Photographing Polar Bears in Svalbard with the Nikon Z9 🐻❄️
Join me on my most thrilling adventure yet as I test the limits of the Nikon Z9 camera to capture EPIC moments with Polar Bears in the Arctic! 📸💛
Witness unbelievably rare behaviours and heart-racing interactions 👀
Discover the exhilarating stories behind a handful of my favourite images, and delve into the printing process with me upon my return 🐻❄️
Don't miss out on the chance to delve into my WILD life and learn my distinctive photographic techniques. Become a subscriber to my channel today! ☝️
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00:00 Introduction
00:28 Photographing Polar Bears on assignment in Svalbard
04:38 The best lenses for photographing wildlife in the Arctic
05:46 Reviewing my Polar Bear photographs
11:20 Printing my best Polar Bear photographs on various Fotospeed papers
15:08 My final thoughts
Who am I?
My name is Rachel Bigsby, and I am a 26-year-old wildlife photographer and Nikon creator with a passion for seabirds and cold-climate wildlife and a flair for capturing natural artistry! My skills are entirely self-taught, and my connection to the natural world was inherited from my late grandfather.
My work has been awarded in several of the world’s most prestigious competitions including Wildlife Photographer of the Year (winner of natural artistry) and Bird Photographer of the Year (portfolio winner), and published by National Geographic.
Beside my personal work as a wildlife photographer and Nikon creator, I am a contributing photographer for the RSPB, a proud Youth Ambassador for Badger Trust and Fotospeed, a competition judge for the RSPCA and Pro Partner to Shimoda, Tenba and Benro.
I am also a wildlife photography workshop leader and an emerging natural history broadcaster, with many UK television credits including BBC’s The One Show and BBC Springwatch.
It is my mission to connect a global audience to overlooked species like seabirds with captivating photographs which spark a new found love or interest, perhaps empowering change, while representing and inspiring young people.
Equipment featured in this video:
Nikon Z9
Nikkor Z 600mm f/4 TC VR S
Nikkor Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S
Nikkor Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S
Nikkor Z 24-70mm f/2.8 S
Nikon Monarch M7 Plus 8x30 binoculars
Fotospeed Natural Soft Textured Bright White 315 paper
Fotospeed Platinum Gloss Art Fibre 300 paper
Fotospeed Platinum Cotton 305 paper
Music:
Track Title: Tell The World Artist Name(s): Caleb Etheridge
Writer Name: Caleb Etheridge Writer IPI Number: 796912387 Writer PRO: ASCAP
Publisher Name: A SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTION Publisher IPI Number: 882718598
Track Title: Verglas Artist Name(s): EVOE
Writer Name: Lincoln Davis Writer IPI Number: 00804098250 Writer PRO: BMI
Publisher Name: SALTY SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTIONS Publisher IPI Number: 00881978570
That was so so amazing Rachel! The bear sliding on it tummy was so cool. And the images are incredible!!!!
Thank you for doing a video with her on bird photography, otherwise I would not known about her ad I live in the U.S.
That was fantastic. What I wouldn't give to be be able to go on a trip like that! Also, love the high key stuff, and though I don't usually enjoy black and white as much , those environmental shots with the bear looked absolutely incredible.
Thank you so much, Brent! I can understand why you don't like black and white as much as colour, but I'm glad you enjoyed it here and I'm grateful that you let me know :-)
Outstanding pictures!
These images are amazing
Bravo!
Fabulous images Rachel and what an incredible experience! 👏👏😍😍
Thank you for sharing the beauty of your phenomenal photography as well as your inspiring experiences. Your minimalist approach encourages the raw power of your subjects to overwhelm your viewers.
❤ outstanding photos. ....great production... . . Sound levels vary.
Great work Rachel!
Thank you!!
Rally nice work.!!!! Congrats.
Thank you so much @kosmaspapakostopoulos !
This is a remarkable first video, thank you. Exceptional images, very interesting commentary. For future videos I would only wish for more consistent audio levels (lav mike?).
