Winter is the season of the Bald Eagle along the Mississippi river between Iowa and Illinois. With frozen lakes and streams, they come to the big waters, and places where dams keep the water open so they can actively fish all winter long.
One of those dams is located in the Quad Cities, actually downtown Davenport Iowa and is easily accessible right off river drive. Lock and Dam 15, may not be the most visited and popular spot in the area to photograph eagles, is still a good site to go to if the light is good…and that’s really the key component of this image.
The day was fairly bright but a thin layer of light clouds, created a very nice, diffused light. It was later in the afternoon so the sun was not high, or behind the bird, but off to the right of it. And the winds, the all important wind direction, was good, coming lightly from the northwest, which kept birds fishing into my direction and crossing nicely in front of the overlook. So, I basically owe this image to great conditions that day…and hope to see more days like it in the future!