Two Tundra Swans, Farmington Bay WMA, Utah

One of my earliest attempts at photography involved driving north from Salt Lake to Willard Bay in February. I’d heard you could see bald eagles there.  Indeed, I did see two bald eagles, perched in the top of a large picturesque winter tree. Armed with an 80-200mm zoom lens and 35mm film, the eagles barely made a dent in the frame. I attempted to approach them on foot, but they would have none of it. And, just like that, they were gone.  This was an early indicator that I was not going to be a bird photographer.

Fast forward 15 years: I still don’t have a bird lens, but the combination of 70-300mm lens and APS-C sized digital sensor has given me a little more reach. More importantly, I’ve found out that Farmington Bay is the real hot-spot. A recent visit yielded the best bird image of my photographic life.