Short-eared Owl Hunting

Gallery: AvianPosted February 3, 201532,767 views13 comments

There has been quite a few short-eared owls wintering here in North-western Washington this winter. And when a break in the weather coincides with my days off I have been going out there to photograph them. I have noticed that it seems that each owl has it's own territory for which it hunts. Waiting patiently in one place seemed to be the most productive way to make flight photos as the owl hunts. Several times this owl flew within a few feet of me in a single afternoon.

Canon 7Dll; 600mm; 1/1250; f 7.1; ISO 1250; Tripod; Manual Spot Meter; 20% crop all around

All your comments and suggestions are very much appreciated.

Comments

13 comments

Comment posted by Stephen Kaluski on February 3, 2015 at 7:14 AM

Lovely flight shot Ken, nice clarity and sharpness in the face a facial disc. Like the slight angle of the wings, good diffused BKG too, makes the subject 'pop'. If it was mine, I would address the Cyan & Blue coming through wing edges.

Nice one

TFS
Steve

Registered on March 25, 2007, 189 Posts, 1064 Comments

Comment posted by Jerry Austin on February 3, 2015 at 7:29 AM

Very nice Ken. Those eyes are hypnotic. Nice wing position also.

Registered on January 6, 2012, 651 Posts, 3448 Comments

Comment posted by Allen Brooks on February 3, 2015 at 8:38 AM

Great bird in flight shot.

Registered on July 27, 2011, 262 Posts, 2597 Comments

Comment posted by Luke Ormand on February 3, 2015 at 9:21 AM

Awesome to get this species with decent light - love the look at those eyes and the background colors which match the bird

Registered on February 4, 2009, 1093 Posts, 7035 Comments

Comment posted by Keith Bauer on February 3, 2015 at 11:24 AM

Gotta love a head on shot of any owl! This is nice. The background works very well with the bird. Nicely captured.
I'm always interested in hearing why people use spot metering? I'm assuming that means you spot metered on something prior to the shot and were shooting in Manual exposure mode?

Registered on November 20, 2003, 458 Posts, 4836 Comments

Comment posted by Max Waugh on February 3, 2015 at 11:39 AM

Ken, I like the symmetry and balance of the wings here. These guys veer so much all over the place, that it's not always easy to get such nice wing alignment.

I think I'd prefer a little off the bottom to get the owl out of the center of the frame, but I do think it was smart to leave some extra room on the left.

Max

btw- I hope you can make it to Carnation to get the pygmy owls (if you haven't already)!

Registered on September 26, 2008, 428 Posts, 2329 Comments

Comment posted by Ralph Kerr on February 3, 2015 at 12:06 PM

Nice SE Owl, Ken. I'll just ditto the comments already made

Registered on January 30, 2007, 369 Posts, 852 Comments

Comment posted by Hans Overduin on February 3, 2015 at 1:51 PM

Must have been a thrill to make this shot - great species to capture in flight ! Congrats with the result. Cheers, Hans

Registered on August 31, 2011, 491 Posts, 3807 Comments

Comment posted by Steve Thompson on February 3, 2015 at 5:15 PM

This is really sweet Ken. Perfect comp with a great background. Flight position and details in the owl look right on. Well done!

Registered on August 7, 2014, 125 Posts, 2319 Comments

Comment posted by Patricia Brundage on February 3, 2015 at 7:47 PM

This image is awesome! No nits or suggestions. Just wish it were mine.

Registered on March 23, 2006, 1111 Posts, 6531 Comments

Comment posted by Ray Whitt on February 4, 2015 at 7:40 PM

Wonderful catch, love the intense yellow eyes. Very well done!

Ray

Registered on May 27, 2011, 92 Posts, 2619 Comments

Comment posted by Rob Drummond on February 5, 2015 at 1:34 AM

Ah to have diurnal owls - wonderful shot Ken

Registered on November 8, 2003, 617 Posts, 8267 Comments

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on April 18, 2015 at 11:22 AM

Great intensity and nicely posittioned in the frame Ken.

I love the head-on POV and wing spread, excellent flight shot devil

Registered on July 24, 2008, 1201 Posts, 10758 Comments