Amazing photos, really unique.
Glad you like them! Thank you so much for commenting!
Beautiful work. To me, the B&W landscape at 7:45 is a great highlight. In the close-up shots you managed to shoot interesting images - compliments - that are much more than just images of wild animals. The off-white paper is not my thing. If I want to render the off-white of the polar bear's fur then I need a seriously white substrate. It's all subtle. I would opt for smooth paper, in these cases. If you want to stick to softness, I would select smooth matte, if you want to pack more punch, look at smooth baryta paper. Fotospeed represent Hahnemühle too and this brand has excellent papers. The baryta layer gives a whiter base, but it's not an OBA that will lose its whitening effect over time. The contrast you can render on paper depends (a) on how white the paper is and (b) how black your ink is.
sooo amazing shots
Thank you @bluekarel !!
I’m happy to see you have your own KZhead channel now!
Thank you! Me too!! I just have so many incredible opportunities coming up, it felt like a waste not to document them! 😌
That sighting of the reindeer hunt is just nuts, unbelievable! Also the close-up and environmental shots are fantastic, top notch stuff!
Absolutely beautiful shots of polar bears and landscapes. Thank you for sharing. Very well done.
Fantastic. Trip of a lifetime! It is great to see your artistic component incorporated into your love of wildlife photography, a component missing with a lot of photographers even though they have excellent technical ability.
Great Images ... 🦘
Incredible experience, memories and photographs Rachel! Thanks for sharing 🤍
Stunning photography & an what must have been an amazing experience
Fantastic video, stunning images - Rachel you are very talented. Looking forward to your future videos👍
Thank you so much 😀
Amazing video!
You are so kind
Beautiful photographs! Great work, Rachel 👌Must have been an amazing adventure to take part in!
Stunning Rachel - amazing opportunity, amazing results, thank you for sharing
Thank you so much 😀
Bewegende Aufnahmen, herzlichen Dank, Gerhard
Thank you, Gerald!
Incredible images, and I can't believe it was all captured in 3 hours. It's amazing how things come together sometimes . Thanks for sharing your amazing work.
I'm glad you enjoyed it, thank you! It really was close...
Truly mesmerising work-i never get tired of arctic shots.
Thank you so much 😀
What a wonderful insight into the Arctic and work of a top wildlife photographer. I truly look forward to meeting and learning from you on the forthcoming Antarctic trip.
Ripper video Rachel, I love your high key image style. Cheers
Totally stunning!
Absolutely stunning images, thank you for sharing, RACHEL
Thank you so much 😀
Wow! Absolutely stunning images, thank you for sharing
Great video, amazing opportunity!
Beautiful, Rachel. Well done!
Thank you so much!
Hi Rachel ! Great video !!! Beautiful photos !!!
Wow! Some amazing images there, Rachel. Well done.
Thanks so much! 😊
Excellent video Rachel 👏great portfolio 🤝one to be proud of 👍
Stunning video and photographs! The sliding icebear is just amazing funny. Looking forward to next episodes.
Thank you so much 😀
Awesome video and adventure …can’t wait to go to Svalbard next Summer 😊 Wonderful shots just amazing detail in the Polar bear and such a great perspective with the wide angle shots Bravo 👏 🎉❤
The portraits are great but the first shot of the polar bear against the background of the mountain is special - as is the beautifully composed shot of the polar bear with the horizontal black stretch of water across the frame (imho). To have captured all of this in the space of three hours is silly. Imagine what you could accomplish if you had a whole week or two to explore the area.
Thank you! That's really kind of you. I know... I feel incredibly nervous ahead of most of my trips, as I always think that I don't have enough time. However, the magic that happened in just 3 hours here has certainly helped to calm my nerves.
Some great shots of the Polar bear! My favorite is at least 12 of them!
Same here! Thank you so much 😀
Wow, amazing images. What an experience.
