![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/great-horned-owl-5627-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"great-horned-owl-5627-ron-dudley\\"")
<\/p>\nSix days ago when I photographed an adult Great Horned Owl in one of their typical habitats around here, the middle of a tangled thicket of branches and twigs, I immediately thought of how different that setting was from the farm setting where I usually photograph them.<\/p>\n
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1\/125, f\/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n The majority of the Great Horned Owl photos I’ve posted to my blog were taken on our Montana family farm where I usually have a great view of the bird, unobstructed by branches and twigs or anything else. And since they live and roost in nearly 100 year old granaries and barns I typically get one of my favorite combinations in my photos – owls and old wood. My inclination to shoot in early morning adds another favorite element, beautiful warm light.<\/p>\n I photographed this fledgling Great Horned Owl in a granary auger cutout on the farm on June 23, 2010. It has everything I love about my farm owl photos – an unobstructed look at the bird, old wood and warm light.\u00a0But it does require getting up early, especially in northern Montana in June. This photo was taken at 5:50 AM.<\/p>\n Last night I became curious about how long after sunrise this photo was taken. As we all know there’s a lot of garbage on the internet but I’m still amazed by how quickly and easily useful answers to obscure questions can be found with a few keystrokes and mouse clicks. It took me less than10 seconds to determine that sunrise in Cut Bank, MT on 6\/23\/10 occurred at 5:27 AM. I wonder what my Grandpa Dudley (born in 1888) who built many of these old granaries would think of that!<\/p>\n So I’m sure I’d been up since about 4 AM. After all, that early in the morning I need coffee just to find my shutter button. I can’t drink coffee and photograph birds at the same time.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/1600, 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<\/em><\/p>\n How very different the farm setting is from the cluttered and messy setting I usually find the species in around here in northern Utah. This is the adult Great Horned Owl I photographed six days ago in Box Elder County. It’s a natural setting which always appeals to me but natural settings often have their downside with obstructing branches and twigs and annoying shadows. I’m glad I’m able to take both types of photos.<\/p>\n Sorry folks, I’m rambling. I wasn’t altogether sure where I was going with this post until I started to write and this is where I ended up. Needless to say, when it comes to birds and photography I have a lot of disparate thoughts. Connecting them can take some effort. And creativity…<\/p>\n Ron<\/p>\n <\/p>\n PS – I guess I’m not through rambling. While writing this post I became curious about what percentage of the Great Horned Owl photos I’ve posted to my blog were taken on the farm versus those that were taken elsewhere, mostly here in Utah. So yes, I counted them.\u00a0Over the years I’ve posted 176 Great Horned Owl photos to my blog. 122 of them were taken on the farm and nearly all of the rest in Utah. So 69% of my GHO photos are farm photos.<\/em><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/great-horned-owl-4265-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"great-horned-owl-4265-ron-dudley\\"")
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