Polar bear hiding at Kraemerpynten, Svalbard
Fujifilm X-T4, Fujinon XF200mmF2 R LM OIS WR, f2.2 @ 1/1900, ISO 160.

Last night, I attended the Sydney premiere of Abraham Joffe's film Trade Secret which documents the plight of polar bears trying to survive in our human world.

Abraham was the director of the Tales By Light photography series I featured in over a decade ago when we travelled to Antarctica together. Since then, he has become a highly regarded wildlife documentary director and cinematographer. His latest focus is the polar bear.

Photographers love polar bears. So do hunters and there has always been a lot of discussion about the quota of bears that can be legally hunted each year - and still sustain the population. Around 10 years ago, I met Morten Joergensen who wrote a book that seemed to scientifically debunk the myth that any quotas for shooting bears were sustainable. He made a short appearance in Abraham's film, but what surprised me was how complicit some governments and NGOs appear to be.

In conversations with friends, we all assumed Canada and Norway were doing the right thing and that the polar bears were being exploited by Russia. Watching Trade Secret, my takeaway is that it appears Canada is the main offender, along with the WWF. Would you donate to an organisation that on the one hand does wonderful things for protecting wildlife, but on the other hand condones the killing and international trade of polar bears?

Abraham was clear that his film was not a witch hunt, rather he hoped it would lead to better protection for polar bears. And the way to change things is to let the public know - people power! You can find out more by visiting the film's website - https://www.tradesecretfilm.com/

Interestingly, Norway is one of the largest importers of polar bear skins and body parts, although it doesn't permit commercial hunting. In fact, they are now very strict with polar bear protection to the extent tourists visiting Svalbard must remain more than 300 metres distance (and 500 metres from March to June). It seems odd that Norway is so protective on the one hand, yet their legal importation simply moves the killing to another country.

So, will the 300 metre rule be a problem for photographers? It used to be 200 metres, so a slightly longer lens will solve the problem - and to be honest, the photos of polar bears I like best are ones that show them in their environment. Sure, it would be nice to have a polar bear 'head and shoulders' portrait, but a bear on an ice cap is better still!

And that's what I love about this photo. The ice cap itself is beautifully shaped and coloured, surrounding a small patch of soft snow. And then you see it. Well, I hope you can see it. If you're viewing this on your phone, you may need to enlarge things up a little!

If you're interested in visiting the Arctic with me this July, check out the two voyages on the www.betterphotography.com website!