A photographer has captured the first-ever images of a rare and adorable Ross seal swimming in the icy Antarctic waters.
A photographer has captured the first-ever images of a rare and adorable Ross seal swimming in the icy waters of Antarctica. Justin Hofman has spent 16 seasons diving from an expedition vessel as part of his role as an undersea specialist.
During that time, the photographer had only ever seen a single Ross seal. Ross seals live deep in the Antarctic pack ice, and since the species never leaves the Southern Ocean, comparatively little is known about it. But for the summer of 2025, the expedition vessel Hofman works on was able to venture much further south than usual. “We were not hoping to find Ross seals,” Hofman tells. “The captain of the ship saw an opportunity to take the vessel really far south, which happened to be a prime spot for Ross seals.”Hofman says that he became aware several years ago that a Ross seal had never been photographed underwater before and realized he had an opportunity to be the first. But it was never his main objective; it was more like,Earth’s rising temperatures granted Hofman an opportunity this winter. “We had originally gone out with the intention of photographing krill along the ice edge,” he explains. “So I put on my Nauticam EMWL 130 wet-mount lens. It converts a 90mm macro lens into an extreme macro wide-angle lens. It’s a wild lens that allows you to focus up to the glass of the object and still have 130 degrees of field of view.” Hofman calls it “absolutely the wrong underwater setup for photographing seals,” noting that he had been expecting to shoot crustaceans. But fate had other plans: while he was in the water, a Ross seal that had been sleeping on the ice began gallumping toward the edge. “One of my colleagues notified us that the seal was heading our way, so we just sat patiently and very still in the water,” Hofman explains. “The water temperature was 30 degrees Fahrenheit . My options were: a 90mm macro lens, or a close focus wide-angle. Neither of those is what anyone would consider a setup for photographing a Ross seal.”Fortunately, the setup turned out to be a great one. The summer plankton bloom had not yet occurred meaning the water was crystal clear. As the Ross seal entered the water, Hofman and his dive partner stayed back and still so as not to disturb the marine mammal. The 90mm lens and the clear water suddenly complemented each other beautifully. “Generally when shooting underwater, you’re always trying to limit the amount of water between the camera and the subject because water absorbs light and has particulate matter in it — leading to lower contrasts,” Hofman explains. “The second lucky thing was that the Sun was out. Knowing this was a very special encounter I decided to not use my underwater strobes. I try very hard not to disturb animals while I am photographing them and I had no idea if the seal would respond to strobes. I decided it wasn’t worth it and turned off my strobes as the seal entered the water.”The bright sunshine counteracted Hofman’s want of a strobe, and he was able to get beautiful, natural shots of the cute Ross seal. “In total, the Ross seal spent about four minutes hanging out along the ice edge, doing some shallow dives, and then eventually disappearing under the ice,” he adds.Part of Hofman’s job is to take photos underwater and then give guests on the ship a presentation about what he’s witnessed. “It’s honestly the best job in the world because I get to travel the world, go diving in some really wild places, and teach travelers about what happens underwater in the places they visit,” he says. “Most of the places that I work are cold-water destinations like Greenland, Alaska, Antarctica, et cetera, so guests are always so surprised at the vibrant marine ecosystems in these locations.” It means that Hofman isn’t always focused on maximizing a shoot; he might only get a single dive attempt at a particular location, so he has to be economical. “Expedition diving is some of the most challenging diving in the world, and throwing a camera into the mix makes it even more difficult,” he says. “The primary goal of my job is to educate, so you don’t actually have to be a good shooter to teach guests about what’s happening underwater. I just do it for my own satisfaction.” “I very rarely get to make art or really work a scene,” he continues. “Unless it’s something totally unique like a Ross seal, I can’t return from a dive with just one good photo; I need to cover the scene and convey to guests what it’s like to do a dive in Antarctica.”But as Hofman says, the Ross seal is something very special. “Every time I look at his face it makes me smile,” he says. “For the first few days, I would just stare at him. He’s the perfect ambassador for his species and for the importance that Antarctic ecosystems play on a global scale.” Hofman hopes his photos will strongarm folks into “going down a rabbit hole” and learning not just about seals, but the entire Antarctic ecosystem they live in. “Personally, this encounter and the resulting photos bring me so much joy because it’s the culmination of decades of wildlife watching,” the photographer reflects. “15 years ago I might have blown it by not being patient, or I might not have even been in the water that day because there really wasn’t much to shoot. “But these days I will always take the opportunity to get in the water because every once in a while you get an immense surprise and get to see something that no one else has ever seen.”While Hofman is overjoyed to swim with and photograph a Ross seal, he is aware that a rapidly warming planet and lack of sea ice formation gave him the opportunity in the first place. “Those are the things that keep me going through all this ecological grief that I feel as I watch the ecosystems I love degrade year after year,” he says. “Those are the things that motivate me. I feel like I owe it to these places and these animals to try and bring them to the public and to bear witness. “So this photo is very high on my list of personal accomplishments because it’s the one time I can say without question that I brought something to the world that no one else has ever seen, and with that, expanded the collective knowledge of our species just a little bit more.”
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