Yesterday morning Bill Dix and his wife Joanne called to say we better get down the Island Beach State Park on the New Jersey shore, because a number of sightings of the Snowy Owl were being posted. We arrived close to 1:00pm-ish and after seeing a few cars parked off the only road in, we took a chance and hiked in a short distance and there this beauty was in the dunes surrounded by grasses. We spent a short time with this Snowy and while speaking with another photographer, heard that there was another at the end of the road 800 or so yards down the beach and in the dunes. We figured we wold go there, with good light, and return to the 1st. Snowy that would have even better afternoon light. We did find the other Snowy, but he was quite a distance back in the dunes. Being a lifer for me, it was pretty exciting having not one, but two beauties to photograph. I especially liked seeing both feet with one raised. C&C welcome.
D500, Nikon 500mm f/4G + 1.4 TC, 1/1600s, f 6.3, ISO 3200, Gitzo, Wimberley Gimbal head.
Really nice Geoffrey and congrats on the lifer. Sounds like it was a great trip. I also like the raised foot and the scene is nice as well. I wonder if brightening the eyes just a tiny bit could give it a little more pop. I like the blowing reeds. TFS
Good one, Geoffrey. You beat me to the punch. I also liked the poses he gave us when he raised one foot and then the other. The patches of snow, and wind-blown grass, add to the image. Glad you got your owl! Do you think just a slight touch of Tonal Contrast would help it? Probably not necessary.
Geoffrey,nice capture . I the like the grass and natural setting. I have seen quite a few this year in Nd but unfortunately we are void of any snow and haven't got a good composition yet. Sitting in a dirt field just doesn't look good.
Congrats! Glad you got one. It's about the best bird to see in North America in my opinion. One of the top birds in the world for that matter. I like the owl in the dunes. Nice pose. Just the way the should be seen. At peace and not being flushed.
Looks good for that ISO but I would decrease the blacks in the whites in selective color to brighten and whiten up the bird a bit. I could see Bills point re tonal contrast as well.
I'd still love to get together for more owls or something else.
Wonderful capture Geoffrey. The pose looks great with the raised foot and the snow on the beach adding. It is on my bucket list but so far have not found one although others have seen them nearby recently.
Last edited by John Whaley; 12-20-2017 at 11:09 PM.
Thanks everyone. It was a thrill to see and photograph these beautiful creatures so close. As much as I like the original I also wanted to try your suggestion Bill of adding a slight bit of tonal contrast, since the light was going back and forth in intensity. Isaac, I Like your suggestion also and tried it. Probably either because there is so much white, finessing the slider in selective color was not that easy, plus I have not used this technique much for removing blacks from whites. Thus I opted for a slight bit of tonal contrast on the bird and the BG separately. Would like to know what you think.
I think that looks much better but I think you could still push it a tiny bit more also. The whites of the snow are still a bit gray as well. In situations like this I also find that you can isolate the bird on a its own layer and lower the opacity to maybe 8%. Then make some passes over the bird and slowly dodge it a bit. It makes subtle changes each time. Just stop when you are happy with the results. If you went too far then just go back a few steps. I am a bit lost about what you mean with finessing the slider. If you have the bird on its own layer, just go to IMAGE > SELECTIVE COLOR . In the drop down menu go to the whites and then just pull the slider to the left to reduce the blacks in the whites. If you are having some trouble fine tuning it then just use the left and right arrows. Let me know if you still need any help.
Snowy Owl
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