlife spectacles found anywhere in the world, and with only 100 passengers, they routinely give you the opportunity to completely immerse yourself on each landing.

Two of the scheduled Falklands landings, New Island and especially Steeple Jason Island, rival the best locations on South Georgia. Those will likely include Salisbury Plain, St. Andrews Bay, Elsehul, Fortuna Bay, and either Cooper Island or Hercules Bay (for Macaroni Penguins).

Why Sign Up Through BIRDS AS ART?

If you have been thinking and dreaming of finally visiting South Georgia, this is the trip for you. There will likely never be another trip like this as the best outfit in the Southern Oceans business will not be returning after 2016…. Quit dreaming and act now. Though I will not be an expedition staff member on this trip, those who have traveled with me know that I cannot help but teach. And I will be doing a introductory photography program for the entire ship on our crossing to South Georgia. All who sign up via BAA will receive a free copy the new Southern Ocean Photography Guide (a $100 value) that I am currently working on. It will include pre-trip gear and clothing recommendations and a ton of info that you will find to be invaluable.

I will hold informal pre-landing briefings aboard ship so that when you land you know exactly what to expect and where to go. I will be available on the ship to review your images, answer your questions, and conduct informal over-the shoulder Photoshop sessions. And best of all, everyone who signs up under the auspices of BAA are invited to tag along with me on the landings where I will be glad to offer invaluable in-the-field advice. And the same goes for the shipboard birds in flight and marine mammal photographic sessions.

Again, if you would like to join me on what will truly be a once in a lifetime opportunity to a wondrous place, please shoot me an e-mail with the words “Cheesemans’ Last South Georgia Expedition,” cut and pasted into the Subject Line.

You can learn more about the trip here. If you sign up on your own be sure to mention that you would like to be part of the BAA Group. I’d be glad to answer any and all question via e-mail or by phone at 863-692-0906.

Important Notes

#1: If you fail to e-mail me as noted directly above, and register directly with CES you MUST let them know that you would like to be part of the BIRDS AS ART group.

#2: Joining the BIRDS AS ART group as above will not cost you one penny.

The Sea Spirit

The Sea Spirit is an “all suite” luxury vessel built for sailing in ice with an ice-strengthened hull and retractable fin stabilizers, the latter deliver smooth sailing to make your polar expedition enjoyable and safe. All cabins have a private, en-suite bathroom, a lounge area, and ample storage. The cabins have unobstructed exterior views via portholes, picture windows, or a private balcony. The ship is outfitted with a presentation room for on-board lectures as well as a gym, library, game room, lounge, bar with bartender, and dining lounge with chef-prepared meals. The Sea Spirit provides warm and comfortable accommodation for 100 passengers, the expedition staff, and the ship’s crew. The Sea Spirit carries a fleet of ten Zodiacs. The Zodiac loading area, located at the rear of the ship, provides a safe and relatively sheltered place from which to embark on our adventures.

Best of all, the Sea Spirit does 14 knots, a huge step above the other ships that I have been on; each crawled along at 11 knots…

Going Light

On recent trips I found myself going with shorter lenses and lighter gear than on my previous Southern Ocean Expedition. It is completely conceivable that you could do the entire trip with either the new Canon EF 100-400mm L IS II lens or a Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens with both teleconverters. Nikon folks could go with the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 80-400mm G ED VR lens or the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II lens and the Nikon TC-14E II 1.4x Teleconverter for D-AF-S & AF-I lenses ONLY. We do not recommend the Nikon 2X TCE.

A good crop factor camera body like the Canon EOS-7D Mark II makes makes life (and landings!) much easier.

Cheesemans’ Well Deserved Kudos

I know from personal experience that if you are a photographer who is going to invest in Southern Ocean voyage, you will want to put your money on Cheesemans’. No other tour company goes as far out of their way to ensure making every possible safe landing. And no other tour company will have you spending more time on land. Michael Viljeon from South Africa was aboard the Ortelius on a Southern Oceans voyage that preceded the Cheesemans’ trip that we were both on. As we headed back to Ushuaia, he said, “The folks that ran that first trip were pathetic. Too rough. No landing today. Surf too high today. No landing. Wind wrong direction. No landing. Cheesemans’ routinely and safely gets folks on land in conditions where the leaders of other tour companies do not even bother getting out of their bunks.”

Here, from the” Way to Go CES! (Cheeseman’s Ecology Safaris)” blog post here, is one of my favorite Cheesemans’ stories:

The landing at Bailey Head, Antarctica, was especially rewarding to me as I had been sitting in a zodiac 100 yards off shore on my 2007 trip when the zodiac in front of mine swamped and the captain of the ship called off the landing…. Early that day it looked as if my weather Karma might not be working. Ted’s “Good morning shipmates” was followed by the news that we would not be able to land at Bailey Head that morning as the swell was too big. The beach there is sloped tremendously and the sea strives to pull the zodiacs back into the ocean before folks have gotten off with their gear. Tom Murphy had said to me several days before, “We will get you on the beach at Bailey Head.” Ted concluded his morning greetings by saying, “We are sending out a scout team to see if landing is possible.”

After breakfast I was thrilled to hear Ted’s voice again on the PA, “We will be landing at 8am.” Afterwards folks noted that it was the calmest landing ever at this amazingly beautiful spot. My good weather Karma (courtesy of late-wife Elaine) had come through one last time. Along with St. Andrews Bay, it was one of my two favorite super-great once-in-a-lifetime days of the trip. And we even got to enjoy three additional hours at Hannah Point, Antarctica before calling it a wrap and heading for the feared Drake Passage. All thanks to Cheesemans’ Ecology Safaris.

This image was created at St. Andrews Bay, South Georgia, with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 100mm) and the rugged Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +1/3 stop: 1/800 sec. at f/10 in Manual mode. AWB. Center AF point/AI Servo Expand/Rear Focus AF on the front row of penguins and re-compose. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. King Penguin colony in early morning light

Hard to Believe Beauty…

When we landed at St. Andrews Bay just after 4am on November 9, 2015 the skies were clear and blue. I quickly realized that with the sun offshore it would be difficult to impossible to photograph the King Penguin colony while on shore. I found Ted and asked him if it would be possible to do a zodiac cruise in front of the colony so that we could get on sun angle. He said that there was a good chance that he could make that happen. I rounded up all the BAA group folks that I could and advised them on what to bring. Five minutes later six of us climbed back into a zodiac and enjoyed the time of our lives. Assistant expedition leader Hugh Rose did an excellent job at the helm.

Photographing the colony in early morning light from a zodiac was a huge challenge in part because of the extreme contrast and in part because a zodiac is always rocking gently even in calm water. After an hour we were sated and returned to shore just as it began to cloud up; I pray for clouds both in the Southern Ocean and on my Galapagos trips. Thanks to my idea dozens of other guests got to do zodiac cruising in front of the vast assemblage of King Penguins throughout the long day. But only the BAA group got to enjoy the incredible early morning light. Thanks to Ted Cheeseman for being open to my suggestion and for making it happen.

If you would like to join us on the OCT/NOV 2016 expedition to South Georgia and the Falklands, please shoot me an e-mail with the words “Cheesemans’ Last South Georgia Expedition” cut and pasted into the Subject Line. But much better to call CES directly as I will be offline until April 28 or 29th.

Please Remember to use our Affiliate Links 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod heads, Gitzo tripods, Wimberley heads and plates, LensCoats and accessories, and the like. We sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And we are always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. I just learned that my account was suspended during my absence; it should be up and running by Monday at the latest.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and visiting the BAA Online store as well.

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Typos

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