{"id":17087,"date":"2025-04-21T08:26:46","date_gmt":"2025-04-21T08:26:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/talesfromtheblue.com\/?p=17087"},"modified":"2025-04-21T09:09:01","modified_gmt":"2025-04-21T09:09:01","slug":"the-story-behind-the-last-bite-winner-of-ocean-photographer-of-the-year-2024-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/talesfromtheblue.com\/en\/expeditions\/the-story-behind-the-last-bite-winner-of-ocean-photographer-of-the-year-2024-2\/","title":{"rendered":"The Adventure of Life: Antarctica"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Apnea\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Cruzar\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Join me on upcoming expeditions to Antarctica in 2026 and 2027.<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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If I had to choose the craziest experience I’ve ever had on Earth, without a doubt, it would be this one.\n

I don\u2019t know what it\u2019s like to go to space, but traveling to Antarctica is the closest thing to discovering another planet. I used to think that was just a clich\u00e9\u2026 until I arrived. Then I realized it wasn\u2019t \u2014 everything you think you know about this world starts to shake when you\u2019re faced with that white desert, that silence, that raw beauty. <\/p>\n

And now, in 2026 and 2027, we\u2019re going back. This time on a bigger, more comfortable ship, with a diving platform and better equipped to fully embrace the experience. \n

But before that, I want to share something from my previous experience.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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The end of the world is real \u2014 and I crossed it by sailboat.\n<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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It all started in the south of Argentina, where the land ends and the challenge of crossing the infamous Drake Passage begins.
Sailing those waters is a journey in itself. We did it on a small sailboat called El Dobl\u00f3n, and from the moment we set course south, we knew nothing would ever be the same. \n\n

Reaching Antarctica isn\u2019t just arriving at a destination \u2014 it\u2019s entering another dimension. Everything is extreme: the cold, the silence, the light, the colors, the emotions. \n\n

There, you realize that nothing you\u2019ve ever seen in photos or videos comes close.\n\n

And I had seen thousands.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Gigantes\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Among Giants of Ice\n<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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One of the most breathtaking moments was diving among icebergs.\n\n

Blue giants, sculpted by time and water, with shapes that looked like they came out of a dream.\n\n

The water was -2\u00b0C. Literally. But thanks to the amazing gear from @aqualungdivers <\/a>and the polar clothing from @ternua_official<\/a>, we were able to handle it without shivering for even a second. \n\n

I remember swimming for almost an hour without thinking about the cold \u2014 just observing, floating in that blue world as if time had stopped.\n\n

@lethalcrysis_ <\/a>was free diving while I captured footage.
We were working on three documentaries for his YouTube channel and made the most of every second of daylight to gather material, alongside @alegriamarineros <\/a>and @gadormunta<\/a>. \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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The Leopard Seal: The Most Epic Predator on the Planet\n<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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One of the most intense moments of my life was coming face to face, in the water, with an adult leopard seal.\n\n

Ever since I first heard about it, it struck me as the most epic predator out there.
It\u2019s imposing, with a dinosaur-like face and a well-earned reputation: curious, powerful, dangerous. \n\n

It\u2019s found only in Antarctica, sharing the top of the food chain with the orca.\n\n

We were lucky \u2014and deeply responsible\u2014 to encounter a female who approached us repeatedly.
It wasn\u2019t easy. At first, it felt like a game, but we knew that with a wild animal like this, respect has to be on an entirely different level. \n\n

We followed all the protocols we had prepared with expert @leosoibelzon<\/a>.\n\n

We approached calmly, observed her\u2026 and when her behavior shifted, we knew it was time to get out of the water.\n\n

I remember it as a tense dance, full of adrenaline and beauty.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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My Upcoming Expeditions<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Throughout the year, I lead expeditions all around the world.
You can check the schedule under Events<\/strong><\/a>. \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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<\/div>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The wildest expedition I\u2019ve ever experienced was to Antarctica \u2014 a place so extreme it feels like another planet. In 2026 and 2027, we\u2019re going back, this time better prepared for a new adventure. But first, I want to share what it was like the first time. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17097,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[62],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17087","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-expeditions"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/talesfromtheblue.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17087","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/talesfromtheblue.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/talesfromtheblue.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/talesfromtheblue.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/talesfromtheblue.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17087"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/talesfromtheblue.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17087\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/talesfromtheblue.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17097"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/talesfromtheblue.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17087"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/talesfromtheblue.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17087"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/talesfromtheblue.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17087"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}