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Photo of the Month 08/10
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Photo of the Month 08/10

by Ron Dudley

Gallery: AvianPosted June 27, 20102,719 views58 comments
Short-eared Owl

We just returned from a wonderful eight day camping/photo trip to western Montana. This was taken yesterday morning at Red Rock Lakes NWR. We spent a lot of time over four days with a pair of these owls but were usually fighting for light and most of my images were shot at ISO 800 or 1000 - higher than I like to use.

Larger version provided.

7D, 1/1000, f/5.6, ISO 800, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc, shot from pickup window, very slight exposure adjustment in ACR, cropped to 53% of original image, increased exposure to the vole in CS4, sharpened, NR to background, no additional adjustments or processing, natural light, not baited

Comments/critique appreciated

Comments

58 comments
Comment posted by Mike Dunn on June 27, 2010 at 7:03 PM
This is just an awesome shot. :toast:
Registered on April 6, 2008, 5 Posts, 39 Comments
Comment posted by Peter Conway on June 27, 2010 at 7:07 PM
Great job Ron, The facial disc and eyes jump out. The prey (mouse?) adds interest too. :toast:

I'll be looking forward to more of yours and Mia's posts of the trip.

Peter
Registered on June 25, 2007, 347 Posts, 3913 Comments
Comment posted by David Chauvin on June 27, 2010 at 7:08 PM
Fantastic shot, Ron! :toast: The multicolored bg, soft light and excellent position of the owl and prey in the frame all come together.
Registered on August 5, 2004, 1007 Posts, 5595 Comments
Comment posted by Mauro Pasquero on June 27, 2010 at 7:24 PM
Great shot, Ron. Awesome Owl against a very good complementary BG :toast:
Registered on January 21, 2010, 650 Posts, 2500 Comments
Comment posted by Luke Ormand on June 27, 2010 at 7:31 PM
Fantastic image with eye contact and good composition in the frame.

- Luke
Registered on February 4, 2009, 1093 Posts, 7035 Comments
Comment posted by denise ippolito on June 27, 2010 at 7:51 PM
The soft light and layered BG colors add a lot to this dynamic image. Well captured Ron.
Registered on December 17, 2009, 202 Posts, 1529 Comments
Comment posted by S Govindarajan on June 27, 2010 at 8:17 PM
The intensity in the owl's face grabbed me immediately. The three dimensional effect of the owl against the great background is simply awesome.Perfect wingspread, wonderfully composed and you even got a catch light on the vole!

Look fwd to other images from your trip :toast:
Registered on April 19, 2008, 115 Posts, 1921 Comments
Comment posted by Gary Marquart on June 27, 2010 at 9:09 PM
Really nice image Ron, Great in flight shot, very nice bg and I like the intense stare.
Registered on October 24, 2009, 126 Posts, 799 Comments
Comment posted by wade pettitt on June 27, 2010 at 9:24 PM
Ron , this is beautiful!!. I love the wings from corner to corner, great detail and I love the eye contact. WELL DONE!!!.
Registered on May 6, 2009, 184 Posts, 471 Comments
Comment posted by Richard Ditch on June 27, 2010 at 10:10 PM
What a jaw-dropper! I can't take my eyes off the owl's face in the larger version.
Registered on November 1, 2003, 1031 Posts, 12705 Comments
Comment posted by Pat Sampson on June 27, 2010 at 10:47 PM
Incredible shot Ron.

Pat
Registered on May 19, 2007, 953 Posts, 15989 Comments
Comment posted by Neil Rossmiller on June 27, 2010 at 11:23 PM
Very Cool, Ron.
Well worth the drive :wink: !
Neil
Registered on October 30, 2009, 156 Posts, 749 Comments
Comment posted by Keith Bauer on June 27, 2010 at 11:44 PM
Really cool shot. The angle in the frame is perfect. Great detail. Looks great for ISO 800.
Registered on November 20, 2003, 458 Posts, 4836 Comments
Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on June 28, 2010 at 12:33 AM
beautiful, Ron, this alone would make it a successful trip for me. love your comp, the prey, the bg, the wing position, and especially the way the face is level even though the body is banking on an angle. really a gorgeous shot.
Registered on March 21, 2009, 202 Posts, 4187 Comments
Comment posted by Ken Archer on June 28, 2010 at 3:32 AM
Killer photo Ron!!!

