One Lens. One Favorite Bald Eagle Image From Days 1-4

Your Call

In today’s post, I share one of my favorite images from each of our first four days of the first 2025 Homer IPT. All were made with the incredible Sony 300mm f/2.8 GM/a-i ii combo. I have yet to even think about adding a teleconverter. I had twenty favorites from Day 2 🙂 For me, one of the images is head and shoulders above the other three. Which one is it? And why do I love it so?

If you are impressed by the images, the image optimization sessions, and the learning that is going on here, and are seriously interested in joining me here next year, please LMK ASAP via e-mail or via text to 863-221-2372.

The Last Blog Post

In the last blog post, The Challenges of Making Very Special Songbird Images — Pre-Capture, Fast Shutter Speeds, and Crazy High ISOs here, only four folks commented on what I thought was a pretty spectacular collection of songbird images. Three of the four mentioned the Boreal Chickadee with the swept back, jet fighter wings as one of their two faves. That was my first pick by a mile. As noted, I could not have made that image (and others in the post as well) without one second Pre-Capture. Image creating an image when you did not press the shutter button until after the bird took flight!

What’ Up?

With the increasingly warmer days, we lost our snow cover and with it, the light that illuminated the eagle’s underwings so beautifully on Days 1-3. Thus, Day 4 was out most challenging. In spite of that, everyone made some great images. Both Elisabet and husband Steve Shore have been improving by leaps and bounds by adding to what they learned at Sebastian Inlet. Robert “Bear Bob: Sabine finally listened to me and purchased a Canon 70-200mm, the EF f/4 version. As a result, his eagle images have improved dramatically as compared to previous Homer IPTs. Anita North is, as expected, making fabulous images every day despite the fact that we have seen the sun for a total of about four minutes in four days so far. Though the unseasonably warm, cloudy weather is supposed to continue, we continue to pray for snow.

With the ongoing renovations at Lands End, it took me a day to find a convenient spot to do our Image Review and Photoshop sessions; we have, therefore, been making lots of hay every evening producing Image Optimization videos that are shared with the group. In today’s bird photography workshop climate these daily, intensive, two hour sessions are pretty much unique.

Today is Tuesday 18 February 2025 and we will be sailing earlier than usual to ensure our getting the location we want Elisabet is flying back to Anchorage on this afternoon and old friend Brian Bower will be joining the group tomorrow. I am especially proud of her progress with bird photography. Not to mention that she has a great eye for landscapes and has been wowing everyone with her scenic photography. Whatever you opt to do, we hope that you too choose to have a great day.

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This image was created on 14 February 2025 at Kachemak Bay, AK on the 2025 Homer IPT. Standing at full height on a spit in Poot Bay, I used the hand held Sony FE 300mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens (Sony E) and The Latest Greatest Sony Flagship Body, the a1 II Mirrorless Camera. ISO 2500. The exposure was determined via Zebras with ISO on the thumb dial. ISO 2500: 1/2500 sec. at f/2.8 (wide open) in Manual mode. RawDigger showed that the exposure was dead solid perfect: AWB at 11:30:17am on a cloudy day. Zone/AF-C with Bird Eye/Face Detection enabled performed perfectly. Click on the image to see a larger, sharper high resolution version Image #1: Bald Eagle gliding flight above dune grasses in light snow Image copyright 2025 Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Day 1

With an overnight inch of fresh snow, conditions at Poot Bay, one of my favorite locations, were excellent. The wind, however, was not from the usual ideal direction so I moved the group around the spit all morning to put us in the best spot as the wind direction shifted over time. Though difficult to see unless you blow up the image, the fine, falling snow helped to create a magical soft light that makes this moody image special for me. The beach grasses are a big plus.

With a fixed focal length lens, the 300mm f/2.8, choosing the appropriate distance to stand away from a perch is an important consideration. If you get to close, you will be clipping wings every time. Steve Shore has also been using his Sony 300mm f/28 GM lens most of the time. Thus, he has been hanging back with me as I encourage the folks with the 70-200s to get closer by moving forward.

