It is hard to get a good exposure of the feathers on the head of a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus). When the lighting is too strong or direct, the bright white head risks being overexposed and the details often disappear. Even under good circumstances, the head often looks like the slicked-down hair of a 1950s greaser. I was thrilled last week when I managed to capture fluffy head feathers in this shot of a pensive eagle in the early morning sunshine at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Beautiful bird and a great shot. I finished my bald eagle poem yesterday. Once again, thank you for inspiring me.
Nice shot ole codge! 😦
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I can’t decide if I am a codger or a coot. 🙂
How pretty, Mike! And I love the tree he is in–my personal favorite tree—the Tulip Popular, Liriodendron tulipifera (aka Yellow Popular)
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Oh how strikingly beautiful. The head is so fluffy and detailed, as you say, and I also like the brown feathers and the scalloping you captured, Mike. And the big fat buds in the tree just top it all off. Your photo inspires us to hail the beautiful bald eagle…a bird that almost went extinct.
Great shot Mike, the details are of the fluffy head are so good !
Wonderful capture, Mike! Nice to see signs of spring with the tree starting to bud, even if means leaves blocking our views.
That’s a nice pose, Mike, and the background adds great interest.
Great image, Mike.
Superb, Mike… love seeing the details in the head!
what a beautiful bird captured the way you have, its impressive.
This bird is turned out immaculately! I reckon it spent hours beforehand getting itself all pretty for your arrival 🙂
🙂
Great detail shot of this magnificent head of white feathers, Mike. So true…. can be so hard to capture the white without overdoing.
Thanks. It is a little easier to make adjustments with birds like egrets that are completely white, but the mixture of whites and darks makes eagles a real challenge at times.
This photo is a real success!
Ice Eagle image Mike! Enjoyed seeing it!
He (She?) looks quite smug.