Pioneer photographers Herbert Ponting and Frank Hurley shared the risks of early Antarctic adventurers to capture the thrills and perils of their lives on ice.

The National Archives of Australia will feature the two men’s work in a new exhibition opening in Canberra this month.

‘Australians have a fascination with Antarctica and these photographs highlight its dangers and beauties,’ said Ross Gibbs, Director-General of the National Archives of Australia.

Both photographers risked life and limb to reveal the ice-bound landscape to the world. Their pictures also remind viewers of the human toll of such exploration.

The travelling Antarctic Views exhibition, originally curated by the Australian National Maritime Museum, records some of the last days of the ill-fated Captain Robert Scott before he perished in his race to claim the South Pole. As part of Scott’s expedition from 1910 to 1913, photographer Herbert Ponting was the first to present images of the frozen southern landscape to the world.

His pictures on show at the National Archives reflect the beauty of ice caverns and turbulent seas, as well as the unfolding drama of the Terra Nova trapped in drifting floe ice.

Australian photographer Frank Hurley ventured to the Antarctic on three expeditions between 1911 and 1930. He accompanied Ernest Shackleton from 1914 to 1917 and recorded on film one of the greatest survival epics ever. When their ship Endurance was crushed to splinters by pack ice, the disaster left the group stranded on ice floes for months.

‘This exhibition is a moving tribute to the early explorers and the photographers who recorded their exploits,’ said Ross Gibbs. ‘Anyone who has been inspired by the legends surrounding Scott and Shackleton will enjoy this insight into the daily challenges they faced.’

Antarctic Views by Hurley and Ponting is open daily at the National Archives of Australia. Entry is free. Photographers: Herbert Ponting (1870 to 1935); Frank Hurley (1885 to 1962).