Thank you for sharing! This was truly wonderful.
Beautiful images, and an amazing experience. I like the story behind the scenes and the environmental photos and videos. I’m heading off to Northern Finland in January, also with Z9’s so lots to look forward to! So pleased to have found your channel.👍
Wonderful images. What an experience!
What a Epic video Rachel your photos are incredible what a beautiful place to be and experience 😊
Thank you so much 😀
Absolutely Incredible 🙏🏽
Thank you so much 😀
Wow, some Amazing shots and really fascinating behaviour as well
Thank you so much 😀 It was!
Well done! Hope to see more!
Such a great work Rachel!! 👏👏👏
Thank you so much 😀
Amazing video and brilliant images of the polar bear.
Thank you so much 😀
Fantastic photos!! You deserve better or more consistent sound
really great video, and all those photos are amazing.
Amazing ❤❤❤
Fantastic images 🤩
Awesome shots - very nice compositions!👍
Thank you so much 😀
Excellent job Rachel! Your images are incredible, love them all!!! Suggestion: there is a bit of echo and lack of clarity of sound in your office/studio. Maybe a “lap mic” would help. Keep on on the excellent work!!! Best
Thanks for the tips!
Awesome work, what a beautiful sight
Thank you!
Stunning pictures. Well done.
Thank you so much 😀
I really appreciate the print and paper review at the end. I really liked the texture paper for the blue ice and bear photo and the bright white matte for the others... I didn't see paper info in the notes so I had to listen a few times to get the info. Thanks again
Thank you so much! Paper info is in the description :-)
Beautiful shots. What lenses would you recommend for such a trip?
outstanding
Thank you for sharing your stories, love it.
Thank you so much 😀
Hello, it was a great video 🤩 it's my dream to visit Svalbard, i hope i can visit someday 🙌
I hope so too!
what a wonderful encounter rachael ,i now know what the dinghy boat training was for ? the 600 brings the detail for sure in bears fur,the lanscape environmental are equally breathtaking.kudos to you .
That's it!! Thank you so much 😀
Superb
thank you!
good Job
Thank you so much 😀
Rachel, I’ve just got round to watching this video and it has absolutely blown my mind. Firstly, what an amazing experience for you, and secondly, your photography is absolutely breathtaking. I can’t get my head around just how spectacular the final images are. Really looking forward to learning from you next May at Bempton. Any chance you could bring the bear…? 😉
Wow, thank you! I'm very excited to work with you in May (minus bear) ;-)
Great video. A constructive critique: your microphone ..🎙️👎🏻. Such great video deserves better 😮😊 Looking forward to watching your next video
Wonderful shots! Powerful polar bears against incredible landscapes! Rachel, please tell me, what brand of mittens are you using at 3:00? I can't find a warm mittens option that allows fingers to be exposed :).
Thank you so much @forestman001 ! I'm wearing The Heat Company Heat 3 Smart here: www.theheatcompany.com/en-gb/gloves/heat-3-smart?number=35406 - they're great, as they allow for hand warmers to be placed inside the zips!
@@RachelBigsby thank you very much for the link!
Thank you for sharing this! I almost have the same set of lenses except for the 600 f/4 ($$$$). I noticed that you didn't have the lens hoods on for some of the shots of you. Was there a reason for that? I would think that in a bright enviroment like that glare would be a huge issue. Subscribed!
Thank you for subscribing @petermoy7934 ! Lens hoods that are as big as the 600mm f4 can retain their own heat when moving quickly from the warmth of the ship to the cold of the outdoors, creating a heat haze within the hood. Since the nature of this environment is fast paced and finding Polar Bears happens very suddenly, there isn't much time for the lens hood to acclimatise which is why I removed it, to avoid soft images. I hope this helps!
Amazing images, what printer do you use or do you use a print shop? so glad your channel popped up on my feed
Thank you so much for saying that, @tonyw3250 - I don't own a printer, I use Fotospeed as a part of my ambassadorship, though, they don't currently offer a printing service to the public.
