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HOMER SPIT, ALASKA, must offer some of the most challenging and exciting bird photography in the world as hundreds of BALD EAGLES turn up daily in the winter to be fed.  The action is incredible, but there are many failed shots, many near-misses and a few successes - why are the near-misses always the best shots?  The reason why large numbers of Bald Eagles congregate here each winter is solely due to the enormous efforts of Jean Keene - the 'Eagle Lady' - who has fed the eagles daily for nearly twenty years from her garden at the end of Homer Spit.  By prior arrangement with Jean it is possible to photograph the eagles from her garden as she feeds them each morning.  Without this permission, it is essential to remain in your vehicle and observe the strict rules to avoid scaring the eagles.  Homer Spit is a naturally occurring sand spit, approximately 5 miles  long and extending into Kachemak Bay.  The spit is oriented roughly north - south, with the mountains and glaciers of the Kenai Peninsula offering a superb backdrop for photography.  The Bald Eagles will be there, you just pray for some clear sunny weather and the rest is up to your photographic ability.

Homer Spit looking south over Kachemak Bay

 Homer Spit, Alaska, was my most ambitious trip to date in terms of distance and weather dependency, and a week before departure excitement changed to the usual apprehension.  All arrangements for flights, car hire and accommodation had been made in advance over the internet.  I departed Aberdeen, Scotland on the first flight on Friday 20th February 2004 meeting Dave and Louis at Gatwick, London for the onward journey with Northwest Airlines to Minneapolis and then on to Anchorage.  Full marks to Northwest Airlines for an excellent service with flights departing and arriving on schedule.  Following a night in Anchorage we collected our hire car on saturday morning and made our way to Homer through some of the most dramatic scenery I have seen.  Without stopping, the drive takes about four hours. The choice of the Land's End Resort for accommodation proved perfect - our room overlooked the breath-taking Kachemak Bay and Louis could birdwatch without leaving his bed!!  Unfortunately, the weather was not particularly kind and during our twelve day stay we enjoyed only three sunny days, generally it was mild and cloudy.

Dave, Louis and a Bald Eagle

Whilst it is possible to photograph the Bald Eagles at any time throughout the day, there are probably two main times, one during the morning when Jean feeds the birds and the other during the mid-late afternoon when photographers group together to feed the eagles.  During this latter session I counted as many as 25 photographers who congregate on the beach with their box of frozen fish, bought from the Kachemak Gear Shed in Homer. Louis predicted that someone would soon be writing an article on obesity in Bald Eagles - some of the eagles could barely take off.  Defrosting this fish is no mean feat, with many of the American photographers coming prepared with a hammer and chisel!!  Someone is then nominated to throw the fish into the sea while the rest attempt the action shots - congratulations to Dave who could win any 'throw the fish' competition.  Don't get me wrong, this was not just a trip for Bald Eagles, we also managed to photograph Goosander, Goldeneye, Rosy Finch, Fish Crow, Raven, Rock Sandpipers, Long-tailed Ducks, Scoters, Gulls, Sea Otters, Seals and some fabulous landscapes.

I had expected to see the large majority of photographers using digital cameras and it was surprising to find that this was not the case.  For me, the situation cried for digital cameras to reduce the wastage factor on film, to alter the film speed at will and to review your attempts at capturing the action.  The learning process is immediate with digital, without it you have to wait until you get home and process the film to know whether you have been successful or not, and then it can be too late.  Occasionally, a 500mm or 600mm lens was used for a real close-up or portrait but generally a zoom lens was perfect and the Canon 100-400mm IS lens proved superb.  Some of the shots were taken at the 100mm or 200mm range of the zoom and in Jean's garden, even at this range, the birds could be too big in the frame.  One of the first issues  to consider is how you are going to tackle the exposure when dealing with an adult Bald Eagle with a white head and dark body - the juveniles do not pose this problem and one of the benefits of overcast lighting is a more uniform exposure.  I preferred to retain the details in the whites and this meant slightly under-exposing the dark areas by about one stop. Because of the fluctuating light levels and contrast between the birds and background I chose to shoot mostly with the manual exposure (metered off a neutral subject) and then under-exposing by 1/2 to 1 stop.  Although not popular with British photographers, virtually all the American photographers were using flash with a fresnel lens attachment and I would have been intrigued to have seen the results using flash.  At the southern end of Homer Spit you are located north of the sun's trajectory, which of course is not ideal and meant you tried to take advantage of the early morning or late evening sun.  Flight shots tend to show the dark under-wings of the bird which lacks any real feather texture - an evenly exposed shot in the strong sunlight is unusual, this is probably why the Americans were using a flash fill-in.

Hey! that's my toe

Whilst my preference was to use digital, for the first time I found the short comings of the Canon EOS 10D, the motordrive for action photography is far too slow and the autofocus not up to the standards of the EOS 1V - I cannot wait for the high specifications of the EOS 1D Mk 2.  I found that the autofocus on the 10D was unable to keep an eagle swooping down on fish in focus and so I tended to pre-focus on where the fish landed in the sea.  For this sort of photography a fast shutter speed is essential and to get this I used at least 200 or 400 gain or even 800.  Well, would I go again - you bet.  Please visit the Gallery section to see some of the results - Homer Spit, Alaska.