Roadside Eagle

Roadside Eagle.
While in Wyoming, we have seen several animals, typically Mule Deer that have been victims of cars. Typically the remains are just moved away from the road and local wildlife is allowed to feed on the carcasses. We were driving down the road yesterday and saw this beautiful Bald Eagle sitting on a post in great light. We stopped and did a few images. We realized it was sitting over a deer carcass and it was obvious the Eagle had been feeding on the deer. Currently there were a couple Magpie and Ravens feeding. Sadly these collisions happen, but at least the local wildlife is able to get some much needed food in winter. Hopefully the carcass remains far enough from the road no car strikes happen with other wildlife.
Tamron SP 150-600mm Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon Z7 via the FTZ adapter, Manual Mode, f8, ISO 200, shutter speed of 1/2000th of a second, handheld, processed in Lightroom Classic CC. #withmytamron, #tamron, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #tamron150600g2, #BearWoodsPhotography

My love for Eagles

My love for Eagles.
I think I have made it pretty well known that I have a true love and passion for Bald Eagles. It all started on a trip to the Tetons in 1976. I love to photograph them, but studying them is just as fulfilling to me as well. With the recent possible change of mates for the Eagles at Berry College my thoughts went to a mate change in Ft. Myers a few years ago. The pair there were Ozzie and Harriet, but Ozzie was injured by either a car or possibly a train and was placed into a rehab center. In his absence another male, M15, bonded with Harriet. When they released Ozzie back into the wild he tried to reclaim his mate and territory only to be injured again, eventually leading to his death from infections from his injuries during fighting with M15. The Eagle in this image is M15 drying after a bath. A lot of people have the misconception Eagles mate for life. Eagles survive. If a mate is dies or disappears, the surviving Eagle finds a mate to continue with the species. As humans we often want things to work out to suit our desires in nature, but nature does what is best for the basic function of continuing a species with hopefully the strongest genes possible. As much as people have become attached to “Ma Berry”, the focus should be on successful nesting and production of offspring. The new female at Berry appears to be a very strong and healthy female, hopefully as a pair the two will bring more Eagles into the world for us to observe and appreciate.
Tamron 150-600mm Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-500, Manual Exposure mode, f8, ISO 1250, shutter speed of 1/250th of a second, Sirui tripod and gimbal head, processed in Lightroom Classic CC. #withmytamron, #tamron, #tamronlensesusa, #tamronimagemaster, #tamron150600g2, #siruiusa, #bearwoodsphotography

Nature

Nature.
This is an old image, actually almost 4 years old, but there is a reason for posting it. We are very fortunate to be able to observe nature like never before with cameras located at Eagle’s nest. One camera is at Berry College. I have followed and photographed the Eagle’s there for several years, but haven’t been in a while for a couple reasons, too much drama with a couple photographers at the nest, and I have a pair a lot closer and I enjoy shooting with a great friend there. At Berry College though, nature is in its rawest form right now. Either a new pair of Eagles have taken over the nest or a stronger female has run off the female that has been there for many years. The old female has had a serious leg injury and it has gotten worse each year. It is to a point that I am sure she can’t defend her nest if she had to do so. I have a feeling it has been a factor in the lack of success the nest has had in recent years in Eagle survival to fledging (my opinion). It is an interesting time to see what is happening, and luckily there are a few good friends that go regularly and photograph there who don’t get caught up in the drama of the nest cam viewers and other photographers there. I enjoy seeing their images and I will someday get over there and enjoy watching and photographing the Eagles.
Tamron 150-600mm Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-500, Manual Exposure mode, f8, ISO 800, shutter speed of 1/1600th of a second, Sirui tripod and gimbal head, processed in Lightroom Classic CC. #withmytamron, #tamron, #tamronlensesusa, #tamronimagemaster, #tamron150600g2, #siruiusa

A visit with River

A visit with River.

 

River is the resident educational Bald Eagle at the Teton Raptor Center in Wilson, Wyoming and absolutely beautiful! River is originally from Missouri and had an infection that resulted in her inability to fly in the wild. She came to the TRC in 2015 and will live a long healthy life there. It is amazing to see how she has grown and matured gaining more white on her head and tail each year. She is truly a great ambassador for the TRC. For me to be this close to a Bald Eagle is always going to be the highlight of my trip. The TRC can always use your support, so be sure to check them out. https://tetonraptorcenter.org/

 

Tamron SP 150-600mm Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon Z7, Manual Exposure mode, f8, ISO 560, shutter speed of 1/500th of a second, Sirui P326 monopod, processed in Lightroom Classic CC. #WithMyTamron, #Tamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Tamron150600g2, #SiruiUSA, #NatureInFocusPhotographyWorkshops, #BearWoodsPhotography

Juvenile Bald Eagle, Good News, Bad News…

Juvenile Bald Eagle, Good news, bad news.

 

Sometimes images come with a “good news, bad news” disclaimer, and this is one of them. The good news is this Eagle perched across from the boat docks from our workshop group one morning this past weekend. It was waiting and wanting to fly in to feed on a deer carcass someone had dumped. Every time it would approach it got mobbed by a bunch of Grackles and Gulls. I am guessing from the location they dumped it, they were hoping for a gator to get it. No, this wasn’t in Bear Woods, it was in Apalachicola. So what could be the bad news? Well the day before 2 folks with us left a few minutes after us and captured images of a beautiful mature Bald Eagle sitting on the dock feeding…

 

Tamron SP 150-600mm Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-500, Manual Exposure mode, f8, ISO 450, shutter speed of 1/2000th of a second, handheld, Shimoda Explore 40L backpack, processed in Lightroom Classic CC. #WithMyTamron, #Tamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Tamron150600g2, #ShimodaExplore, #Apalachicola, #BearWoodsPhotography

You think its easy being an Eagle?

