Are you tired of risking a fall at the slippery jetty of the Barnegat Lighthouse State Park, NJ in hopes of getting a photograph of a wintering Common Eider?

Few years ago, I found a perfect spot where I often have opportunity of photographing hundreds of wintering Common Eiders, at times only few feet away from me https://www.greggard.com/blog/2021/12/common-eiders-swimming-video , literally few steps from the parking lot! For some, it might be a long drive but it is a perfect weekend gateway during slower winter months. In this guide I share information on how I found this location, how I’m photographing there for best results for sunrise and sunset shoot, what I’m looking for, what to avoid and many more tips.

I will also share a hotel and dining recommendation. As already mentioned, this can be a great weekend gateway for you and your spouse by spending a sunrise and sunset photographing ducks and the rest of the day on the beach as well as enjoying delicious seafood dinner at the local restaurant.

After my very first visit, this location became my favorite spot to photograph wintering waterfowl and it is a location I’m looking forward to visit each Winter.

Other waterfowl that you may see here include: mergansers, buffleheads, goldeneyes, scoters.

P.S.

This location is great between December and mid April.

I will share several spots where I’m photographing these ducks depending on the part of the day. At some of these locations, getting a full frame shots is possible with a 100-400mm lens. At some, 600mm with 1.4x or even 2x teleconverter are more suitable. Of course, it all depends what kind of photographs you want to make.