The Traveling Widower

Category: Expedition

  • More Antarctica Photography

    December 18th, 2025

    After two full weeks of puttering around the house, I finally dedicated a day to go through the two 500GB SD cards that I used for the Sony A7 cameras (A7IV, A7RV) on the Antarctica trip. Most of the images I have posted so far on the blog or Facebook, were captured with my phone, with a smattering of images from the cameras from a cursory pass I made of the SD cards while still traveling. I’ve just been lazy, putting this task off until yesterday. 

    This turned into a significant effort:

    1. Each card had at least 1300 separate images, each with a JPEG and RAW version. You can shoot a lot with 10 frames-per-second.
    2. I first went through each of the JPEG versions, deleting duplicates or images that I knew I’d never do anything with. Digital cameras are wonderful – unlike film, it costs nothing to take a lot of lousy shots. But if you take hundreds of images, you still have to review each one. 
    3. After going through the JPEG versions, I used the list of remaining JPEG’s to compare with the RAW images, and delete the same files. Once that was done, I then did a backup of the remaining images to my two archive drives. I will probably need a new, dedicated archive drive sometime in the near future. More toys. 
    4. Phew!  That was a lot of work. I decided I needed a glass of wine after that. 

    The end result of this process is about 650 images that need a more detailed review – still a lot, but much better than 2600, and all of them are pretty darn good. Some are amazing, and really capture the vastness, magnificence and beauty of the ice covered Antarctic landscape. And of course, there were more fun images of penguins. 

    So now I have to work on the remaining batch images, and determine which ones I want to submit for club competitions, print on acrylic (I’m turning my house into a photo gallery), or just share with friends and family (and everyone else) on the blog. I’ll probably take my time on this, but will eventually wind up with about 50 or so, “keepers”. Maybe more. A lot more. I might wind up just putting together a digital photo book for the trip, and post that on the blog.

    I have also started reviewing some of the videos I shot with my phone and the Sony A7IV camera. I have just started dabbling with video this past year, first with the GoPro, and just recently with my latest Pixel phone. I had never used the slow motion or time lapse feature that are available on both iPhone and Android cameras – fun stuff. I also tried out video on the Sony camera once or twice on the trip, since it is supposed to be one of the best features of this camera. I intend to post one or two of those in the next day or two.

    And finally, since this post seems to have evolved into another discussion on photography, I’m buying myself a Christmas present today – a new camera lens. I mentioned before that I really want to reduce the amount of gear I bring along on each trip. The camera backpack I lugged around in airports this past trip weighed in at 20lbs. That did not seem so bad on the trip down to Ushuiai, but seemed to weigh even more on the way back, as I dragged my tired body through seemingly miles of airport corridors. I also want to avoid having to carry two cameras on hikes if at all possible. It was really difficult managing two heavy cameras/lenses while stumbling around on the snow and ice when we were visiting the penguin colonies – we were not allowed to put anything on the snow, so I had to have someone hold my pack while I switched cameras. Awkward at best. 

    I’m hoping that the Tamron 25-200 lens will become my go-to for most on-shore activities, and only travel with that and the 150-500 lens. And then there is the Baja trip in February – we are limited to 6.5 pounds for carry-on, and 30 pounds for the checked bag. The Sony A7R5 weighs 4.5 pounds with a lens, and my smallest camera bag weighs 2 pounds. I will likely only bring the new lens for this trip, and one camera body. Ouch. The GoPro will fit in my pocket, or in the duffel bag. And I will have my phone as well. If the grey whales do what they are supposed to (come up to the boats for a back rub), then I should not need the long lens.

    OK, enough geeky camera stuff. Here’s a couple of images from my recent review. Oh, and I will have a post or two before February – I’m heading off to the coast in January, to visit the elephant sea lion colony at the Ano Nuevo State Park. They have docent-led walks to watch the huge males fight during mating season. No penguins though.

    A since I mentioned it, short video clip, as we cruised through an ice field:

    And maybe a few images:

  • Being the Traveling Widower

    December 7th, 2025

    Antarctica was my sixth multi-day trip this past year, so along with a veritable slew of day trips and shorter adventures, I have a pretty good idea now of the direction my life is going. It’s that ‘As Good As It Gets’ thing I write about, that I’m beginning to adjust to. So, now that my brain and body have recovered from the endless journey home from Antarctica, I thought I’d document some of my thoughts on what it’s like to morph from a stable life, shared with your life partner, to something that was unimaginable just a few years ago. A life based without an anchor companion, learning to be comfortable spending a considerable amount of time alone, and surprisingly, finding some fulfillment, direction and even enjoyment in the amazing places I traveled to. Going on two years since Jan passed, I still grieve her loss, and still dwell upon those awful 11 months, but not to the degree that I had at first. So what’s this new life like? The blog pretty much describes it – I grieve the loss of my wife and of my past life, so I’m a widower, and travel is pretty much what keeps me going. The blog title is what I’ve become – the Traveling Widower. I’m planning to copyright the term. Maybe I’ll sell t-shirts and coffee mugs. (No, not really). 

    Solo travel was something I feared at first – my often mentioned fear of being on a ship filled with strangers still persists, but I have learned to cope with that, and actually found myself enjoying meals on this last trip. I recall my first counseling session the day after Jan passed – she said I should expect to have some significant personality changes over time. She was right. It’s been a struggle, but I’m relatively comfortable now joining a group at dinner or lunch, and actively participating in conversations. I guess I cannot really call myself an introvert anymore. 

    What I found interesting on this last trip was the number of discussions I had without bringing up why I was alone, unless someone asked. I still feel weird being by myself, but I’m no longer embarrassed about traveling alone. That’s something new for me. But some people kind of guess when they see the double wedding band on my pinky. I’ll always wear that. 

    The travel part is really what keeps me going – I’m a different person when traveling. My mind is completely focused on the trip, even if I’m just driving somewhere. Photography and the blog keep me occupied in the evenings, either on a ship or a hotel. And the places I’ve been traveling to have been amazing – there were times on all of the trips, where I was just absolutely stunned and speechless by what I was seeing. I simply put the camera down and let it all soak in – I have memories which I will never forget. Antarctica was like that on every day of the trip.

    But there were also moments on each trip where I wished Jan was sharing the moment with me. And at least one time, I felt she was there with me. 

    Returning home from these adventures is still difficult for me – walking into an empty house, with nobody to share my experience with is so incredibly hard to handle. But that’s where my writing and photography helps to fill in some of the emptiness. Busy work is not much of a replacement for companionship, but it keeps my mind occupied. And after a day or two home, I’m already looking towards the next trip, and looking at my bucket list for other trips to schedule. I’ve got permanent happy feet. I’ve scheduled two trips since returning from Antarctica, and already have a packing list for my next trip (Baja). I’m not sure I’ll make it another two months without traveling – I’m guessing I’ll find someplace to go for a while in January. 

    So this is my new life – Bromberg 2.0. Anyone need a coffee mug or t-shirt?

    Disclaimer: No, that is not a real picture, the same goes for the other image of t-shirts and coffee mugs. It’s all AI (thanks Google Gemini). My wife would have looked at this, and then walked away shaking her head. So please, do not ask for a coffee mug or t-shirt. But I will be submitting this for the highly sought after Nobel Peculiar Literature award.