I saw a lot of Short-eared Owls yesterday morning but most of them were maddeningly uncooperative. This one was an exception.
1/3200, f/6.3, ISO 400, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
I had him in good light and I liked the pastels of the clean, bi-colored background but his chosen perch was an unattractive metal fence post so flight shots were my goal. I was at a good distance for takeoff and flight shots so all I could do was hope he launched at an angle where I could see his eye and his face wasn’t in shade. I got more owl butt-shots during takeoff yesterday than I care to count so I wasn’t particularly optimistic.
He took off at a much steeper angle than I anticipated and I instinctively jerked my lens in response so I cut off half of his body in the first shot but…
1/3200, f/6.3, ISO 400, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
immediately after that I did get one photo that pleased me. I like the position of the wings, the hanging feet and the good look at his face and eye. Sadly, the end of another fence post (not the one he took off from) poked up into the bottom of the frame a little so I reluctantly removed it. I’m hesitant to alter my images like that but on those occasions when I do I always disclose what I’ve done so I don’t deceive viewers.
1/3200, f/6.3, ISO 400, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
In the next shot in the burst I clipped both wings! I only lost a few pixels of that right wingtip but a clip is a clip…
Occasionally on my Short-eared Owl posts I tentatively identify the sex of the bird, as I’ve done here by referring to this one as a probable male. 38 minutes after I photographed him I was able to get a few long distance shots of a possible mated pair that shows one of the differences between the sexes.
Before I could get my lens on them these two birds had been interacting with each other in a way that could have been fighting or maybe it was something else. But they’re most likely a male and a female and possibly even a mated pair. Females are generally noticeably darker than males so I believe the bottom bird is likely a male and the top bird a female – her face is darker as are the tops of her wings. However, there’s some overlap in these traits so sexes cannot reliably be distinguished by color.
Females are also about 20% larger than males but in this photo the presumed female is further away than the male (and softer) so judging relative size in this shot isn’t completely reliable.
Ron
So glad your wish came true & so lucky of us to be the recipients of your fantastic photos!
Marvelous series Ron!
Charlotte
Another frustrating start to my day.
Megathanks for AGAIN lifting my mood.
Sigh on the fence post issue – but if the birds can adapt so can I.
“if the birds can adapt so can I”
Ha, I think both you and the birds are more flexible than I am!
Crazy. I left a comment but it didn’t show up.
I can’t get the phrase “owl butt shots” out of my head. So I’m going to add it to my vocabulary.
Hey, with this much rain, it’s just an owl butt shot day.
This party is about as much fan as a bunch of owl butt shots.
😀
Arwen, For some reason I had to approve that first comment but I didn’t your second.
I may not be able to get “owl butt shots” out of my head. In fact, I think I’ll adopt it into my vocabulary.
Well with rain like this, today is just an owl butt shot.
Is it me or is this party about as fun as a bunch of owl butt shots.
Yep, totally using that.
Enjoy the new phrase, Arwen!
Just beautiful, despite your nits (but yes, I get your picky picking) 😉 I’m amazed that you were able to get both birds in one frame. I’m sure that doesn’t happen often! But what gorgeous birds!
I’m right there with you on the metal posts. I mean, seriously?
I visited a friend last night who lives about 40 miles east of me in a totally different environment with pinion pines and juniper abounding. She’s got such an amazing collection of birds. I love sitting on her back porch, watching as the show flits by my eyes. We both agreed that birds are just the coolest critters.
” I’m amazed that you were able to get both birds in one frame. I’m sure that doesn’t happen often!”
No, it certainly doesn’t happen often, Laura. Especially with a male and a female. I think the photos I got on this day are the only ones I have like that.
Just simply gorgeous (even when the wings are clipped)!
Thank you, Susan.
Great shots Ron, amazing how inconsiderate ranchers can be to bird photographers!
In the current political climate maybe wood posts will come back rather than steel.
Thanks, Dick. You make an interesting point about wood and steel posts…
Nice! The first 2 photo’s are wonderfully sharp and the background is good……:) Like the 3rd photo even with the trailing bird being a bit out of focus. Owls of any sorts always give me a big grin. 🙂 I’ve been listening to some saw whet owls talking at night – with the GHO’s out of the yard this year they seem more vocal than usual. A giggle on the fence posts………..;)
I’m jealous of your owls, Judy. And hearing those “giggles”…
Ron – going back in time for a minute. I just looked at your Dec 31, 2016 photo “American Kestrel with moxie”. The one with the Kestrel perched on the fake owl that is there to scare off birds. Love it. As I mentioned before, I am working with the Kestrel preservation folks here in the Prescott area and have come to love these little guys.
Everett Sanborn, Prescott AZ
I adore that shot too, Everett. It’s one of my favorite photos where the bird is on a man-made perch.
Outstanding shots Ron. Number two is Nat Geo worthy as would number three had the wing not been clipped. Love your fence response to Kathy. Well said and agreed with by all bird photographers.
Everett Sanborn, Prescott AZ
Those clipped wings on that shot were maddening, Everett. Comes with the territory though…
What is your normal distance from the subjects? Your pictures are so clear, detail, I enjoy the close up, seeing all the details of the raptors.
Steven, there really isn’t a “normal distance”. It varies a lot depending on the size of the bird, whether or not I’m after perched or flight shots and how close I’ve been able to get to the bird. But close is always better to show good detail and a quality lens is also very important.
The best general rule for me is that I try to avoid cropping my images any more than 50% because with severe cropping detail is always lost.
Love those hanging feet shots and the ‘angel wings’! I so agree about the metal posts (even if it is aged)…nothing beats a nicely aged wooden post or fence. I still have months to wait for their return sadly…thank you for giving me my ShortEar fix! 😍
Kathy, In this area there were loads of old rustic wooden fence posts until last year when they replaced them with ugly metal green ones with white tips. I wish ranchers would realize that the primary purpose of their fences is to please bird photographers and not to contain their cattle and sheep! 🙂