An Excerpt from our recently published article with Luminous Landscape

A magical bird that has graced my presence during my annual Hokkaido Photo Workshop is the Steller’s Sea Eagle.  The Steller’s Sea Eagle is the heaviest and one of the most fierce raptors on our planet; their plumage is blackish brown-black all over except on the shoulders, rump, tail, thighs, and forehead, which are white. These raptors have a razor-sharp, wickedly hooked huge yellow bill that is the largest of all eagles. They prefer the taste of sweet trout, salmon, or other fish but will eat sea lions or just about any land species when fishing is slow. Young human children and house pets such as dogs and cats are carefully watched when venturing out on their own when The Steller’s Sea Eagle’s food supply becomes scarce. There are even fables of children going missing during these periods due to insufficient safety protocols being followed. It's far too common that cats, dogs, and some young livestock and even deer go missing when there’s foul weather.  

The Steller’s Sea Eagles are huge, on average, the heaviest raptor on our planet, weighing up to and over 10 kg (22 pounds). They are also tall, measuring up to 94 cm (3 ft), sometimes even taller, with a massive wingspan of up to 250 cm (8 - 9 ft).  I have personally photographed a Steller’s Sea Eagle I swear had a wingspan eclipsing 10 ft that I witnessed from my chartered helicopter while I was on assignment capturing landscape shots between Hokkaido and Russia.  Suddenly, this enormous blur of white and black strafed us, and both the pilot and I were astounded at the size of the monstrous Steller’s Sea Eagle, which could have been the largest Steller’s Sea Eagle on the planet ever photographed.  I asked the eagle to stay still, so I could break out my measuring tape, but the eagle had places to be and prey to hunt, I assume.

On some occasions, when the seas are calm, I use zodiac boats, sometimes with clients and other times alone. When I am leading the expedition, we can get up close and personal to the feeding frenzy that we can clearly hear the battle cries of the raptors as they exchange barbs and slashes for their fishy prize.  If the conflicts end with a clear victor, and you are close enough in a zodiac, you will be able to see the brilliance of the Steller’s Sea Eagle’s brown and white plumage, the shimmer of the pack ice, and the luster of fish scales all blending together in a medley of visual artistry.  However, during some conflicts, there is no clear victor, except us photographers who have captured still images and videos of unforgettable exchanges between two mighty raptor species on the pack ice. 

Once when I was out on the pack ice in a Zodiac alone, I was so close to the feasting raptors that one Steller’s Sea Eagle locked eyes with me with a freshly caught fish pinned down to the pack ice.  As it was preparing to feast on its hard fought for catch, the Steller’s Sea Eagle loudly shrieked at me; I believe declaring the fish was solely its property.  The hairs on the back of my neck stood up and set me on edge, a mix of adrenaline and apprehension. I had unwittingly entered the sphere of predation, and I felt that I could be the next human victim of the dinosaur contemporary; yes, these raptors have latched onto a few unfortunate souls.

In closing, the gear I recommend for photographing the raptors is two camera bodies, a medium telephoto or a super-telephoto.  From my experience in Hokkaido on boats, I prefer zoom lenses over a fixed focal length.  My choice of lenses is the AF-S NIKKOR 180-400mm f/4E TC1.4 FL ED VR or the Sigma 120-300mm F2.8 DG OS HSM Sport with a x2 teleconverter giving 600mm. Both of these lenses are excellent, and I recommend the equivalent focal range from other camera makers.  And if you are photographing wildlife on land, I recommend, if possible, to have a super-telephoto such as a 600mm f4 or an 800mm f5.6 or a 400mm f2.8 with a x2 teleconverter giving you 800mm.