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I always look forward to leading my annual Hokkaido photography tour.  My main Hokkaido tour includes Mt. Fuji, a samurai castle, and snow monkeys.  In fact, it has become in such high demand that I needed to create a second tour just for the wildlife and landscape photographers; this new tour focuses exclusively on Hokkaido.  I am 100% okay with spending more of the winter in Hokkaido leading Japan birding workshops.  Plus, we spot and photograph dozens of species of wildlife, and minimalist landscapes.  

One of my all time favorite pics of a Steller's sea eagle flying over ice, just off the coast of Rausu, I was leading my annual Hokkaido photo tour, we were filming/photographing from the deck of our chartered vessel.

Hokkaido Minimalist Landscape, the day before east Hokkaido got hit with a blizzard, clients and I were in our 5 star lodging and I could not be happier as I knew the next morning would be sunny and clear and perfect for landscapes.

Annually I have clients that come just for landscapes, and some book two to three years in advance, I love Hokkaido Minimalist landscapes they are serene/a state of meditation, and I feel they are as healing as Shinrin Yoku.

The main event for birding photographers in Hokkaido is always a coin toss between the Red-crowned cranes (Grus japonensis) and the world famous raptor of prey, the Steller’s Sea Eagle (Haliaeetus pelagicus).  Ninety nine percent of the time, you will never see these two birds flying next to one another, but from time to time a stray Steller’s sea eagle does wander into the cranes’ territory, but this is rare.  Photographing these two species is an entirely different photography experience.  Visiting and photographing the Red-crowned cranes is as relaxing as meditation and has the feel of a natural Zen experience, such as Shinrin Yoku, Japanese forest bathing.  These cranes are natural entertainers, and they aren’t known as snow ballerinas of Hokkaido for nothing.  These huge birds’ courtship dance is legendary, as they are as graceful as British Royal Ballet Dancers.  The Steller’s Sea Eagles is an exciting bird to photograph, that keeps photographers on edge and on their toes; it takes dedication to get those gallery worthy shots.  By mass, the Steller’s sea eagle is the largest eagle on our planet, and their attitude matches.  These birds of prey have the largest bill out of all raptors which is razor sharp; they devour whole fish minutes, and their talons are huge and as sharp as their bills; they are so sharp that I have never seen a Steller’s sea eagle slip on the shiny slick pack ice.  The Steller’s Sea Eagles use the pack ice as their home and fishing platform for most of the winter. 

The Steller's sea eagles are champion raptors of the ice, they live most of the winter on pack ice off the coast of Hokkaido's east, that use as their fishing platform.

The Red-crowned cranes you can spot and photograph the same day as the Steller's sea eagles, but the cranes live inland and avoid the raptors. I took this image while leading my annual Hokkaido photo tour.

Whopper swans are huge, and tough and the raptors don't bother them, you will find swans along the eastern Hokkaido coastline and inland during winter, but you won't find these birds handing out with raptors.

Part of what makes the Steller’s Sea Eagle such a sought after photographic subject is their growing rarity.  The Steller’s Sea Eagle have been put on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN's) list as vulnerable because of their decrease in numbers, just over 4,000 specimens in the wild.  During early spring to late autumn they occupy a small section of Russian claimed Kuril Islands that extend off of the Kamchatka Peninsula.  The eagles’ domain extends down into portions of Hokkaido that are part of my annual winter birding expedition, and as the photography workshop leader, I know the best locations in Hokkaido that the eagles call home, so no matter how scarce the number, I guarantee clients over a 90% chance that you will spot and photograph these raptors.  Another feature that makes Steller’s Sea Eagles such a magnificent subject are their natural gifts.  The eagles stand between three and three and half feet tall  (91 - 107 cm), one of the largest raptors in the world.  However, what makes them a photographic spectacle is their ferocity and the contrast of their nearly all black body against the shining white pack ice.  I have visited Hokkaido as a photo tour leader for more than two and a half decades, and I have to confess that every year when I see the first Steller’s Sea Eagle spread its wings wide as it soars the winds along the Hokkaido coastline, I take just a moment to appreciate the majesty and nobility of the perfect raptor predator.  The Steller’s Sea Eagles is perpetually hunting, and it’s always only a matter of time before prey becomes its sole focus as it swoops into the pack ice in pursuit of one of its favorite winter meals, fish of any kind.  Considering the median wingspan of The Steller’s Sea Eagle is over 2 meters (approximately 7 feet), while on your Japan Photo Tour, you’ll be able to spot and photograph the eagles with fully extended wings.  I have personally recorded instances of wingspans up to 2.5 meters, nearly 8 feet and wider! 

I took this shot in a Zodiac boat leading my annual Hokkaido photography workshop this White-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla) came straight at us, then banked fast to the left, these are another champion raptor of Hokkaido.

Steller's sea eagles, have such huge and sharp talons, and I have never seen one slip on the sleep pack ice off the coast of Hokkaido.

Steller's sea eagles have the largest bill of all raptors, and its razor sharp they can devour a fish in minutes. This is most likely a female, we tell them apart as the female is always bigger and has more of an attitude. Image taken Hokkaido Japan.

The White-tailed eagles live and feed side by side with the Steller's during winter, and in the spring when the Steller's migrate north the White-tails have the Hokkaido rich fishing grounds to themselves.

White-tailed eagles have a large wingspans and come in a variety of colors shades, this one is vibrant and colorful. While some are duller in vibrance and color, but the light has allot to do with this. Image taken while birding Hokkaido Japan.

Join me in 2025, a twin occupancy just came open! 
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