Newsletter #3

Dear Friends,

2019 is off to a roaring start with an amazing voyage to Antarctica. I’ve been sharing images on my @TimLaman Instagram feed, so I hope you have been enjoying those.  A real highlight of the trip was spending New Year’s Eve cruising down the Lemaire Channel in perfect calm conditions as the sun set, and then watching it rise a few hours later.  I’ve shared one of my favorite images from the trip below.

Helmeted Hornbills have been a major focus of my wildlife photojournalism efforts these past couple years, and in addition to the National Geographic story published last September, I’m pleased to report they are featured as a cover story in the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s magazine LIVING BIRD. This remarkable species is critically endangered, is still hunted for its casque, and we really need to increase awareness among consumers to not purchase hornbill products. If you’re not a Lab member who gets the magazine already, you can read the story here:  Helmeted Hornbill Story.

Lemaire Channel Sunburst – New Year’s Eve

It was a little after 10 PM on New Year’s Eve, and the conditions in the Lemaire Channel were the best I’d ever seen in my five visits to Antarctica.  Glassy calm, interesting ice floes, and the sun peaking through clouds hitting the mountain peaks.  As our ship, the National Geographic Explorer neared the heart of the channel, I could see the sun hitting the sea ice ahead, and I knew it was going to pop out from behind the mountain.  I secured a place on the rail, and checked my camera settings.  I wanted to use a very small aperture (f16) in order to get the sunburst effect when the sun edged into the frame around the mountain.  As the ship passed into the sunshine, I fired a burst of images, and with this frame, got just the result I had imagined.  The sun didn’t set until after midnight (12:08 AM to be exact) and rose again shortly after 2AM.  It never got dark, and I was up photographing the pink dawn light before 4AM…. sometimes you have to sacrifice a little sleep for your photography, especially at 65 degrees South latitude.  But I hope you will agree it was well worth it. 

Gallery Update

We have just created a new gallery of my favorite images from the latest Antarctica trip, so please check it out here (New Antarctica Gallery).  We have also added a new gallery of some of my favorite bird images, called “The Wonder of Birds”, and will continue to add more galleries, so please enjoy, and perhaps consider purchasing a print to support my work. 

Looking ahead, the year is taking shape with plans to continue working on projects in Coiba National Park, Panama, back in Gunung Palung in Borneo, and in Papua on Birds-of-Paradise.  Stay tuned! 

On a personal note, one of the most special things about the Antarctica trip was to be able to take my daughter Jessica (15) along as my cabin-mate.  My work often takes me away from home for long periods, but being able to do something special like this is one of the perks of my sometimes crazy life.   

Best wishes to all of you for 2019, 

Tim