You think its easy being an Eagle?

 

I think the look on this Eagle’s face says it all. Everyone wants to pester you just because you are the symbol of America, and a top predator. This Blue Jay did this for a good 20 minutes off and on. I really began to feel for the Eagle. The Blue Jay had a friend come and help pester for a while too. In case you missed it yesterday, here is the link to our photography outing to photograph the Big Canoe Bald Eagles. Remember if you like, a thumbs up, if you haven’t Subscribed, please do!

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNftC_Tzhdk

 

Tamron SP 150-600mm Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-500, Manual Exposure mode, f8, ISO 1250, shutter speed of 1/2000th of a second, handheld, processed in Lightroom Classic CC. #WithMyTamron, #Tamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Tamron150600g2, #BirdPhotography, #BirdNirdvana, #BearWoodsPhotography

Happy Independence Day America!

Happy Independence Day America.

 

Today is the day that the colonies declared their independence from England. Let me be clear, I don’t have anything against England and I think our countries have worked together well since we parted company. What a lot of people don’t know or realize is that simply declaring our independence didn’t give us our freedom, there was a long battle to follow that gave us our freedom and independence. After we gained our independence they wrote a Constitution that laid out the foundation we build on to this day. Being a veteran, and the child of veterans, I know that the freedom didn’t come without a price. It was a price I felt and feel was worth it and is what makes the country the greatest country on Earth. If I didn’t think it was, I would work through my freedom of choice in the voting booth to change things, or leave to whatever country I felt would best serve my needs. Among my freedoms is the right to protest, but a protest is only constructive if I offer a solution, otherwise it is more of complaining. My message is this: you are free because many gave their lives then and now to give you rights, not privileges, be grateful of those who did just that, don’t waste those freedoms on complaining, offer a solution, make changes you desire peacefully in a voting booth. On a personal note, please keep it off Social Media, it changes nothing, absolutely nothing. Celebrate our declaration of independence by taking a moment to think about your freedoms and where we go from here to stay on the track our Founding Fathers set in 1776.

 

This image is one of the Big Canoe Eagles from my session photographing them Monday with my friend Mark Green. It was a great morning, even if our opportunities to photograph the Eagles was limited. Below is a link of our outing if you would like to watch it. I include more images from the trip at the end as well. As always I ask that if you like it, please give it a thumbs up, and if you don’t already do so, please Subscribe to my channel.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNftC_Tzhdk

 

Tamron SP 150-600mm Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-500, Manual Exposure mode, f8, ISO 1250, shutter speed of 1/2000th of a second, handheld, processed in Lightroom Classic CC. #WithMyTamron, #Tamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Tamron150600g2, #BearWoodsPhotography, #HappyBirthdayAmerica, #4thofJuly, #Freedom

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle.

 

I went with a friend to spend a morning on a lake to view and hopefully photograph the local Bald Eagles. The lake is in a gated community and for the best viewing you have to be in a boat. It was truly fascinating to watch how these Eagles have adapted to the visitors to the lake. The Eagles recognize when people are fishing and will follow the boats. We talked to a guy one day who was on a paddle board and had caught a fish, the birds snatched it before he could put it into his creel basket. The Eagles are very used to seeing people in a boat and comfortable if you cruise by, stop, and take photos. I imagine though the birds would act completely different if you were to get out of the boat and approach one from the land. I did some testing and shooting with the mirrorless cameras and was pleased to see how well they worked with the Eagle. The Eagle in flight was a different story, as the camera just couldn’t find the right focus nor track the bird.

 

Tamron SP 150-600mm Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon Z6 via the FTZ adapter, Manual Exposure mode, f8, ISO 360, shutter speed of 1/500th of a second, handheld utilizing the Vibration Compensation feature of the lens (moving boats and tripods are tough), processed in Lightroom Classic CC. #WithMyTamron, #Tamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Tamron150600g2, #BirdPhotography, #BirdNirdvana, #BirdsofPrey, #BearWoodsPhotography

Harriet and Eaglet

Harriet and Eaglet.

 

It is hard for me to go down to Ft Myers and not stop by the SW Florida Eagle Nest in North Ft Myers. I only had an hour to spend observing and photographing, but was treated to the male, M15, bringing in some type of meat for the youngsters, and then watch as one of the Eaglets went out on a branch with Harriet. Harriet seemed less than enthusiastic that the young one had discovered how to get out there with her. So much for alone time…

 

Tamron SP 150-600mm Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-500, Manual Exposure mode, f8, ISO 400, shutter speed of 1/1000th of a second, Sirui SR 3204 tripod and PH20 Gimbal head, processed in Lightroom Classic CC. #WithMyTamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Tamron150600g2, #SiruiUSA, #SiruiProfessional, #BearWoodsPhotography, #BirdNirdvana, #BirdPhotography

The Sentinel

The Sentinel.

 

Late one afternoon our group was near Kelly, Wyoming photographing some snow covered pines. As we drove back we spotted 2 Bald Eagles on a power pole, one half way up, one on the top. We stopped to photograph them of course. We noticed that the one half way up was feeding on what we later identified as a Mallard duck. Our first thought was the one on top was waiting to feed, but as we looked closer we noticed that it had a full crop, which is the area at the top of the digestive system that stores food. We are guessing the two were a mated pair and simply shared dinner, the one on the top of the pole was simply waiting for the other to finish its meal, almost standing guard as it ate.

 

Tamron SP 150-600mm Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-500, Manual Exposure mode, f8, ISO 1800, shutter speed of 1/1000th of a second, handheld, processed in Lightroom Classic CC. #WithMyTamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Tamron150600g2, #BearWoodsPhotography, #NatureInFocusPhotographyWorkshops