Bald Eagles fighting over fish

A Bald Eagle reaching for a fish from another Bald Eagle. Fishing over and stealing fish is quite common because the Eagles are quite lazy and would rather steal fish from another Eagle or Osprey. This is from the middle of a 55 frame sequence that I kept from this chase - smile.

Atlantic puffin bringing home breakfast

Be sure to let me know when to move past the Puffin with fish pictures; I have enough new content to post a new one every day for another year (at least). We had an awesome lunch in the lighthouse and went back down to the beach as the tide turned and the Puffins started to bring back loads of fish. Everyone was full and happy - smile.

Atlantic puffin flying with Capelin

The new Sony “Fish Eye Auto-Focus” did an exceptional job during my Deluxe Puffin Workshops - LOL!

We would start each day with a 200-meter (200 yards) walk down to the beach well before sunrise and then photograph until the light shifted to the harsh side before heading back up to the lighthouse for our freshly cooked breakfast. The kitchen crew (Jeannine, Brigitte and Jean-Paul) did an exceptional job cooking our delicious meals and meeting everyone’s dietary and allergy needs. Oh, did I mention the endless supply of freshly ground and brewed coffee? Expresso, latte, cappuccino, Café au lait? Life is good with exceptional coffee :)

This image was made the moment we went back down to the beach after breakfast; I think the Puffins had the same idea and it seemed like hundreds of Puffins were returning with bills full of fish.

I never tire of Puffins - lol.

Atlantic puffin in flight

An Atlantic puffin returns to its burrow after bathing in The Gulf of the Saint Lawrence. As I tracked the Puffins flying back to the cliff face, I would stop once they entered the shade of the cliff. This is the last frame before the puffin entered the shade and I was lucky to get a near-perfect wing position and the spotlight effect - smile!

Razorbill in flight with Capelin fish

Unlike the Puffins that usually circle a few times before landing and scurrying into their burrows, the Razorbills usually just fly straight in on the first attempt. This Razorbill made a few attempts before it landed, and banked right in front of us a few times before finally landing.

Atlantic puffin flying with fish at first light

We were all down on the beach and ready before the sun rose at 04:48 and there really weren’t any birds flying around. The air was warm and still. As the intensity of the sun rose, a gentle breeze turned gusty and Puffins started to appear with bills full of fish. The first dozen flew away from us as they landed, but then the wind shifted and we had dozens of amazing opportunities as they brought home loads of fish for their babies - smile.

Atlantic Puffin with fish on green in golden light

Are you getting sick of Puffin images yet? How about Puffin with fish images? LOL.

If you really want to up your birds in flight game, try turning the camera to vertical or portrait orientation: the challenge is a tough one, but will help you learn to acquire fast moving targets more reliably - smile.

Atlantic Puffin in flight with fish (Capelin) dorsal view

Everyone who joined my five sold-out Deluxe Puffins Galore Lighthouse Island Workshop Adventures had some pretty epic opportunities with the Puffins bringing fish back to their babies. Upon reflection, there seemed to be more Puffins and more of them had fish. A sign that the colony is doing well despite many other seabird colonies being ravaged by the Avian flu.

Next year’s trips are starting to fill already, so don’t wait until it is too late to join the Puffin fun.

Bank swallow or Sand Martin banking in flight

Here is a Bank Swallow (Sand Martin) banking in flight; certainly a little more challenging than Puffins in flight. We had some great fun trying to get these Ariel acrobats in the frame during my recent Deluxe Puffins Galore workshops.

Razorbill in flight with Capelin fish

A Razorbill brings Capelin fish back to its nesting site to feed its baby. The very last frame of a sequence of 32 was captured; This one was chosen for the visible Capelin head and its position.

Atlantic puffin with bill full of fish

Here is an Atlantic puffin bringing a bill full of fish (Capelin) to its baby. The background is out of focus seaweed covered rocks. It was a dark and stormy morning and I opted to start to lower my shutter speed (to 3,200/second) once I got to ISO 12,800.

Atlantic puffin with fish silhouette

Here is a silhouette of an Atlantic puffin returning to its nest with some Capelin for dinner. I absolutely love the light shining through the translucent fish tails and the little parts of the Puffin’s primary feathers where the red shines through.

Atlantic puffin with nesting material

Atlantic Puffins dig a burrow in the soil under the grass at the top of a cliff. After cleaning out their burrows, many puffins line their nest chamber with grass, twigs, and feathers. The slightly enlarged nest chamber where the egg is laid is usually placed at the end of the burrow.

Atlantic puffin The Twist

After our fantastic crew (Janine, Brigitte and Jean-Paul) served an amazing gourmet dinner (braided salmon and cod with aux gratin potato, broccoli, tomato and pepper casserole and sautéed purple cabbage followed by the best lemon meringue pie that I have ever had), we ventured out for more Puffin Photography. The Puffins were all flying back and forth to the water for baths and a few of us got some great airborne shakes in the golden light…..the ones who were willing to skip photographing only the puffins with fish - smiles.

Learn more about the dream deluxe lighthouse island accommodation Puffins Galore Workshop CLICK HERE

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Learn more about the dream deluxe lighthouse island accommodation Puffins Galore Workshop CLICK HERE 〰️

Atlantic puffin Sunset Silhouette

Here is another silhouette of an Atlantic puffin from my recently concluded Deluxe Puffins Galore Lighthouse Adventure. Spots are filling very quickly for next year :) Learn more HERE.

Atlantic puffin silhouette

We were treated to some pretty spectacular sunsets during my five back-to-back Deluxe Puffins Galore workshops. This one was made in camera and then I pulled the blacks and added contrast in Photoshop.

Atlantic puffin in flight with Capelin on golden cliffs

An Atlantic Puffin brings Capelin (fish) to its baby in a cliff-top burrow. The sun rose through a bizarre melange of light fog and residual smoke from forest fires further north. The resulting golden honey-brown light only lasted a short while before a heavy blanket of fog rolled in.

As much as I love shooting tight, frame-filling action images, I always make sure to cover the bases for all uses and shoot some images where the subject is less than 30% of the frame; a requirement often requested from magazines and calendars.

Atlantic puffin landing at last light

The light was sweet and there were so many Puffins landing right in front of us! We had such an awesome time as they landed in the last drops of sweet light directly towards us. Once the sun set, we walked about 200 meters (200 yards) into the lighthouse for another awesome gourmet meal - life is good - smile.

Atlantic Puffin twist and shake

We were set-up on the beach at last light waiting for the take-off as this Puffin sat there bathing on the water too far away and just out of reach….as I was thinking about switching to my 600 fé4 lens with 2X extender, It took-off and stalled to shake off the water right in front of me :)

Join me August 2023 for Deluxe Edition Puffins Galore with Exclusive Lighthouse Accommodations CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

〰️

Join me August 2023 for Deluxe Edition Puffins Galore with Exclusive Lighthouse Accommodations CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE 〰️

Atlantic puffin with bill full of fish

Everyone who joined my five back-to-back sold-out Deluxe Atlantic puffin workshops in Quebec was treated to many opportunities with Puffins bringing back fish for their babies. Many of the Puffins were bringing back mixed loads of Sand Lance and Capelin, while others brought back different sizes of the same species. The colony is in fine form with more Puffins than seen on past trips.

This image was made on a foggy morning with the Puffins appearing out of the fog so fast, it was like a video game; so many Puffins with fish, but really challenging photography.