![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/barn-owl-5531-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"barn-owl-5531-ron-dudley\\"")
<\/p>\nSome of my images are highly evocative for me. Not many but a few and this is one of them. When you first see it you may think you’ve seen it before but you’d be mistaken.<\/p>\n
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Way back on the morning of January 15, 2008 I had Farmington Bay WMA all to myself. It had snowed heavily the day before and apparently most folks didn’t want to chance getting stuck on the dicey dirt road covered with snow. Even the intrepid (crazy?) duck hunters seemed to be taking the day off.<\/p>\n
When I reached the 4-way at the south end of the refuge and turned around to head north again I noticed one of the darkest and most threatening storm fronts I’d ever seen quickly bearing down on me from the northwest. At that point my intention was to skedaddle back home. I sure as hell didn’t want to get stuck on the refuge with no one there to help pull me out. Even my friend and fellow bird photographer Joe Ford, who had pulled me out of snow before, wasn’t on the refuge so I was feeling pretty vulnerable.<\/p>\n
But the drive back north to the refuge entrance was magical so I just creeped along. It became very dark very quickly and when it started to snow it came down hard and fast so the white snow falling against the nearly black background was enchanting. Except for the crunching and squeaking of my tires on the snow it was dead quiet so I often stopped and turned my engine off with the windows down so I could more fully appreciate the experience.<\/p>\n
When I stopped at one of the bridges to look down the ice-covered canal I lingered there for quite a while because it was such an enchanting scene. And that’s when it happened.<\/p>\n
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1\/800, f\/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 40D, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n A Barn Owl came from out of nowhere behind me and turned left to fly down the canal with ‘his’ back to me. With his slow, moth-like flight close to the ground he was obviously hunting for a last-minute meal before the snow became so thick any chance of hunting success would be nil.<\/p>\n He was flying so slowly I was able to get quite a few photos of him before he disappeared in the falling snow. They’re all butt shots but because of the mood and the falling snow they’re probably my favorite butt shots of all time.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/800, f\/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 40D, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n I didn’t notice it at the time but the last photo I got of him showed him stealing a quick glance back at me, as if he was wishing me luck getting off the refuge and then getting home in all that snow. I prefer the first photo above because both the falling snow and the colors of the owl can be seen better but I’m glad I have this one too.<\/p>\n After the owl was gone I probably sat there for another ten minutes savoring what I’d just experienced. But eventually I became so intimidated by the snow I headed for home.<\/p>\n Getting off the refuge and then the drive home on the freeway is another story altogether.<\/p>\n Ron<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Notes:<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Some of my images are highly evocative for me. Not many but a few and this is one of them. When you first see it you may think you’ve seen it before but you’d be mistaken. (2 photos)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/barn-owl-5535-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"barn-owl-5535-ron-dudley\\"")
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