Great-Horned Owl

[Justin Bond]

Saw this on my way outta town in a tree by the side of the road. Very cold morning.

Z6 70-200 f2.8 @ 200 F4 1/8000 ISO 720189556

[Randy Stout]

Justin:

Welcome to BPN. Well exposed, like the talon showing, nice sky.

A few challenges here. The biggest is the amount of twigs and branches in front of the bird. Even though the face is somewhat framed by the branches, the net effect is a bit cluttered. Because of the bright sky, the contrast makes the branches even more noticeable.
The light angle has cast the eyes in shadow, and with owls, the eyes are the most engaging part.

Bird photography is great fun, but challenging at times as well when you just can't get a clean shot.

Look forward to more posts.

Cheers

Randy

[Justin Bond]

Thank you Randy.

Those are things I never would have thought of on my own. Things like shooting for the eye of the owl rather than just the whole bird. And finding shots that don't clutter up the bird.

[Geoffrey Montagu]

Yes. Don't think I've noticed that. I have only photographed youngsters, and it was not showing yet. Glad you were able to capture this image.


Geoffrey




http://500px.com/geoffreymontagu

[Justin Bond]

wow, the double ears? Is that what you're seeing

[Dorian Anderson]

Welcome to the group! Randy hit on the key points already, so I won't rehash those. Only thing I'll add is about picking your moment with respect to lighting. The sun looks a bit high here, and the front of the bird was necessarily going to be shaded given the angle. So, beyond looking for a clearer view, really think about getting direct illumination on the subject, preferably with nice warm light at the very beginning and very end of day.

[Brian Sump]

Good to have you Justin!

Nice work finding this beauty. Some great advice above.

Remember, the key elements that make most great avian shots are the subject (in focus/sharp across the whole subject), good perch with character, good light (or at least properly exposed) and nice, non-distracting background. Keep working hard to get one with as minimal distractions around it as possible man!

[John Mack]

A practical image for sure.