Puffins are irresistible little birds, full of charisma. From late spring to mid summer, Skellig Michael is home to thousands of them. On this particular day it was raining steadily, and I captured this one as it was shaking the rain from its feathers.

Puffins are difficult birds to photograph in flight. They are small and fast, a tough combination. After several attempts, I made a few images I was happy with, and this is the best of those. The puffin is coming in to land, with the waves crashing on the rocks in the background.

A heron takes flight at the Old Weir Bridge on the Meeting of the Waters.

The Skellig Islands seen at sunset on an autumn day as a gannet flies overhead.

Penguins at St. Andrew's Bay give the photographer the hairy eyeball.

A curious group of king penguins interrupt their morning stroll to investigate the photographer at St. Andrew's Bay.

The photographer is reflected in the eye of a king penguin at sunrise.

A weddel seal relaxes on the ice at Portal Point.

A curious king penguin inspects its reflection in my fisheye lens at a colony at Gold Harbour, South Georgia.

A young polar bear takes a nap on the snow, Svalbard.

An arctic fox cub enjoying a fine day at Alkhornet, Spitsbergen.

My favourite of the small penguin species, the gentoo brings me back to my days working in IT.

For me, among the most spectacular sights in the Arctic are calving glaciers. Here, large chunks of the terminal face of Lilliehöökbreen in Spitsbergen fall into the sea, startling a flock of Kittiwakes into flight.
The sound is immense, and always reaches you a second or two after the initial impact.

A juvenile elephant seal calf enjoys the morning sun.

A favourite image of mine, this heron was fishing for his breakfast as I was just finishing up a dawn shoot. As I returned to my car, I noticed him, but had already put all my equipment away. I debated whether to haul it all out again, as Murphy's Law would indicate that he would fly away as soon as I had everything ready.
Thankfully, I ignored my misgivings and made the effort. He was most co-operative, hanging around for a few minutes so I could pick my moment precisely!

A lone king penguin stretches in a snow flurry at sunrise on the beach at St. Andrew's Bay.

A pair of reindeer spar near Alkhornet