A couple of weekends ago i met a woman, Margret, who wanted to buy one of my images from my exhibition, Frozen Lenses.
Today I delivered that image to her and as well as having an early lunch with her and a glass of wine (at 11am) I learnt a lot about perception.
Without her knowing the name of the image, this is what she told me it meant to her.
“From the original grandiose shape I can see the beauty evolving and how years of living leaves characteristic marks. In the deterioration process the wild jagged edges look like the deep folds in an old persons face or body”
What a beautiful way to describe my image. She told me those words were a reflection of how she felt about herself. I can’t believe she used the words ‘jagged edge’ – that is what I named my image within minutes of shooting it.
I told her I had a completely different slant on it.
“I spotted this iceberg from far away, it looked wild, yet alone and incomplete. As we approached it I saw the beauty and imperfection in its shape. It totally reminded me of me – wild with jagged edges.
What are your thoughts on this image? I’d love to hear them. Please leave your comments below.
I’ve just finished watching Shackleton’s Antarctic Adventure – a documentary film of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s now-legendary 1914-1916 British Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition. He wanted to be the first man to cross the Antarctic continent on foot.
He never fulfilled this dream. What he did do though was embed his name forever into the history books.
Through sheer perseverance and a determination that made him unique, he and his crew experienced conditions that any man would shy away from.
He watched his beloved ship ‘Endurance’ be crushed by ice, camped on ice floes under horrific conditions, spent many days at sea in life boats with his crew, and perhaps the most incredible part of this journey, he and 5 other men rowed 800 miles from Elephant Island to South Georgia.
This is the part I can’t believe. They rowed in the lifeboat, the James Caird, across the worlds most dangerous ocean, experienced gale force winds, treacherous seas and freezing, wet conditions.
All with the hope and belief that he could accomplish this formidable task.
They eventually made it to South Georgia. They unfortunately landed on the opposite side to the whaling station, so Shackleton and two others walked the 30 miles across South Georgia, with leather boots, 2 compasses, an axe and an old rope. They walked non-stop for 36 hours over dangerous crevasses, formidable peaks and complicated land. They eventually reached their destination – an unbelievable feat.
This is a story of courage, perseverance, hope and the human spirit. This heroic adventurer had eternal optimism, unequalled leadership qualities and believed anything could be accomplished. This caring gentle man nurtured his crew like they were his own family.
This really is one of the greatest journeys of all time….watch this film (click on the link below) and please let me know what you think of the film in the comments below.
Jad and Milton, the owners of Societe Food & Wine Bar – 1/9-15 Danks Street Waterloo have told us that our Antarctic exhibition – Frozen Lenses, is the ‘best, most professional exhibition we’ve ever had at the cafe.’
And as there are lots and lots of people continuing to visit the cafe to view our photos, could we possibly leave the exhibition up for another two weeks?
Ok, so as I’m all fired up about the ANTARCTIC, here are some of the coolest facts (sorry again:)
1.The lowest recorded Antarctic temperature of -89.2 C was at the the Russian Research Station, Vostok on 21st July, 1983…
– When I went to the Antarctic, I wore clothes made from state of the art breathable fabrics that were warm, windproof and, most importantly, kept me dry. Early Antartic explorers wore heavy woollen fabrics and outer layers that would soak up the moisture produced by sweat.
Getting dressed in the morning would often involve putting on outfits that were FROZEN SOLID with ice in the fabric. The garment would gradually become more flexible as it warmed up.
– Antarctica is the highest, driest, windiest, coldest place on earth.
– Shackleton’s Hut is situated at Cape Royds, Ross Island and was constructed by Shackleton and nine of his crew in 1908. They spent an entire year in this hut during his 1907-1909 expedition. Today it still holds over 5000 items including cuff links, darned trousers, a jar of gherkins, penguin eggs, seal blubber, books and canned food which have all been preserved by the cold weather.
Google has recently taken some fisheye photographs and created a 360 degree panoramic photograph of the hut.
To view inside Shackleton’s hut, click on the map below. You can use the navigator on the top left, or I find it easier to click the mouse anywhere on the map and drag the photo to view. You can also make the map bigger by clicking on the top right corner. Spend some time really looking at the provisions. It’s as though time has stood still…absolutely fascinating!!!
