Photographing Owls at Night

[Randy Stephens]

I have finally located the location of 2 Barred Owls very close to my home. After spending many mornings and late afternoons I never even saw them must less got a photograph. But when it is too dark to photograph them I can find them easily by their Hooting and last night walked up within 15 Feet of one of them who stayed put for several minutes. Has anyone tryed to use a flash with a white or red light on the bird brieflyto focus? Any other techniques would be appreciated.

[John Chardine]

Hi Randy- I have never tried this because I would be very cautious about using flash at night with owls. Owls have extraordinary night-vision and so a blast from a flash could result in all sorts of undesirable effects. I am not aware of any hard science on this subject but the precautionary principle would dictate prudence in the absence of information.

[gail bisson]

I know some people would not agree with this but instead of using flash I would use a call to draw them out in the evening or very early morning (very judiciously).
Gail

[Randy Stephens]

I never thought about the flash hurting their eyes. I sure won't use a flash and keep trying to catch one in daylight. Someone told me that in the spring I was more likely to see one in the daytime as they may have to hunt more often to feed the owlets. Thanks for telling me about the flash!!

Randy

[Steve Canuel]

Here's an interesting article. Personally don't use flash under any conditions because I hate haven't flash used on me. As mentioned in the article, I'd be more concerned about temporary impairment for a nocturnal hunter than permanent damage. But I'd also be concerned about spooking them away and reducing my opportunities for future shoots.

http://www.naturescapes.net/docs/index.php/category-health/36-health/119-flash-photography-and-the-visual-system-of-birds-and-animals

[John Davenport]

I have photographed owls in the daytime recently. You have to hunt them. Here is a long eared owl that i shot about three weeks ago. They are rare in southeast Texas. Oh well i can take pictures but i have to figure out how to post one. Picture to follow...

John

[John Davenport]

Ok lets try this. Some of these are not great but many times you either shoot or miss the bird all together. Owls are very spooky in the daytime. http://johndphotos.smugmug.com/Other/Owls/20927152_qM8bMW http://johndphotos.smugmug.com/Other/Owls/i-vzNZT5T/0/XL/sp111111-741-XL.jpg http://johndphotos.smugmug.com/Other/Owls/i-jt2g7tZ/0/XL/sp111111-752-XL.jpg

[John Davenport]

http://johndphotos.smugmug.com/Other/Owls/i-jt2g7tZ/0/XL/sp111111-752-XL.jpg

[Andrew McLachlan]

Hi Randy,

At my family's cottage near Parry Sound, Ontario Barred Owls are the most common owl in the area. I hear them calling often. On occasion, I have been able to mimic their call and many times they will call back. If you get a curious one it will come in closer to check you out. However, in 30 years of cottaging in the area I have only really been presented with one perfect situation - a Barred Owl sat on an old tree stump in a clearing on our property and was most cooperative for about half an hour, before finally flying into the surrounding woods. Good luck with your owls. Hope to see some photos soon.

[John Davenport]

http://johndphotos.smugmug.com/Other/Owls/i-pmsp7rH/0/L/sp111111-750-L.jpg

This is a better view

[John Chardine]

I'm not being melodramatic but calling owls is potentially a dangerous activity. At times of year when they are territorial (e.g., breeding season) and you are close to a nest, they can attack and cause serious injury. In the dark you will not see them approach and because of their silent flight you will not hear them either. The most famous British bird photographer of the 20th century- Eric Hosking lost an eye to a Tawny Owl, not apparently by calling one up, but nevertheless it underlines the potential risk.

[John Chardine]

http://johndphotos.smugmug.com/Other/Owls/i-pmsp7rH/0/L/sp111111-750-L.jpg

This is a better view

John- This one is a Long-eared Owl. The one you posted before is a Barn Owl. The latter are becoming quite rare these days.

[John Davenport]

John- This one is a Long-eared Owl. The one you posted before is a Barn Owl. The latter are becoming quite rare these days.


John, I miss posted the names of the above owls. This was my first post here and I am still learning. The barn owl is common here. I like in far Southeast Texas. I have never seen or heard of a long eared owl until i took that picture. I have not processed any of the pictures i posted. I took them in very thick woods with and didn't want to push them too hard so this is all i got. I know where to find them again, but i went back last week and didn't see a thing other than a billon Hawks... I go to the beech and there is a little patch of woods, like 5 acres about 200 yards inland. The migration in the spring and fall of the land birds is great.
I went to your website and your pictures are very cool. The gannets are too fine...

John

[Colin Knight]

As others have said, use a call. I use iBird Pro on my ipod with a Cass Creek loud speaker. And yes, they will attack you. I got hit in the back of the head by the owl pictured and it hurt very badly. I do use some fill flash, I shoot in the swamps and it's a necessity. Obviously some fill flash doesn't bother them at all either. Their big eyes will require some photoshop work to remove red eye.


108171

[Bill Jobes]

Here's a YouTube video of an owl attack. There are others on the same page.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gt7toFy-9T4