Of the 18 species of penguin, surely the aptly named Kings must stand out as the most beautiful and impressive of all with their citrus colours adding a splash of warmth to their often white world.

These impressive birds can stand as tall as 1 meter (3feet), weigh up to 18 kilograms or 40lb, and dive to a depth of at least 300m or 1000ft. Simply incredible!

Captured on the wind swept shores of Right Whale Bay on South Georgia’s North West coast, I particularly love this image as it is the result of a lot of planning and time spent in very cold and blizzard strewn conditions. This made for the perfect environment that would best showcase their beauty and rugged ability to survive.

Whilst I actively choose to shoot in these conditions, I can well recall having icicles for eye brows and fingers that didn’t work as I waited for what seemed an eternity for the penguin platoon to become comfortable enough to walk towards me.
I think I actually took this photo using my thumb to press the trigger as my index finger was without feeling!

Photographically my objective was to have a completely neutral background devoid of any distraction to really contrast with the vivid colours of my subjects.

I feel the white out from the blizzard achieved this to good effect.

Available Sizes
Large: 146cm x 97cm – AED 15,880

Available Editions
Large: 50