Great Grey Owl

[arash_hazeghi]

this image is from 2013 during my trip to Ottawa where I photographed these magnificent great grey owls with my friend Daniel. Isaac's great image inspired me to go back and process this file... it was cold there! Hope you like it


1DX 300 f/2.8 II. iso 800. f/4 1/2000sec hand held.

[Isaac Grant]

It's the birds that are inspirational. Such majestic birds that leave a lasting impression. I love your Great Gray shots. I have viewed them on your site many many times and sent the links to friends as well. Each one is a work of art and this is no exception. Great perch, and wintery background. And man I can feel that wind blowing that is ruffling it's feathers. It was a balmy 14 degrees when I got mine with a stiff north wind blowing in my face. Not so bad considering how bad it can get. The head on stare is just mesmerizing. Love everything about this.

[arash_hazeghi]

Hey Isaac 14F is a walk in the park :D that year Ottawa reached something like -35F! When I was there it was warmer but still in the negative territory. i=I had to shove 3-4 foot warmers in each boot to survive the walk on the frozen Ottawa river

[Isaac Grant]

Trust me I know. We got lucky. The day before it was zero where the owls were during the day and colder at night. I was totally over dressed and was actually warm except for my nose from the strong wind blowing right in my face. -35 is no joke and have never been in such bitterly cold weather. But it sure makes the photos that much more rewarding, especially when viewed from a nice warm house. Also ups the difficulty of the photo quite a bit. Hard to focus, let alone stay still and with proper form in extreme conditions.

[Steve Kaluski]

Yet again, another cool image Arash.

Just the right amount of DoF & SS so you get to see the lovely facial disc detail, layered plumage and the snow falling is just enough to convey the scene perfectly, not distracting on this one. Nice perch too, very 'rustic' and in keeping with the overall content. Interesting to see the difference between this image and Loi's, both shot at f/4.

-35 degrees, you guys are getting soft , you should come over to Finland, albeit I did get frost bite many years ago whilst skiing in Whistler a few year back, not fun. Get yourself a good pair of Sorel boots and a Canada Goose expedition Parker and you'll be warm and toasty .

TFS
Steve

[Joe Subolefsky]

Outstanding as usual. For me the composition of this one is what puts it over the top it all comes together and is balanced so well.

[William Dickson]

Thats one amazing image. Perch, BG, bird, especially the bird, look real good. A winner for sure. TFS.

Will

[Glenn Conlan]

Great shot Arash, this is on my bucket list, The image has a very emotional cold feeling. Well done. Have you tried rotating it clockwise a little?