Snowy Owl Snowscape

[gail bisson]

Canon 1DX
Rented the 200-400 and 1.4x at 200mm
ISO 1600
F 5.6 @ 1/1000
Taken in Ottawa with Daniel. Owl baited.
PP: Crop to 80% FF. increased exposure by .33 in DPP, NR in DPP, levels, DE and tonal contrast,USM to JPEG
Comments and critiques always appreciated and learned from with thanks,
Gail

[Karl Egressy]

Love, the high key presentation, flight pose, eye contact and composition, Gail.
Great to see some snow particles in the air and the winter habitat.
Yesterday I spent the whole afternoon looking for them. Found two, one on a nice perch but too far for shooting.
Will give it one more try tomorrow.

[stuart wanuck]

really well done

[David Salem]

Oh man am I jealous! You got some great shots up there and this is another. Its a perfect habitat flight shot and one of the best I have seen. Great stare, wing position and Techs, but what really makes it for me is the balanced trees and habitat in the BG and the way you composed it. Very nice work Gail.

[Henry Domke]

By using an intermediate focal length you have been able to place the bird in a landscape.
There is a sense of depth that is enhanced by the slightly darker, lower contrast and cooler background.
The bird seems to glow and be ready to fly right out of the picture frame.
The scattering of snowflakes is a nice touch!
Congratulations!

[Andrew Merwin]

Beautiful Gail. I agree with the above comments. I like how the trees frame the snowy, the visible feet & the great eye contact. TFS.

[Joseph Przybyla]

A beauty Gail, I echo all of the preceding comments. Just beautiful...

[Henry Domke]

Rented the 200-400

What were your impressions of that lens? Did the weight bother you?

[Sidharth Kodikal]

My favorite of all your snowy images, Gail.
Killer stare and wing position. The bird is perfectly placed, framed and balanced by the oof tree line. Has a very nice 3D feel.
Falling fnow is icing on top.
Superbly done.

[gail bisson]

What were your impressions of that lens? Did the weight bother you?

Hi Henry,
The weight was no problem but then, I regularly hand hold my 600mm.I loved how easy it was to hold and pack away in the backpack.
I found the zoom ring to be quite stiff and difficult to manage with mittens/gloves on. I don't know if this stiffness is universal or just on this lens.
Of course, with bare hands it was much easier to deal with the stiffness.
The autofocus was as good as the 600mmII without the 1.4x turned on. But with the extender on it was not as good as the 600mm II with the 1.4x on.
If I was a photographer who did wildlife only I would buy this lens before the 500 or 600. It would be perfect for Africa, the Falklands, Yellowstone.
This lens was awesome for flight without the 1.4 but not nearly as good as the 600 for BIF.
Gail

[Diane Miller]

Incredible! The bird is an apparition!

[Bill Dix]

Stunning, Gail. The bird in flight, of itself, would be wonderful. But what really puts this way over the top is the bird framed by the landscape, with the snowflakes to top it off. Not to mention those eyes. Congratulations!

[dankearl]

Over the top….
Agree with all the comments, this one is really special!

[Loi Nguyen]

Gail, this is a stunningly beautiful image. The owl is oh so perfect against the landscape. Love the way you showed just like the outline of the owl, and you got the eye and wing position so perfect. TFS. Loi

[MohsenVahedipour]

What a great scene you've captured. Perfect exposure & composition. Thanks for sharing Gail.

[keith mitchell]

Gail I have seen some cracking shots of these Owls from over on your continent,

this one is up there with the best of them IMHO.

Keith.

[Marina Scarr]

This is my fav of yours so far, Gail. Love the look, the curve of the wings, the environment and the snow flurry. Your comp works perfectly.

[Richard Flack]

Wow! Awesome!

[arash_hazeghi]

excellent pose and eye contact

[Raymond Lee]

Great capture! Nice eye contact! Lovely environment!