Wild animals become photographer’s pet project
Photographer: Richard Gwin
Camera: Nikon D1X
Lens: 500mm
ISO: 800
Aperture: 5.6
Shutter: 500
Shooting eagle pictures has been sort of a pet project of mine since I started working at the Lawrence Journal-World.
I remember pulling out of the parking lot and seeing two large birds hovering over the former Lawrence Paper Co. and parking to take a look. To my surprise, I saw not only a bald eagle but also a golden eagle. It was a pretty neat experience for a small-town Kansas boy.
During the past 25 years, I’ve done everything from hiding under a white sheet in the middle of winter to just driving up to the birds in a car. This latest picture was shot from the walkway on the Kansas River bridge. It was a cold morning, and the birds were fishing on the only piece of open water on the river, just below Bowersock Dam.
I just followed the birds in flight as they slowly hovered over the water, firing a few frames at a time. With our new digital gear, I was able to tell right away I’d captured some nice frames.