Bald Eagle - Haines, Alaska (Chilkat River, Chilkat Eagle Preserve)

It was November, it was cold. We'd spent days photographing numerous bald eagles and most seem to be relaxed and used to the attention. After watching this one for quite some time, I slowly moved closer, taking shots with a 500mm lens. Then, closer again. And, again. We moved very slowly and the eagle never flinched. Finally, I switched lenses and shot these last few with a wide-angle lens (17-40mm). It was this last shot that turned out to be my favorite. This eagle tolerated me until this point and even then, didn't fly away. It puffed up and bounced once toward me - THAT'S CLOSE ENOUGH! You can see my shadow in the bottom right of the photograph. I slowly backed away and it returned to eat its fish (just outside of the frame to the left).

Boasting the largest concentration of bald eagles in the world (during their annual visit from Oct - Feb), Haines is the place to be to photograph these beautiful birds. Along the river, eagles congregate here to "hunt" salmon after their spawning migration has ended. Most salmon are weak and dying along the river, so it's easy hunting and the eagles know it!

This was taken on a trip meant solely for photography. We traveled to Juneau, Alaska by plane and then an additional three hours by ferry to Haines. The trip was organized by wildlife photographer Jon Cornforth.

For more information: Bald eagle, Cornforth Tours, Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve