PHOTOS: Different cameras yield different results when photographing bald eagles

I have been asked this question by a number of people: “How do you get that close to the wildlife and when you do get that close doesn’t that interfere or disturb the wildlife?”

The answer is that I am rarely that close to wildlife. In many cases I shoot from inside my vehicle using a window mount to support the camera. The vehicle is a good blind and usually does not impact the animals. They may see me and look at me, but rarely react. I have learned that if I open the door, that will often cause the wildlife to react in some negative way.

Since I am usually some distance from the wildlife, I need to shoot with some high-end photographic equipment. The long lenses and steady tripods allow me to get many of my shots. That hardware is not cheap!

I recently saw a bald eagle in one of the nests that I know of and decided to use the situation as a good example of different lenses and hardware. I used progressively longer lens to make the bald eagle look closer or bigger. These shots have been cropped to 8-inches-by-10-inches, but still use the full vertical of the image.

iPhone camera

I shot these first two photographs with my iPhone as a comparison. The cameras in smart phones are good, but not of much use in this kind of photography.

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Canon 90D camera

I usually do not shoot from this distance, but it is useful at demonstrating the advantage of high-end photographic hardware. Photos 3 through 6 are with my Canon 90D using different Canon lenses.

Swaroviski camera

The last two shots are with my Swarovski spotting scope that has a camera adapter to allow me to attach my Canon 90D. There was a lot of turbulence in the air, so not as sharp as some I have shot.