Ken Archer
Registered on October 28, 2004, 222 Posts, 6683 Comments
Comment posted by Bill Leggett on June 28, 2010 at 6:42 AM
Ron, not bad at all for ISO800. Looks like the NR on the BG worked well.
Registered on July 21, 2004, 706 Posts, 3233 Comments
Comment posted by Bill Maile on June 28, 2010 at 8:21 AM
Very nice owl image Ron, congrats!
Registered on March 2, 2009, 984 Posts, 2518 Comments
Comment posted by Jagdeep Rajput on June 28, 2010 at 8:58 AM
Terrific image !!!
Jagdeep Rajput :toast:
Registered on April 29, 2008, 686 Posts, 2857 Comments
Comment posted by Monica Siri on June 28, 2010 at 10:39 AM
A winner! Congrats. :toast: :wavey:
Registered on September 20, 2009, 132 Posts, 3764 Comments
Comment posted by KC Choo on June 28, 2010 at 11:08 AM
Brilliant! Quite easily one of the best!
Registered on November 15, 2004, 519 Posts, 8278 Comments
Comment posted by Nate Chappell on June 28, 2010 at 11:26 AM
SWEET!! :toast: :toast:
Registered on February 1, 2006, 1158 Posts, 19528 Comments
Comment posted by Jim Hackley on June 28, 2010 at 12:11 PM
Excellent shot Ron, everything comes together on this one, the larger image was a pleasure to view, way to go.
Registered on September 17, 2009, 302 Posts, 5535 Comments
Comment posted by Steve Balke on June 28, 2010 at 1:22 PM
No question: simply an outstanding BIF capture, Ron. I especially like how well the owl stands out from the background. :toast: :toast:
Registered on June 18, 2009, 229 Posts, 2915 Comments
Comment posted by Nancy Elwood on June 28, 2010 at 4:44 PM
:eek: :eek: AWESOME!!! Love the BG, eye contact and then the vole is iciing on the cake! Big congrats!! :toast: :toast:
Registered on January 15, 2010, 101 Posts, 396 Comments
Comment posted by Dusty Veideman on June 28, 2010 at 6:27 PM
Wow, this is a winner! Now I am jealous as I spent 2 days around here with some of these but couldn't get anything very close. :toast:
Registered on November 1, 2003, 295 Posts, 547 Comments
Comment posted by Ian Mason on June 28, 2010 at 6:34 PM
One of the finest SEO images I have seen - print it big and hang it!
Registered on December 14, 2005, 399 Posts, 2305 Comments
Comment posted by Dennis Plank on June 28, 2010 at 7:17 PM
Beautiful, Ron. You nailed this one perfectly. :toast:
Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments
Comment posted by Derrick Lipinski on June 28, 2010 at 10:45 PM
Simply supreme (although not for the rodent), Ron! What more can be said! :smile:
Registered on October 5, 2007, 58 Posts, 2039 Comments
Comment posted by Nick Saunders on June 29, 2010 at 8:51 AM
Oh this is a beauty Ron. The wing-spead , the eye contact. Just great. :toast:
Registered on February 6, 2008, 321 Posts, 3035 Comments
Comment posted by mark cillo on June 29, 2010 at 11:36 AM
Amazing image! :toast:
Registered on July 27, 2008, 143 Posts, 1483 Comments
Comment posted by Darren Colello on June 29, 2010 at 12:43 PM
This is the short eared owl image I have always wanted. Spectacular in every way. :toast: :toast:
Registered on July 27, 2009, 175 Posts, 1100 Comments
Comment posted by Jim DeWitt on June 29, 2010 at 5:29 PM
Superb, Ron. Excellent work.
Registered on August 28, 2006, 1240 Posts, 8506 Comments
Comment posted by Rohn B. McKee on June 29, 2010 at 7:05 PM
Wow Ron! What a great catch. I'm sure you worked very hard for this shot. Well done.
Registered on November 18, 2008, 109 Posts, 415 Comments
Comment posted by Mia McPherson on July 4, 2010 at 8:33 PM
Just one word - - Outstanding!
Registered on June 25, 2007, 491 Posts, 12566 Comments
Comment posted by Dennis Plank on July 6, 2010 at 11:52 AM
Congrats, Ron. :toast: :toast:
Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments
Comment posted by Monica Siri on July 6, 2010 at 12:39 PM
Congrats on EP, Ron. Well deserved! :toast: :wavey:
Registered on September 20, 2009, 132 Posts, 3764 Comments
Comment posted by Jim DeWitt on July 6, 2010 at 1:28 PM
A very well deserved EP, Ron. Congratulations!
Registered on August 28, 2006, 1240 Posts, 8506 Comments
Comment posted by Christine Adams on July 6, 2010 at 6:19 PM
Nice!! Simpy put! Congrats on your EP!!!
Registered on January 24, 2006, 119 Posts, 1871 Comments
Comment posted by May Haga on July 6, 2010 at 7:42 PM
Ron, a well deserved weekly pick.
May
Registered on February 22, 2007, 714 Posts, 8470 Comments
Comment posted by Ronnie Gaubert on July 6, 2010 at 9:38 PM
Congrats Ron, this pic was a no-brainer.