 – At the beginning of winter, the Antarctic sea ice advances by approximately 100,000 square kilometres PER DAY, and eventually doubles the size of Antarctica, adding up to an extra 20 million square kilometres of ice around the land mass. WOW! That’s approximately double the size of Australia’s land mass. This ice then breaks up and melts each year. Unbelievable.
Last week we were interviewed by John Donegan from Abc Sydney’s 702. He wanted to hear all about our adventures in the Antarctic.
To say the least, it was very exciting 🙂
For anyone that missed it, head over to abc 702’s page where you can read the story, view some of the pics and listen to the interview (click on the audio link next to the story)
Our Frozen Lenses exhibition has been so successful.
So many people have relived our trip with us.
If you’re looking for something to do in the next couple of days or over the weekend then why not check out our photographic exhibition of our AMAZING trip to the Antarctic.
So drop in and say hi to Jad and Milton, have a coffee or a bite to eat (the food is sensational) and check out the most beautiful place on earth.
I will be at the cafe all day Saturday 29th June and would LOVE to show you all our photos, our maps, and chat to you about the BEST trip I’ve been on in my life..
Hurry, this exhibition finishes on Sunday 30th June.
Well, I spent three hours listening to Dom Knights show on 702 abc radio…It was a great show, but unfortunately they didn’t air our interview 😦
However if you’d like to listen to the post then head over to abc’s page where you can read the story, view some of the pics and listen to the interview (click on the audio link next to the story)
And lots and lots of sales 🙂 Thats gonna make any photographer happy 🙂
Last week I had a call from John Donegan, an experienced photo journalist from 702 abc radio.
“Is this Chris Bernasconi?. This is John Donegan from 702 radio. I’d like to do a radio interview with you and Carol D’Amici about your Antarctic exhibition Frozen Lenses. Will that be okay?”
“Ummmm….Yeah” THAT WOULD BE GREAT!!
We met him on Wednesday at Societe Food and Wine Bar. I immediately recognised him. Im not sure where I’ve seen him, or where I’ve heard him speak, but I instantly felt at ease in his presence.
He relaxed both of us immediately and within a few minutes our interview was being recorded.
“How was the trip” he asked….Hmmm….well, awe inspiring, life changing, spectacular, breath taking, unbelievable, surreal and sensational.
There really aren’t too many words in the English language to describe how I felt whilst I travelled to the Antarctic.
This world at the bottom of our world is awe inspiring. I’ve come home more of a greenie than I’ve ever been and am dedicated to protecting this fragile environment.
I hope everyone who views our images will be moved enough to take action to protect this amazing part of our planet.
John asked Carol and I many questions. He made us laugh, and I realised quickly how strong the bond is that Carol and I have developed because of our Antarctic adventure.
We shared  a unique journey that not too many people on this planet have had the chance to experience. That has connected us forever. We laughed and recounted all of the wonderful highlights of our trip and answered John’s questions with passion and intensity.
All too quickly it was over. A quick photograph by him and then he was gone.
Tomorrow night – Friday 21st June – during “Evenings with Dominic Knight” on 702 DIGITAL radio, between 7pm-10pm, our interview will be aired.Â
I love everything about 702 radio and feel honoured that our exhibition will be the point of discussion this Friday night.
Our story will also be on the 702 website. 🙂
I will let you know the time of the broadcast tomorrow….so stay tuned.
Thanks John for your professionalism and the chance to tell our story. It was a real pleasure to meet you.
Our exhibition, Frozen Lenses, is open all weekend at Societe Food and Wine Bar.  Carol and I will be there most of the weekend. So if you wanna check out our pics, or our maps (you’ll love them) or just have a chat about the Antarctic, drop in and say hello.
Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton. A british explorer who led three expeditions to the Antarctic. He was one of the greatest adventurers of all time.
This was the ‘supposed’ ad he placed in a British newspaper looking for crew to accompany him on one of his expeditions. The authenticity of this ad is doubtful.
I love the words. Fake or not.
The men who did accompany Shackleton on his three expeditions were brave, intrepid men lured by adventure and with no concern for personal safety.
Extraordinary men in extraordinary times.
Don’t you love it? I’m gonna get this printed onto a t-shirt 🙂
I spent part of this weekend ‘gallery minding’ my photography exhibition, FROZEN LENSES – a photographic journey to the Antarctic.
I spoke to lots of people, showed them maps, talked about photos and described myself as a ‘passionate photographer.’
Later on in the afternoon I had the chance to do some reading – a book I’ve recently acquired called ‘The Heart of the Great Alone  – Scott, Shackleton and Antarctic Photography’ by David Hempleman-Adams, Sophie Gordon and Emma Stuart.
This book is beautiful. The photographs are stunning. As I was reading I came across a couple of pages dedicated to Frank Hurley – the Australian photographer who (amongst other journeys) accompanied Shackleton on the Imperial Transantarctic
Expedition 1914-1917. Hurley was hired to accompany Shackleton and his men who were attempting to cross the Antarctic continent on foot (1800 miles.) His job was to document the journey and secure photographic evidence of the trip.
Frank Hurley, photographer unknown.
In Buenos Aires on the 12th October 1914 Hurley set sail aboard the Endurance with Shackleton and his crew. He  commenced photographing them and working life aboard the ship.
So far, this is like any other photographer. Being passionate about the job at hand, I can totally relate to this.
What happens next though in this story is ABOVE AND BEYOND.
The ‘Endurance’, on its maiden voyage was built to crush through pack ice. After five months the expedition reached the freezing Weddell Sea and were within sight of land when the Endurance became trapped in the freezing ice. Nine months later, the ship was finally crushed, leaving the crew stranded on drifting ice floes in the unforgiving Antarctic.
Hurley photographed in adverse conditions that were unimaginable. With temperatures as low as -25 degrees Celcius, he continued his photography until the ship was finally destroyed by the ice. His darkroom was the ship’s walk in refridgerator.
Cold and then more cold.
His determination and commitment to his craft were unflinching and above his personal safety. During the final disintregation of the the ship, Hurley spent almost three days out on the ice, not wanting to miss one moment of the final peril of the vessel.
He had salvaged most of his glass plates and camera equipment from the wreck, but on November 2nd 1915 he wanted to retrieve the film canisters and negatives.
In Argonauts of the South (1925), Hurley wrote:
“We hacked our way through the splintered timbers and , after vainly fishing in the ice-laiden waters with boathooks, I made up my mind to dive in after them. It was mighty cold work groping about in the mushy ice in semi-darkness of the ship’s bowels, but I was rewarded in the end and passed out the three precious tins.”
Now read that again. He dived down into the FREEZING ANTARCTIC WATERS to retrieve canisters of film to be developed to show the world his photographs?
WOW.
I understand doing whatever it takes to get the shot and preserving it for all to see, but honestly, Hurley’s story shows commitment that far surpasses many ordinary photographers.
A great deal of money had been advanced to the expedition against the rights to the films and photographs and it was well known how valuable these photographs were to pay for the cost of the expedition.
Hurley and Shackleton had the agonising task of deciding which 120 plates to keep and destroying the remaining 400 plates. This was necessary to reduce the weight of the equipment the men would have to carry across the ice.
This would be truly heart wrenching. As a photographer, I know how personally attached I am to each and every photograph. A huge amount of energy is expended taking each pic and to have to decide which ones to destroy would be an incomprehensible task.
Take a look at this shot of me (the girl in sitting down in the cream hat) photographing in the Antarctic earlier this year. Hurley and I share the same passion for photography, but I live in such different times.
I wonder what Frank Hurley would say if he saw this photo of me sitting comfortably in a zodiac, using a high end DSLR camera and lens, dressed in contemporary polar clothing?
I am in awe of a courageous human being like Frank Hurley. What a true inspiration.
If you would like to enjoy some of these fantastic photographs, you can obtain a copy of this beautiful book here.
Hempleman-Adams David, Gordon Sophie, Stuart Emma. ( ) The Heart of the Great Alone  – Scott, Shackleton and Antarctic Photography, United Kingdom: Royal Collection Enterprises,pages 60-62
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