Little owl

[Steve Kaluski]

Firstly, many thanks to those who viewed or passed comments/feedback on the previous Scaley pigeon.

Just another one from the Little owl location. Would have preferred the subject to be more central, but this is very much FF and I did not want to crop the old branch he was on, plus having only one central focus point can be a tad limiting. No blurring or NR was added to the BKG, just down to DOF.

Steve
Subject: Little owl on branch (Athene noctua)
Location: UK
Camera: Canon 1DX
Lens: 500f/4 plus 2x
Exposure: 1/320s at f/8 ISO1600 +1 stop compensation

I was using the 2x as I want to keep my distance and not encroach on his comfort zone.

[Girish Prahalad]

love the intense stare & the perch. maybe some contrast boost with a bit of USM.

[vishaljadhav]

Wonderful image Steve,the stare is impressively captured
i love the way this is composed,
Like the fluffed up feathers makes it interesting , i like the sharpening it looks great on the fluffy feathers
There was one small question about the eyes, i have never seen this owl in my life so dont know the yellow in eye, however all the species of owls i have seen have a more intense yellow, is this the way the yellow is in this one
i am still watching that stare

[Marina Scarr]

It's great seeing you posting here, Steve. What a super looking species you have here. Loving those puffed up feathers. I feel your comp works very well, and I agree that the perch is a strong element which you have showcased well. The belly feathers (which I absolutely love) are looking a little sharper than those on the bird's head. I might consider a tad more sharpening on the head.

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Steve, great eye contact from the Owl, and the offset placement does work well. I do like the hint of moss on the perch, and nicely separated from the BG.

[Arthur Morris]

Beautiful as noted above. Love the image design. The repost is marginally better. Nice that we have a good view of the one foot.

[Rachel Hollander]

Hi Steve - really like the tones and placement in frame. The perch works too. Your usual excellent IQ and details. Agree on a touch more sharpening on the face.

TFS,
Rachel

[Robert Holguin]

Lovely image!!
The stare you captured is priceless.
Love the perch and terrific comp.
Very well done.

[Steve Kaluski]

Apologies folks, I sometimes do not get all the notifications on replies posted, hence the delay.

Girish, thanks for the RP, personally I try to use less Contrast and try to keep my images 'open' as much as possible, as I worry that it adds to much black in darker, shadow areas, however one can always mask where you need it, but appreciate the suggestion, something to consider for the future.

Vishal, the eyes tend to be a very pale lemon if that helps and not that 'intense' yellow we often see in images.

Thanks Artie, Stu & Robert, very much appreciate the replies

Marina & Rachel, I see what you mean, but having looked at it, at this size adding more USM (albeit in small amounts) starts to make it a tad more 'crunchy' so happy to leave as presented, however it's always good to get others thoughts and POV, as a small comment/observation can at times make all the difference to an image, thanks.

[Austin Thomas]

Great detail Steve and I love the stare down the 1000mm combination. It looks quite relaxed to me. Its eyes would be even wider open and glaring if it was stressed or nervous in any way.

Cheers

Austin

[Cheryl Arena Molennor]

Great look at this little guy and I am agreeing about another round of sharpening. The perch is great . Personally I'd prefer a little off the empty space on top.

[Richard Unsworth]

Fantastic - best one of these ever!

I have them and my local wont allow any approach closer than 100m; she lives in a tree stump hole.
One day I might get a chance close encounter.