The polar bear was a tiny point in a frozen white world. A film crew began to follow at a distance, gradually getting1 , hoping to get a good picture. However, the bear came to a rest at a hole in the ice and started to2 . So did the crew.
For 12 hours the bear lay half asleep, half3 without a move. It was too long; the crew had been working for 22 hours 4 on the sea ice. Cold and exhausted, they 5 defeat.
Hours of waiting for little reward is not 6 ."It's the price we pay to get unique images," says award-winning photographer Florian Ledoux. "It is a 7 for us to get each shot in Arctic — we push our limits." The battle is intense especially during winter:8 dark ness affects your mood, the lack of routine9 your body clock, you are forever fighting the bitter cold, and everything you touch with 10 hands sticks to your skin. However 11 your clothes are, the cold bites through.
An Arctic photographer for years, Ledoux has witnessed the significant 12 there. It is heating up, causing ice to melt and 13 the whole ecosystem. "Am I just photographing? No," he says. "I try to catch some unique beauty of 14 , to give a voice to the one that cannot 15 ."
