Collared Owlet

[Nancy Bell]

This small 6 3/4 inch (17 cm) owl has the false eyespots on the back of its head. I wanted to capture a bit of the face plus some of the eyespot. These are fierce little owls that can prey on birds larger than themselves. Unfortunate about the thick branch immediately in front of the owlet. I could find no better angle. Photographed in Bhutan, Nov. 2011.

Topaz de-noise on the bkgd and some cloning out really bright spots.

Canon 1D Mark IV, Canon 300 f4 L IS + 1.4x
1/640, f5.6, exp. comp. +1/3, ISO 2000

c & c most welcome

[Grace Scalzo]

I like your idea of showing the eyespot as well as the eye...a tough challenge. I still would have liked the very slightest head turn toward you just for a little feeling of connection. That said however, it's an image that I would like to have in my own files and also a great bird to see in the wild.

[Dan Busby]

That branch could probably be dealt with if you wanted Nancy. Cute little bird and nice to have the story about the false eyes - nicely shown from your angle. Did you try a bit of NR on the bird? - looks like a small amount might be beneficial.

[arash_hazeghi]

nice catch, wish you had eye contact! the image is a bit dark and quite noisy.

[Dave Leroy]

Nice to see both the eye and the false eye. It looks like a bird that would very tough to catch out in the open and some decent light. Thanks for posting.

[Nancy Bell]

Dan, what are your suggestions for dealing with the branch? Or do you mean while I was taking the photograph?

Arash, I, too, was disappointed with the noise. I have had success with the Mark IV at ISO 2000 before. Is it because this image is fairly dark and noise is more obvious in the darker tones? Much of the time birds are in dark environments and a high ISO is needed. Any suggestions for better results?

I do have several images with the owlet looking straight on. But those images have the same noise issues.

[arash_hazeghi]

Dan, what are your suggestions for dealing with the branch? Or do you mean while I was taking the photograph?

Arash, I, too, was disappointed with the noise. I have had success with the Mark IV at ISO 2000 before. Is it because this image is fairly dark and noise is more obvious in the darker tones? Much of the time birds are in dark environments and a high ISO is needed. Any suggestions for better results?

I do have several images with the owlet looking straight on. But those images have the same noise issues.

Nancy I am not sure if MK4 can handle ISO 2000 and in such low light, the IQ will be poor. I would use flash.

[Nancy Bell]

Of course, flash would have been a good idea! I rarely use it and I must, must practice. Thanks, Arash.

[Dan Busby]

Nancy - what I meant was that because the branch doesn't overlap with the bird, except a small section at the toe, the bird could be masked and the branch removed - probably best with cloning. This is quite an alteration of the image and might not be within everyone's ethics (I'm not sure where yours are with this approach). But technically, it could be done. I apologize - this is a quick 3-minute version of what I was thinking. More time would be required to do a good job - especially around the beak and smoother cloning in front of the bird.

[Arthur Morris]

The original looked as if it were photographed with a fog filter.... Surely too dark on the original thus the noise. As presented, too dark, a big green cast, and a total lack of contrast.... Attacked all that plus a crop from the back.