Here is your chance to judge who is cuter...sea otters, sea lions, or seals. You can find all three of these creatures in Alaska. They each come with their own challenges in capturing their essence with a camera.
Sea otters can be quite timid. But there will be a random one out of a hundred, that will allow you to get close enough for a really detailed, crisp photo opportunity. They look like little puff balls, but can weigh as much as 99lbs making them the biggest of the weasel family.
They can be adorably cute swimming on their backs, keeping their hands out of the water, wrapping themselves up in kelp, or even holding hands while they sleep so they don't drift apart in the night.
Sea lions on the other hand can come right up to your boat. The trick with them is to catch their erratic behavior in the moment. This sea lion leaped completely out of the water in a lucky moment caught on film.
Finally you get the seals. They lack the external ear flaps of the sea lions, and the dense fur of the sea otters. They can't really use their short, stubby flippers on land like a sea lion, so they just wiggle around. But in the water they are graceful as can be, and I thought this one was particularly cute.
I'll let you be the judge in the comments. Which group do you vote for, let me know.