King Eider

Gallery: AvianPosted December 15, 20047,754 views20 comments

We've had some pretty lousy weather around here the last month and it finally broke. The only price is that now it's bitter cold! (-1°f this am!) So, I headed to the coast to look for winter sea ducks. I got very lucky and found this cooperative 1st winter male king eider. I shot a ton of frames until a lobster boat spooked him. Taken early this morning in Maine, waist deep in the COLD Atlantic! Thanks for looking.

Canon 1d MII/600mm IS/2x II

1/250 sec, f/13
Exp comp: -1/3
ISO: 250

Comments

20 comments

Comment posted by Ofer Levy on December 15, 2004 at 3:21 PM

Registered on July 23, 2004, 172 Posts, 1513 Comments

Comment posted by Jim Zipp on December 15, 2004 at 3:32 PM

Love the crab or whatever it is! Cool shot Garth.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 86 Posts, 940 Comments

Comment posted by Bob Steele on December 15, 2004 at 3:33 PM

Oh yeah!!

Registered on November 1, 2003, 354 Posts, 13896 Comments

Comment posted by George Hall, Jr on December 15, 2004 at 3:45 PM

Very nice capture...for you and the duck. Great DOF.

Registered on July 11, 2004, 283 Posts, 2395 Comments

Comment posted by Robert Royse on December 15, 2004 at 3:51 PM

Great shot of a species I've only seen a couple of times way, way far away.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 218 Posts, 2427 Comments

Comment posted by Terry Sohl on December 15, 2004 at 4:04 PM

Wow!!

You have more guts than me, taking a MarkII and a 600mm out into the Atlantic!! If it were me, I'd trip and have $14,000 sink to the bottom!!

Registered on November 1, 2003, 513 Posts, 6889 Comments

Comment posted by Jeff Nadler on December 15, 2004 at 4:26 PM

great shot . . sure hope you use a drysuit!

Not nearly as brave as you, i'm going to visit Newburyport and Salisbury beach, Mass, with both feet on land

Registered on December 2, 2004, 140 Posts, 229 Comments

Comment posted by Lesley Mattuchio on December 15, 2004 at 4:48 PM

Good stuff here, Garth. Was this at Drakes....not that I am going into the ocean with my MK2.

Registered on July 14, 2004, 36 Posts, 322 Comments

Comment posted by Paul Fusco on December 15, 2004 at 5:36 PM

Awesome shot, Garth!
Great color.
- Paul

Registered on November 17, 2003, 283 Posts, 1163 Comments

Comment posted by Ernie Kuo on December 15, 2004 at 7:38 PM

Garth,

Nice catch for both you and the bird. If you want sunshine, you will have to come to the shake-and-bake State.

Registered on June 10, 2004, 152 Posts, 1089 Comments

Comment posted by Brian E. Small on December 15, 2004 at 8:11 PM

Killer shot Garth.........can you bring him along with you to SoCal next month?

Registered on November 1, 2003, 147 Posts, 933 Comments

Comment posted by Rick Cloran on December 15, 2004 at 9:12 PM

with lunch yet. A beauty

Registered on April 6, 2004, 119 Posts, 1989 Comments

Comment posted by Kenneth Kijewski on December 15, 2004 at 10:12 PM

Brrrrrr... and a Grrrreat shot, Garth!

Registered on February 17, 2004, 166 Posts, 3390 Comments

Comment posted by Rob Kipp on December 16, 2004 at 7:18 AM

Garth, that capture is wonderful. Even looks as cold as it was, nice that you had to go in wast deep - you are brave. Great shot.

Registered on June 23, 2004, 11 Posts, 265 Comments

Comment posted by Tom Grey on December 16, 2004 at 9:06 AM

This California wimp is very impressed by the image, and even more impressed by how it was taken.

Registered on December 2, 2003, 144 Posts, 2069 Comments

Comment posted by Richard Ditch on December 16, 2004 at 9:36 AM

We'll <i>never</i> think of you as a "photographic girlie-man" after this! Wow!

Registered on November 1, 2003, 1031 Posts, 12705 Comments

Comment posted by Wayne Nicholas on December 16, 2004 at 12:30 PM

Nice, Garth. Love the crab in the bill.

Registered on November 11, 2003, 38 Posts, 155 Comments

Comment posted by Juza on December 17, 2004 at 1:13 PM

Hi Garth,
one of your best! Love the crab and the action

Registered on November 1, 2003, 374 Posts, 10466 Comments

Comment posted by Reindert Nijland on February 17, 2005 at 8:34 AM

Nice shot! I think the crab is a European green crab/Shore crab (Carcinus maenas). Also the Common eiders in Europe eat a lot of them, I often see then like this in the Wadden-Sea in the Netherlands. Never managed to take such a nice shot though.

Registered on February 16, 2005, 54 Posts, 63 Comments

Comment posted by Carol Hyman on April 21, 2007 at 6:19 PM

Magnificent capture, Garth, although since this was posted a long time back, I'm sure you've frequently heard the comment.

Hopefully you carry insurance on your equipment ;^)

Thanks for sharing and I'm glad I came across the image.

Carol

Registered on January 18, 2007, 597 Posts, 8062 Comments