The Bald Eagle is proof that conservation works. Once on the brink of extinction the Bald Eagle has made an amazing comeback over the last 30 years. I have made the cold pilgrimage to Starved Rock State Park every January in order to photograph these magnificent birds. I first started about 12 years ago and there were perhaps 5 or 6 birds. I took this picture last January, and there were so many eagles I couldn’t count them all. I have literally hundreds of pictures of these birds but was never able to capture the tenacity and resolve on film. Then for the first time, it started to sprinkle snowflakes. I lined up a shot with a bird perched and the sun popped through just enough to illuminate its eyes. I think I have finally got my eagle pic after years and years of faithfully returning to Staved Rock. But I think I will still go next year.