On A Wing And A Prayer....

[Daniel Cadieux]

OK, so the idiom used as the title does not fit when its' real meaning is taken into account, but I thought it was a neat title for a subject with wings folded in a prayer pose:S3: Another one from the bone-chilling cold New Year's morning session. BTW, what looks like shimmer in the background actually was the, certainly not "heat shimmer" with those cold temps?

Canon 7D + 500mm f/4 II, manual exposure, evaluative metering, 1/3200s., f/4.5, ISO 800, natural early morning light, handheld, just about FF (cropped a bit below and left). Some eye doctor work to the eye to our right (enhanced the iris between the pupil and white feathers) and added a catchlight to it (borrowed and modified from the other eye). Baited.

[John Robinson]

What can you say?! Exceptional.Most unusual fligh shot. Wing position amazing.
Johh

[Jim Crosswell]

I like the interlocked wing tips, IQ, BG, exposure, sharpness and details. Unique image Daniel!

[arash_hazeghi]

Oh man, wish this frame was mine

[Marina Scarr]

I thought Arash's frame was kick butt, but this is plus one b/c of its uniqueness. Love the setting, the feather details, the stare down, the prayer wing position and those shimmering snow particles. Wish this were mine too!!!

[Bob Pelkey]

I think it's possible to imagine your exhilaration at that fraction of a second you captured this image, Daniel. The OOF wing barring quickly forces attention to the Snowy Owl's eyes. The image has a remarkable amount of "warmth" considering the conditions you endured. Beautiful work.

[Steve Kaluski]

Oh man, wish this frame was mine

I echo that Arash, Daniel, you just keep raising the bar with each post. :cheers:

TFS
Steve

[vishaljadhav]

the pose is fantastic , the light is special , love it all the way.
I am still looking at it just superb

[Roy Priest]

Dan, unique wing postion, great eye contact. Mesmerizing, love it.

[Holger Leyrer]

What can you say?!
This was my first though, too.
Arash and your snowy images are so stunning. It is perfect.

[John Rowell]

Another exceptional image. My first thought was that this was some kind of magical act. The owl looks to me like he's levitating. Beautiful light and detail.

[Sidharth Kodikal]

Fun pose, and I love the eye contact. You captured the bird right in the dark band in the bg. Love the flying bits and the blue in the snow/ice.

[Enrique Patino]

Killer Image Daniel... I guess that could be heat shimmer... you have a heat source and all you need is heat differential regardless of temp, I think...

[Duane Noblick]

Even at 1/3200" the slight blur in the wing tips shows how much power their wing strokes are lifting off....amazing. Really like the position of the wings and the intense look in it's eyes.

[David Salem]

Awesome wing position and the eyes fully lit make this a killer image. The graduated BG looks great too. Well done on this unique frame!

[dankearl]

Hard to even reply to…
the interlocking wings is really cool, the pose, the light, everything first rate.

[Loi Nguyen]

Daniel, this one is unique and beautiful in golden light. Love the multi-color habitat, the folded wings, the eyes, and the snow flakes on the ground. Superb image. TFS. Loi

[christopher galeski]

very unique flight pose,reminds me of a alien space craft hovering,well done.

[Barry Ekstrand]

Really great shot. Repeat that over and over, I can't come up with anything else.

Barry

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Dan, not a flight pose posted on this site before, so big congrats on getting this. Great eye contact too. I bet freezing your ..... was well worth it. :w3

[Shawn Zierman]

Agree with all the compliments offered so far. Very impressive image with a memorable pose and sweet, sweet light quality.

[Frank Schauf]

Fantastic pose, Daniel.

[Terry Johnson]

Quite the catch. Well done...Terry Johnson

[shane shacaluga]

How on earth did i miss this one!!!!!

FANTASTIC!!! Love the crossed primaries and the darker BG just makes this one pop out of the screen

TFS

[Iain Barker]

Fantastic Daniel well done.