Snowy Owl Wide - Which image do you prefer?

[Jamie Douglas]

Snowy Owl (Bubo scandiacus), British Columbia, Canada

A young female snowy owl resting upon a large driftwood log on the foreshores of British Columbia during low tide. After spending many hours in the company of this young snowy owl, she allowed me to make a very slow and submissive approach towards her. I originally had no intent on attempting a wide angle and spent a considerable amount of time enjoying photographing her using a telephoto lens. It was only after a long period of monitoring her behaviour that I started to consider that there could be an opportunity at hand to create a wide angle image. The owl appeared to be incredibly relaxed and after making a number of judgment calls, I decided to seize the moment.

This is the first time I have attempted to approach a wild owl and the decision to do so was only made after a long and careful assessment of the situation.

No glue or bait was used in the making of this image.

Camera techs... Canon 1D Mark IV | 17-40mm | 40mm | F5.6| 1/2500 | ISO 200 | -1/3

The RAW file was processed using Adobe camera Raw 7.2 and then imported into PS CS6 as a smart object. A variety of tonal adjustments were applied using layer masks, including, curves and contrast enhancements.

Please visit my website to view the alternative image and let me know which you prefer... http://jamiedouglasphotography.com/p...ebfe#h4b9bebfe

Thanks

Jamie

[arash_hazeghi]

Hi Jamie, I prefer the other one for the better eye contact. this one is nice too BTW, the exposure on the owl is very good but the BG looks a bit dark to me. cool photo, TFS

[dankearl]

This is really nice, Jamie.
I am surprised you held off this long to show us this.
I assume last winter?
It does not surprise me that the Owl let you get this close.
They were incredibly mellow about human interaction.
They are already appearing again this winter. I think the irruption was really just a sign
of climate change.
I am going to the coast of Oregon tomorrow to hopefully get some photos.
They are at several locations already. Last winter may be the new normal.

[Jamie Douglas]

This is really nice, Jamie.
I am surprised you held off this long to show us this.
I assume last winter?
It does not surprise me that the Owl let you get this close.
They were incredibly mellow about human interaction.
They are already appearing again this winter. I think the irruption was really just a sign
of climate change.
I am going to the coast of Oregon tomorrow to hopefully get some photos.
They are at several locations already. Last winter may be the new normal.

This was taken just over a week ago Dan and it does look like we could be in for another irruption year. This is baffling the experts and throws all the theories based on historical data trends out of the window


Good luck tomorrow.

Hi Jamie, I prefer the other one for the better eye contact. this one is nice too BTW, the exposure on the owl is very good but the BG looks a bit dark to me. cool photo, TFS

Thanks Arash, I appreciate your comments. Do you find the BG dark on both of the images?

[arash_hazeghi]

it appears like that, if you look at the histogram you will see the BG is mostly in the dark tones.

[Jamie Douglas]

it appears like that, if you look at the histogram you will see the BG is mostly in the dark tones.

Thanks Arash, I'll go check my PSD file and see what can be done without making this look too processed . Food for thought, thank you.

[PhilCook]

40mm....I just fell off my chair !

[David Salem]

Very nice!! I too like the firs post with the better eye contact but this one is no slouch either. Exposed well and I like the BG of the natural habitat. Unbelievable how close you got . Great work.

[Randy Stout]

Jamie:

Slight preference for the linked image, but both are nice. yes, the BG is a bit dark, but it certainly highlights the brightness of the owl.

Cheers

Randy

[Satish Ranadive]

Both the images are fabulous. Very nice composition.
Love the pose,colors and details.

Regards,
Satish.

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Jamie, Well exposed on this magnificent owl, and love the wide angle perspective. I actually find the BG fine with regards to 'exposure' as it makes the owl pop more.

Your 'linked' image does have better eye contact.

[Dave Leroy]

Both are dandy images Jamie and good for you to take your time and get so close. Of the two I prefer the more relaxed look of this one. Before printing I would clean up the few small white wash marks on the perch.
Interesting comments about the bg. I would not have noticed that.

[Marina Scarr]

Slight preference for linked image, however, really like this one as well. If it were mine, I would move the owl a little more to the right of the frame since it's wide angle and it's more like he is looking out over his kingdom.

[Jim Crosswell]

Excellent image Jamie! I like the pose, perch, exposure and setting. What an experience that must have been!

[Rachel Hollander]

Jamie - I would be very happy with either image but also have a slight preference for the linked image. Nicely captured and sounds like you had fun getting close with the 17-40 and did so with plenty of consideration for the subject.

TFS,
Rachel

[Karl Egressy]

Striking image, Jamie. Love the wide angle perspective.

[Jamie Douglas]

Cheers for all the comments and I'll post the linked version in a few days. I am torn between the two so I appreciate you all sharing your comments . The linked image has the eye contact, but this image has a more natural and regal feel to it.

Not bad if I do say so myself for 1:06pm on a cloudless day.

Slight preference for linked image, however, really like this one as well. If it were mine, I would move the owl a little more to the right of the frame since it's wide angle and it's more like he is looking out over his kingdom.

If only I had more room on the left : ...(

[Daniel Cadieux]

I too prefer the linked image for the view of both eyes. Do you have a frame where the owl angled its halfway between the two? That would be the ideal one in my books. BG looks good to me, but I see Arash's point.

[Dan Busby]

Stunning image Jamie, especially with the lens you used. Very creative! I really like this one but vote for the linked image - I always prefer two eyes if it's an owl.