As of last count, there were 487 bald eagles there. I counted about 50 and then stopped.
Lighting was not the best, due to haze, but it is one of the most fun spots I've spent shooting photos of birds at.
Funny story .. at one spot, as I was handholding the z7ii + 600mm f/4 E FL lens, a SUV stopped, the couple inside rolled down the window. This was our conversation.
The wife: "How do you manage to carry all this?"
Me "It's ok for a few seconds, but then it gets tiring"
He: "What lens is that?"
Me: "Nikon 600mm f/4"
He: "I have a 600 f/2.8 at home, but I didn't bring it".
Me: "600 2.8? Are you sure it's not the 400 f/2.8?"
He: "Yessir, I am sure"
Me: "You should check again when you get home"
He: "I should know, I wrote the check for it, ten thousand dollars"
Me: "Ok, but you should really check when you get home - it sounds like the 400"
He: "Nope, I am pretty sure it's 600"
We wished each other a nice day and ended the convo.
1 - Patroling around, eyeing a flock of trumpeter swan
2 - Banked at the last minute and made more trips, looking for breakfast
3 - Haze is a big problem when shooting birds sitting on ice, but it's fun to see so many eagles
4 - This guy was chased off by another eagle and is plotting revenge
5 - These 3 were staring down a 4th who was awaiting his turn a few feet away
6 - Some of the swan decided they didn't like the look of the eagle eyeing them and took off
7 - As the moon sets behind them, 1000s of ducks, geese and swan take to the sky
8 - Hiding in the leafless trees, but ever watchful for attacks
saaketham wrote:
As of last count, there were 487 bald eagles there. I counted about 50 and then stopped.
Lighting was not the best, due to haze, but it is one of the most fun spots I've spent shooting photos of birds at.
Whoa! Super images of those Eagles on the ice. I'm headed back to Missouri right now
Great set, Anil. Now I know where all the eagles went. I bet the snow is pounding that area today. Expecting about 7" in Iowa today. As Robert mentioned, the images on the ice are very good.
Great set of images Anil. Glad to see you are getting out to shoot the eagles. Loess Bluff is a great place. We are still waiting for activity to increase up here. Hopefully we can get you up here later this month.
morris wrote:
Many glorious images Anil. Well done!
Thank you Morris
CJMiller wrote:
I bet the snow is pounding that area today.
Yes, so we left on Friday afternoon well before the snowstorm started. Did you get a lot of snow in Iowa?
runakid wrote:
Are you still limited to shooting from the road?
Lovely birds.
Mostly from the road, but with so many miles of drive-able road around all that water, you get a lot of options.
In one spot, you can park and use the boardwalk to get closer. In another spot (Eagle Overlook) you can park
and walk 3/4 mile in and be in the middle of two pools. That's probably the best spot, as all kinds of birds,
including eagles, fly back and forth and get quite close to you. There are also trails you can walk on,
but in this cold, I saw only two or three people doing that.
