{"id":93553,"date":"2021-01-09T06:13:37","date_gmt":"2021-01-09T13:13:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.featheredphotography.com\/blog\/?p=93553"},"modified":"2021-01-10T05:18:18","modified_gmt":"2021-01-10T12:18:18","slug":"one-of-the-first-great-horned-owls-i-photographed-with-kens-lens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/2021\/01\/09\/one-of-the-first-great-horned-owls-i-photographed-with-kens-lens\/","title":{"rendered":"One Of The First Great Horned Owls I Photographed With ‘Ken’s Lens’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Yesterday’s post has me wandering down memory lane again.<\/p>\n

After I bought my new birding lens with part of the ‘gift’ I received from cousin Ken Dudley after he passed away it took me a while to get back to the Montana family farm and photograph the Great Horned Owls that at the time were my ultimate goal. After all, with Ken gone there would be no one living out there and I knew it would be lonely and sad.<\/p>\n

But I also knew I’d have to do it eventually and the owls were calling me so I bucked up and started going back.<\/p>\n

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1\/800, f\/8, ISO 400, 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 photographed this adult Great Horned Owl in one of the old granaries on one of my first trips back. The photo was taken at 5:37 AM, only minutes after sunrise, so the light was extremely warm and the owl’s eyes almost seem to glow.<\/p>\n

We can tell how low the sun is on the horizon by the catch lights that are so low on the owl’s cornea they’re actually in front of the owl’s almost pinpoint pupils. For reasons that should be apparent we never see a catch light on the lower half of the eye that originates directly from the sun. However, we do<\/em> see catch lights on the lower half of the eye if they’re reflected off of water or something else in front of and below the bird.<\/p>\n

Several years ago I posted four varying compositions of a different photo of this same owl because I couldn’t decide which composition I preferred. With feedback from readers I eventually chose this composition that includes the bent-over rusty nail at bottom right. My grandfather, uncle or even possibly my father would have pounded that nail back in the early 30’s and knowing each one of them as I did I’m confident there were some cuss words involved when the nail was bent. For me that’s part of the charm and nostalgia of the photo.<\/p>\n

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\"\"<\/a>1\/30, f\/5.6, ISO 500, Canon 40D, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS\u00a0USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n

As an afterthought I’m including this photo that I’ve posted before because it’s a perfect example of one I’d have absolutely no chance of getting if I’d been using my much smaller and slower old lens instead of ‘Ken’s lens’.<\/p>\n

It was taken in the predawn darkness when I found this fledgling Great Horned Owl perched on an old junked Honda 750 motorcycle that belonged to my uncle Floyd, Ken’s father. Some years earlier when Ken and Floyd were living alone on the farm they had matching Honda 250’s that they liked to ride into nearby Glacier National Park. But Ken wrecked his, almost losing his life in the process, so Floyd stopped riding his for obvious reasons.<\/p>\n

I was handholding my lens when I took this shot in such low light that my shutter speed was only 1\/30. At this focal length and shutter speed I’m amazed it’s as sharp as it is. With my old lens I’d have never had the reach or the shutter speed to get this shot.<\/p>\n

Largely for nostalgic reasons it’s one of my favorite photos of all time.<\/p>\n

Ron<\/p>\n

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Notes: <\/em><\/p>\n