Ronnie G.
Registered on November 1, 2003, 810 Posts, 3495 Comments
Comment posted by Doug Benner on July 7, 2010 at 10:27 AM
Dramatic and beautiful. This is just perfect - an inspiring capture.
Registered on December 8, 2003, 482 Posts, 1868 Comments
Comment posted by Nate Chappell on July 7, 2010 at 4:54 PM
Congrats Ron :toast: :toast:
Registered on February 1, 2006, 1158 Posts, 19528 Comments
Comment posted by David Cobb on July 7, 2010 at 6:49 PM
Perfectly framed, wonderful background, great sharpness to the subject, and the addition of the fallen prey puts this over the top! Congrats on the EP - well deserved.
Registered on December 14, 2007, 312 Posts, 3243 Comments
Comment posted by David Sparks on July 14, 2010 at 6:07 PM
Ron:
Spectacular shot! Congrats on the WP. Sorry I was on "NPN vacation" when you posted it.
Registered on May 26, 2007, 290 Posts, 4270 Comments
Comment posted by Kirk Greene on August 1, 2010 at 11:21 AM
WOW..an incredible shot! I'm not sure how I missed this when you originally posted it! The owl's face is very sharp & the BG/prey make this one of the best flight shots I've seen! :toast:
Registered on May 12, 2004, 191 Posts, 1578 Comments
Comment posted by Simon Bennett on August 1, 2010 at 4:42 PM
Superb!!
Registered on February 4, 2007, 350 Posts, 4614 Comments
Comment posted by Charles Gangas on August 1, 2010 at 5:06 PM
Ron-congratulations on capturing Photo of the Month for this superb image-masterful! :toast: :toast:
Registered on August 12, 2009, 544 Posts, 2414 Comments
Comment posted by Kory Lidstrom on August 1, 2010 at 9:35 PM
This is a stunner! :toast: The EXIF is very throrough, too. No nits with this one.
Registered on November 19, 2008, 49 Posts, 1035 Comments
Comment posted by Abdullaziz Bin Ali on August 2, 2010 at 8:25 AM
What a perfect job
deserves to be a photo of the month :wink:
Registered on May 31, 2009, 112 Posts, 1590 Comments
Comment posted by Eric Mannino on August 2, 2010 at 12:17 PM
Great shot Ron. I love this shot. I love the detail in the facial disk, the concentration in the owl's eyes, the composition and the BG. Well done! Congrats.
Registered on November 16, 2009, 22 Posts, 65 Comments
Comment posted by David Hemmings on August 2, 2010 at 3:26 PM
Just awesome :jump:
Registered on May 26, 2006, 178 Posts, 1680 Comments
Comment posted by Matt Taylor on August 2, 2010 at 4:43 PM
Superb shot. I love the concentration on the Owl's face and the composition that you have used
Matt
Registered on July 31, 2010, 5 Posts, 91 Comments
Comment posted by Paul Rosser on August 3, 2010 at 4:21 PM
Many congratulations on a superb Photograph. So very good!!! :toast: :toast: :toast:
Paul Rosser. :wavey:
Registered on October 25, 2009, 61 Posts, 188 Comments
Comment posted by Albert Darmo on August 5, 2010 at 8:39 PM
Hi Ron :wavey: A magnificent capture of one of natures avian wonders. Awesome in every aspect :toast: congrats for photo of the month. :toast:
Albert Darmo. canada
Registered on November 25, 2008, 1386 Posts, 11978 Comments
Comment posted by David Thomas on August 8, 2010 at 10:55 AM
Beautiful photograph, and a great record of one of nature's wonders.

I appreciate the subject and quality, having shot hundreds of images of nesting red-shouldered hawks this spring, including several carrying prey. None even approached this image!.

Dave Thomas
Leesburg, VA
Registered on June 21, 2010, 30 Posts, 178 Comments
Comment posted by Tom Guffey on August 12, 2010 at 10:38 AM
SUPERB!!!!! :toast: :cool:
Registered on November 1, 2003, 553 Posts, 1954 Comments
Comment posted by Ákos Lumnitzer on August 28, 2010 at 7:58 AM
Hey Ron
Congrats on this incredible image! Outstanding work indeed! :toast:
Registered on April 24, 2004, 25 Posts, 510 Comments
Comment posted by Nate Geslin on September 6, 2010 at 3:01 AM
Fantastic work! Just breathtaking. Those eyes are so eerie looking! I just love it! :toast:
Registered on November 25, 2008, 12 Posts, 27 Comments