This image was created on 15 February 2025 at Kachemak Bay, AK on the first 2025 Homer IPT. Standing at full height on the shoreline at Peterson Bay, I used the hand held Sony FE 300mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens (Sony E) and The Latest Greatest Sony Flagship Body, the a1 II Mirrorless Camera. ISO 2500. The exposure was determined via Zebras with ISO on the thumb dial. ISO 2500: 1/2500 sec. at f/2.8 (wide open) in Manual mode. RawDigger showed that the exposure was dead solid perfect: AWB at 10:25:41am on a cloudy day. Zone/AF-C with Bird Eye/Face Detection enabled performed perfectly. Click on the image to see a larger, sharper high resolution version Image #2: Bald Eagle adult about to touch down Image copyright 2025 Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Day 2

As mentioned here ad nauseam recently, the light reflected off the snow perfectly illuminates the eagle’s dark underwings (especially on cloudy days). Peterson Bay offer several really attractive, relatively tall, lichen-covered perches. In this image, I love the wings fully spread braking pose, the soft light, and the inclusion of the top of an evergreen tree in the frame.

This image was created on 16 February 2025 at Kachemak Bay, AK on the first 2025 Homer IPT. Standing at full height on the shoreline at Peterson Bay, I used the hand held Sony FE 300mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens (Sony E) and The Latest Greatest Sony Flagship Body, the a1 II Mirrorless Camera. ISO 2500. The exposure was determined via Zebras with ISO on the thumb dial. ISO 1250: 1/2500 sec. at f/3.2 (stopped down 1/3-stop) in Manual mode. RawDigger showed that the exposure was dead solid perfect: AWB at 11:13:07am on a cloudy-bright day. Tracking Zone/AF-C with Bird Eye/Face Detection enabled performed perfectly. Click on the image to see a larger, sharper high resolution version Image #3: Bald Eagle calling from perch with wings raised Image copyright 2025 Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Day 3

Until Day 4, I used the Sony FE 300mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens (Sony E) pretty much exclusively. With the cloudy, low light conditions, the f/2.8 speed of this lens enables you to work with relatively low ISOs. With the new a1 II Mirrorless Camera pretty much every single eagle image I have made in the first four days — more than 25,000, has been razor sharp on the eye. The very few unsharp sequences — less than a handful, were caused by me mis-handling my gear as a result of fatigue. I was exceedingly lucky to be the closest one to this bird when it began calling. When another eagle flew by below, the calling bird raised its wings briefly in defense of its perch. Lucky me.

Note: I can say with complete confidence and accuracy that I have trashed more than 15,000 sharp, pleasing to the eye, perfect Bald Eagle flight images from our first four days of shooting. With the science-fiction-like accuracy of the AF systems of today’s top mirrorless camera bodies, the standards as to what makes a great flight image have been raised. The factors involved include flight pose, wing position, lighting, and background & environment. Amazingly, sharpness is a given. For me, the a- ii stands well above all others.

This image was created on 17 February 2025 at Kachemak Bay, AK on the first 2025 Homer IPT. Working from the boat, I used the hand held Sony FE 300mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens (Sony E) and The Latest Greatest Sony Flagship Body, the a1 II Mirrorless Camera. ISO 1000. The exposure was determined via Zebras with ISO on the thumb dial. ISO 1000: 1/2500 sec. at f/2.8 (wide open) in Manual mode. RawDigger showed that the exposure was dead solid perfect: AWB at 11:13:07am on a cloudy-bright day. Tracking Spot XS/AF-C with Bird Eye/Face Detection enabled performed perfectly. Click on the image to see a larger, sharper high resolution version Image #4: Bald Eagle adult on colorful rock Image copyright 2025 Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Day 4

When I first saw this eagle on this amazingly colored rock, it was partially obscured by another large rock. I had our captain/guide reposition the boat so that all had a clear view of the rock. Fortunately, the eagle answered my prayer and stayed put. Though RawDigger showed a dead solid perfect exposure for this raw file, it is the huge, amazing dynamic range of the sensors of today’s aforementioned top mirrorless camera bodies that allow us to open up the dark tones after having preserved the detail in the adult eagle’s white heads.

With many of the IPT students (and the leader as well, on rare occssaion), under-exposing their raw files, many of our image optimization videos cover in detail the best methods for opening up under-exposed dark tones while minimizing noise. Note: as always, the best first step to controlling noise is to learn to expose well to the right.

If you can identify the type of rock, please leave a comment.

Typos

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