Do u do photography for a living? You are so beautiful and your journey is son inspiring❤
Hello and congratulations!!! Can you kindly tell me which photography gloves you used? Thank you 🙏 and congratulations again!!!
Thank you! I used a mixture of The Heat Company Heat 3, and Vallerett polar mittens :-)
Awesome pics! What gloves are you wearing?
I’m wearing a combination of Vallerret and The Heat Company 😊
Fabulous images!! May I ask which expedition company you used? Cannot read company name on the shirts.
of course - I was out there with Nansen Polar Expeditions. Hope this helps!
I found your KZhead video of your trip in Svalbard. It was marvelous. I do have a question. If I am not mistaken, I did not see a lens hood on the lenses shown during use. Is it the Z 'S' series lenses that obviate the need or do you have something else that you consider? Thank you again. Jon
Hi Jon, they were used throughout the trip where possible. However, transitioning from the warmth of the ship to the cold of the arctic environment meant that the lens hoods were retaining quite a lot of heat and creating a haze at times. That's why I'm not always seen to be using them.
Thanks Rachel and congrats!
Amazing images!!! Question: I'd love to know what is your approach to meter the bear with the snow as background... Spot or matrix metering...? thank you in advance ! such a difficult task to get the exposure right in this case with a polar bear.. or also with a black bear or dark fur animal, to make sure the true colors show correctly! ;) 🙏
I believe I used spot metering, as it evaluated the exposure from around my focus point, allowing you to correctly expose the bear even with the very bright background. I think I would've switched to matrix metering when the light was changeable. I hope this helps!
@@RachelBigsby thanks!
Did you happen to meet any bears there that couldn't decide which place to live, the south end of the world or the north end of the world... those bi-polar bears?
What month was this? Was the hunting polar bear the famous Grinch?
It was mid-May. Apparently it wasn't Grinch, but, her daughter? I'm afraid I don't know any more than that. Perhaps you do?!
@@RachelBigsby Grinch had a daughter? Didnt know that. I was there in mid-April when Frost was killed and the only bear we saw had a big 9 spray painted on its back
I would love to know, for a photographer who has very little money / income, how does one go about putting ones' self in position to capture images of this species in the wild? Are these opportunities truly open to all, rich and poor alike? Or is it pretty much something that one can only do if they are well off, or at least average, in wealth?east average, in wealth? I mean, do you see this as being a reasonable shoot for someone living below the poverty line, who lives ten thousand kilometers from these bears?
Hi Tom. Without divulging too much information over the internet, I am 26, I live alone and live basically, semi-off grid. Until last month, I juggled 3 jobs alongside my photography. Now, I work "just" 2 jobs alongside my photography in order to make it viable. I am entirely self taught and my opportunities are very much self-made. For this assignment, I worked with Nikon under their sponsorship after I worked hard to pitch an idea that was appealing enough to justify the brand sending me to the Arctic. It's easy to say, but opportunities are out there for those who seek them and for those who have the idea, initiative and confidence to ask and pursue. I find these questions uncomfortable to answer as I feel like they are asked with a immediate assumption that I have only accomplished my milestones as I come from wealth, which couldn't be any further from the truth. Demystifying these assumptions and proving that it is possible to create a career in photography regardless of background is a long-term project that I am most passionate about. I work closely with several universities/colleges to deliver career workshops and I often speak publicly about the possibilities at events/lectures. Perhaps I'll make a video on it one day.
@@RachelBigsby thank you very much for your answer. I know many people who do such expeditions and have these types of opportunities, but all of them have had decent jobs and earned a good living and that is why they can go on such trips. I was hoping against hope that your answer would be what it was - that there is a way for a low income person without the advantages of a job and a college education to do such wonderful expeditions. There are so many of us out here who want to do these arctic expeditions, but have not had the privileges of education or being brought up in a middle class family. You give me, and others, hope!