"In the county of Northumberland in northern England there are a few locations along the coast where Eider ducks flock together in winter. I wore chest waders and joined the birds in the surf to capture this image of a male Eider breaking through a wave. I stayed low to help portray the drama of the moment and used a very fast shutter speed to ensure the action was frozen. I purposely placed the bird towards the top left of the frame to allow the eye to wander along the wave to the bird, and to help illustrate the wave the bird was swimming through."

Shot using a Kodak DSC Pro N and a 500mm f/4 lens with 1.4 x converter at ISO 160, f/8 at 1/1500 sec, hand-held.