Here's another of my beloved owls from last year. This is a full frame image or pretty close to as is.
30D, 300/4 + 1.4x, ISO400, f/8, 1/125th, 430EX @ +1
Attachment 83086
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Here's another of my beloved owls from last year. This is a full frame image or pretty close to as is.
30D, 300/4 + 1.4x, ISO400, f/8, 1/125th, 430EX @ +1
Attachment 83086
Another nice clear owl image! Great to see your night time images of these wonderful birds.
Do you use a torch for focusing?
Akos:
The exposure on this one is very good, less 'flashed' looking.
The heart shaped facial disc is well displayed.
I could see a sliver more top and left, but very nice as is.
Cheers
Randy
I like the detail and DOF you captured in this one. Another beauty Akos!
Terrific close up with incredible detail!
I'm amazed that they allow such close approach.
How do you stalk birds at night? I remember Barn Owls being quite noisy; at least the ones in my neighborhood growing up in Bombay, India were, but it can't be easy!
Your night time photography is very very admirable.
Yes, you've been doing very well with these nighttime owl images! Awesome portrait, lots of details. I wouldn't mind a bit more room above, but man-o-man this is sweet...
Thank you for your comments. :)
Ben, yes, mostly. Sometimes if they are in the headlights, that helps and also aids with minimizing red eye since the pupil contracts from the beams. But mostly torch.... See these 1 2 images I captured around the same time period that I managed using manual focus while in flight and using the torch all at once. AF was way too slow...
Sidharth, with great difficulty at times. These owls were relatively accepting of my presence for only a couple of weeks while I believe they had an eruption of mice in the fields and they were way too busy to feed. All other times it is difficult to get full body images with 420mm. Not impossible, but more difficult. :) Thanks for looking...
A great feeling to get so up close and personal with an owl that is rare here in Missouri. His face looks like it is made of a delicate fabric or angel hair....very beautiful.
DB
Gorgeous Shot! Excellent pose and details...
A pretty owl indeed! Love those eyes and the heart-shape of the face.
And again, I'm so glad that this is the full frame, to me, composing in camera is very important, when possible of course!:p
Akos your night time photgraphy is awesome, looking at the two links you provided never thought it possible. The facial detail in this image as mentioned is excellent, so easy to blow out even in the daylight - I have experience of that.:o
Do you call these guys in or visit roosting sites ?
Fantastic details Akos. Awesome job.
Detail throughout the range is really impressive here ... any full body shots !?
Amano
Thank you.
Pieter
This one in particular I did not use calls and I believe they were roosting nearby. The two in flight were taken within the same period. I wasn't using owl calls as such. Just pretended to squeak like a little bird or mouse. That got them close from time to time. There was one instance when an owl almost skimmed my head as he flew from behind me and over my head to land about 15m away on a post. It's this guy here. Very adorable little character.
The amazing thing was that I took a friend and her husband down to this spot explaining how I initially discovered the owls by seeing lots of Black-shouldered Kites (whose main prey are rodents) hunting the fields here. Therefore; I put my "naturalist" cap on and put two and two together to conclude if there were the kites during the day, there'd be owls at night. And it worked. What was really, really neat on the day when I took her an hubby that the kites were still hunting in the last moments of daylight and the owls have already emerged to hunt as well. Like a change in shift. :)
Quote:
Originally Posted by Amano Samarpan
Yes, see an example in the pane above this. And thank you! :)
Fantastic work Akos, particularly like that you put your detective skills to work with the assumption based on the activity of the Kites:cool:
I have been told that Barn Owls eyes are not as prone to red eye as other Owls. Have you found this to be true?:confused:
thanks for looking and commenting mate. To answer you in short, yes and no. Sometimes they do have a slight redness or even purple haze to the flashed pupil but many times no issues at all. I will double check the RAW of this but I am pretty sure it is almost SOC (straight out of camera). The more I get enthralled in photographing wildlife the more I try to achieve more in camera so I do less on PC, which I truly don't like. Some of my more recent works with Henry the male kestrel (saw him on the weekend, though far for photos) I just do 30 seconds of PP and that's the lot. If that.Quote:
Originally Posted by Paul Randall
Thanks for the info:)
I should add that they are a lot less of a worry regarding red eyes than the Ninox genus. Those go red even in daylight! :(
Yeah, those Boobooks Owls have been giving me headaches with their red eyes:( More PP work for me....yeah:2eyes2:
got any more from the nest? I cannot remember what happened there.... my mate is still tracking a pair for me in the Blue Mountains.... Maybe soon.
Excellent one, Mate. Great exposure; those details are amazing. TFS.
Thanks for the reply Akos, appreciate you taking the time. Look forward to some more Owl shots,
Excellent detail mate. I like the shape of their heads, and in this, your flashwork has worked out perfectly. Good even light throughout. Well done.
