PRO COLUMN
Alex Stead on the challenges of a remote, last-minute photo expedition
Alex Stead on a spontaneous expedition
We all face fresh challenges in our career from time to time, and this is no bad thing. I recently undertook a ship-based expedition to Svalbard, Norway to capture Arctic wildlife – a daunting challenge given that I’d never done anything quite like it before. One Saturday morning I booked onto a tenday expedition, and on the following Monday I set off on this last-minute adventure, not sure what to expect but excited to experience a new location.
As a travel photographer, I’m always considering the best way to capture the locations I visit. This time I’d be travelling on a small ship called the M/V Kinfish through a company called Natural World Safaris. With a maximum of 12 guests and crew, we’d have the flexibility to sail into shallower waters and cruise around while still enjoying room to change position and wait and observe the wildlife we found.
I had set myself up with the greatest opportunity a photographer could to capture Arctic wildlife. That said, it meant being fixed to one distinct location, instead of roaming freely as I tend to do when I work.
Instead, I spent time learning and exploring my new home – the ship was a challenging but good working platform. Where were the best spots? Where was the lowest point to the water? What did I need to wear and use to remain comfortable while waiting? The most important lesson was learning to move around the ship as quietly as possible with heavy gear, as banging even a small bit of metal might scare off a polar bear. And being fixed instead of roaming free turned out to be an incredible blessing, not only allowing for a better chance to see wildlife, but also to see a lot more of otherwise inaccessible places.
In such an unpredictable environment and without the planning and research of areas that I usually undertake before shoots, my approach to imagery had to change. I was adapting to the landscape and weather conditions each day. Being in one of the most remote parts of the world was about preparing, even if that meant not being able to prepare at all.