One of the highlights on my trip to Maine was the cruise to Machias Seal Island to photograph puffins. Machias Seal Island is a small low-lying rocky island about nine miles offshore from Cutler, Maine and serves as a major breeding colony for puffins, razorbills and some common murres. Several boat charters take a limited amount of visitors to the island to photograph or view the seabirds. The best time for seeing puffins on Machias Seal Island is May through August. Several companies offer cruises to Machias Seal Island. I used Bold Coast Charter Company and Captain Andy Patterson for my trip.
Atlantic Puffin
Canon EOS-1D Mark III, Canon 100-400mm lens,
ISO 250, 1/1250 sec at f/5.6, + 1 exp com
Since I was staying in Ellsworth and the cruise left from Cutler, I started the day at 4:00 am for the two hour drive to the small fishing village in Downeast Maine. As I left the hotel it was raining and very foggy, and I was not sure what would be in store for the trip to Machias Seal Island. By the time I arrived in Cutler the rain had stopped, but the fog was still pretty thick. All 14 passengers were loaded up to a small motored skiff and transported to the cruise boat, Barbara Frost, which was moored in the Cutler Harbor. We left the harbor around 7:15am, and our trip to the island took around 45 minutes. On the way to the island we started seeing some puffins flying by, and I was getting excited. The fog was so thick that I did not bother trying to photograph on the ride out to the island. When we arrived we could barely see Machias Seal Island and its lighthouse through the fog. In small groups we were motored to the island in a skiff. We were lucky that the tides were in our favor and that we could indeed land on the island. After making way up the slippery landing area we were escorted up a walkway leading to a picnic area near the lighthouse. We met with a naturalist stationed on the island, and he discussed the procedures on viewing the puffins from the blinds. There are four permanent wooden blinds located among the breeding colony. The blinds are very small (approximately 4×8 ft) with several small sliding wooden panels for access to photograph or view the puffins, razorbills and murres. After being briefed, we were escorted to the blinds in two groups of three and two groups of four. I was lucky to be in one of the groups of three.
Time in the blinds generally ranges from 1/2 to 2 hours depending on how many others are waiting to go into the blinds. On this day, we had about two hours in the blind. The foggy weather helped diffuse the bright morning sunlight and gave me great lighting. The research I did before this trip made me realize that I did not want to bring my big 500mm lens and tripod on this trip. Instead I chose to handhold my Canon 1D Mark III camera and 100-400mm lens. Fortunately, I was able to maintain high enough shutter speeds to make this possible. This setup worked perfectly for me. I was able to move around the blind more freely to check other viewing slots, and when I focused on trying to capture flight images of the puffins this camera and lens setup again allowed greater movement within the blind.
Atlantic Puffin
Canon EOS-1D Mark III, Canon 100-400mm lens,
ISO 250, 1/800 sec at f/8, + 1/3 exp com
The three of us crammed ourselves and our gear into the small blind. Razorbills and puffins were everywhere around the blind. Some were just a few feet away. Some birds were a little farther away while others were landing and walking on the roof of the blind. I scanned the rocks looking for birds that would give me nice backgrounds and concentrated on these situations. Luckily, I found areas that gave me a soft blue background and focused on the birds that would hang out in this area. The birds seem to remain fairly active as they would rest for a few minutes, flap wings, preen, fly off and then others would fly in to this spot. I was able to capture all these behaviors as well as get some nice portraits of the puffins and razorbills. Unfortunately, the murres stayed a little further out, and I guess that is where having a big lens like the 500mm would have been handy. But I was still very pleased with the images that I did capture. Because we had nearly two hours in the blind, it was one of the best times I had photographing birds.
Razorbill
Canon EOS-1D Mark III, Canon 100-400mm lens,
ISO 250, 1/2500 sec at f/5.6
As we came out of our blinds another group of visitors from Grand Manan, Canada were waiting for their turn in the blind. I was glad that we had been the early group because the fog was starting to clear, and the sun was becoming harsh. After our time in the blind was up we went back to the picnic area and met with the rest of our group. We were able to talk with the naturalist and ask questions before heading back down the walkway to leave the island. Once we were back on the Barbara Frost, Captain Andy Patterson took us by a small island where harbor and gray seals were sunbathing on seaweed covered rocks. The lighting was getting a little harsh, but I had to take some photographs of the seals. On the ride back to Cutter Harbor we also saw some black guillemots and Wilson’s storm-petrels. Because the fog had lifted for our return, we had a picturesque view of Cutler Harbor which was a wonderful way to end our trip.
This was a fantastic adventure and an unforgettable experience. Not only was it a great opportunity for photography, but being so close to the puffins and razorbills and being able to observe their behaviors was remarkable. This experience alone was well worth a trip to Maine. I look forward to doing this again soon.
Harbor Seal
Canon EOS-1D Mark III, Canon 100-400mm lens,
ISO 400, 1/1250 sec at f/5.6, + 2/3 exp comp
Tags: birds, Machias Seal Island, Maine, puffins, razorbills, seals, travel reports, wildlife photography
