Picture of the week

Winter Eagle

A bald eagle flying through the snow at the Chilkat eagle preserve. This area is located about 20 miles upriver from the small town of Haines, Alaska.  Bald eagles in the thousands gather along the Chilkat river every year around this time to gorge on salmon from a late fall run.  It probably has one of the largest concentration of these majestic birds in North America, with the population peaking around mid-November. The Chilkat river temperature is uncharacteristically warmer at this time of year compared to many other rivers in Alaska.  This attracts the salmon to the river for a later spawning run, and hence also brings in the eagles that feed on them.

I just returned from a week long trip to this area to photograph these eagles, along with some of the surrounding landscapes in this area plus Juneau.  The weather in Haines varied between partly cloudy and snowy conditions, with average temperatures in the low 20's F during the day. The photography was quite good with the exception for a couple of days with more overcast weather. This trip had been on my bucket list for some time, and one that I started planning for several months back. This also coincided with an annual Bald Eagle Festival that is held here each year at this time as sponsored by the American Bald Eagle Foundation based locally in Haines. The overall experience did not disappoint and one well worth the journey. I also met many other fellow travelers and locals who were quite friendly and with a similar spirit of adventure. This is one trip that will leave a lasting impression on me. 

The above image was captured with my Canon 5D mark III with a 500mm f/4 IS lens on a Wimberly gimbal head for easier tracking.  Use of the big glass and this full-framed body with its high ISO performance characteristics ended up being a good setup for this location, and specifically in low light situations like this one. The specific settings for this shot were: f/8, 1/1000th of second, and ISO 5000. I choose to use a slightly more open aperature when possible to get a bit more depth-of-field to address the rather large wingspan of these birds.

A more extensive travelogue on this trip can also be found here: Juneau, Haines, and the Chilkat bald eagle preserve.

All content and images are property of Stephen Fischer Photography, copyright 2013.  Last updated: 11/17/2013   ()