I led a Field Trip for my Digital Photography class Sunday morning in Woodstock. The eight of us had a great time. It is wonderful to work with such enthusiastic and dedicated students.
One of the things I suggest in my classes is that when you are driving almost anywhere, have a camera on the seat next to you preset for your next photo. But how do you do this since you don’t know what the next photo will be? Well, if you come upon a beautiful scene and stop to take a photo, it doesn’t matter what setting you made since you most likely have plenty of time to reset the camera. But if a moose or bobcat is standing by the side of the road you will most likely have to shoot fast and not fiddle with your settings. So preset your camera for that situation.
I decided to take River Road home. As I neared the Taftsville covered bridge a bald eagle flew over the river and landed in a tree in front of my car. I stopped, got out of my car, and slowly approached. I did not have to change any setting on my camera or even look what settings I had. The eagle was mostly hidden by the leaves still on the tree so the few shots I got were not good. But then it flew right by me over the river.
It circled and landed on a beautiful oak across the Ottauquechee River. It was time for a longer lens and tripod. Fortunately the eagle sat in the tree for about three minutes before departing upstream.
I got some photos of the eagle flying away but none were as good at the first few I got with my shorter lens. The following photos are only very slightly cropped.
