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Thread: Great Gray Owl at first light

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    Default Great Gray Owl at first light

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    This Great Gray Owl was photographed along the edge of Lake Superior in Northern Minnesota. While on our trip with Gail B and Ann P we were mostly skunked by these birds. We saw 4 in total but only this one gave us any photographic opportunities. It was about -11 when we took this and you can see the frost all over the birds eyes. It is amazing how much the color of these birds change when they are viewed in full sun. The thing with these birds is that if they are not baited then they hardly give you even a seconds look and will rarely come down to eye level. I have seen them 5 times now over the years and have yet to have one look at me for more than a split second or 2. We watched this amazing bird for about 25 minutes and I have 2 shots of it looking directly at me. This was taken just as the sun broker over the horizon and before that really warm early morning light washed over the bird. Note that the area on the right side of the undertail must have pigment issues. It it white like that in the RAW as well.

    Canon 1DX mark ii and Canon 500 f4 ii + 1.4x iii. ISO 1250, F5.6, SS 1/1600
    Last edited by Isaac Grant; 02-21-2018 at 12:50 PM.

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    Well Isaac, you did very well with what slim pickins we had. What i like most about this image is the frosty eyelashes and the mystery of how that happened; the awe of this gorgeous creature. I like the look, the alder catkins, and the complimentary blurred alders and morning light... Until next time, ol frosty will do quite nicely!

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    BPN Member William Dickson's Avatar
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    This is looking good.. I love the glimpse of the eyes with the frost surrounding them. I have never seen one of these birds as we don't get them on this side of the pond. But, to me, the lighting on the bird, shows it real well, and looks natural. Nice feather detail and a lovely BG. I am amazed that a bird this size looks so relaxed on a small thin perch.

    Will

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    A beautiful image of the Great Gray Owl. Pleasing soft light and nice background matching the colors of the owl. Also, the special look in its eyes is perfect.

    The tiny branches seems odd though. Somehow, it is a mismatch to the much bigger bird. However, the tiny branches does not distract the view of the fine owl which is a huge plus.

    Regards Steen

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    The GGO is truly a fluffball and is one of our tallest owls with broad wings and a long tail. Wingspans are almost 5 feet! Big headed, large facial disks but weight is on average only 2-3 pounds; those feathers are very deceiving... Wingspan: 54 - 60 in. Length: 24 - 33 in. Tail: 11 3/4 - 13 3/4 in ... The alder trees are in the Birch family of trees, and alder is a very "soft" hardwood, so flexibility and strength in small branches avails this owl to perch... As a reference, GGO weigh approximately half of a snowy owl!

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    I like the light and the perch, especially the way he is hanging on to it and I like the hint of snow but I am not crazy about the eyes that are not fully open. HA is perfect. Funny re sharpness is that comparing to my own GGO files (here is an example https://ari1982.smugmug.com/Portfoli...wl/i-SgDVsPV/O) this doesn't look all that sharp to my eye but I think it could be an illusion, light or maybe compression...

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    Baited owls behave differently.

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    It's amazing how they can perch on these tiny sticks at the tops of trees. All the times but one when I've seen them I stop and think how can that huge bird perch there. But as Ann wrote they are really light. We also saw one sitting on the top little twig of a pine tree. Wouldn't even consider that one would be there but it was.

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    Super Moderator arash_hazeghi's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Isaac Grant View Post
    Baited owls behave differently.
    Issac that particular owl was not baited, at least as long as we were there. not sure if baiting makes the owl sharper.
    Last edited by arash_hazeghi; 02-21-2018 at 04:16 PM.
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    Our eyes must be very different lately. Bird looks perfectly sharp to me. Details will not appear the same as it was much farther away. Shot at 700mm and not with a 300 2.8 at close range. I've seen hundreds of owls since I was a kid. Very few of them bothered to open their eyes at all or gave me more than a quick glance. Baited owls look and behave differently.

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    Super Moderator arash_hazeghi's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Isaac Grant View Post
    Our eyes must be very different lately. Bird looks perfectly sharp to me. Details will not appear the same as it was much farther away. Shot at 700mm and not with a 300 2.8 at close range. I've seen hundreds of owls since I was a kid. Very few of them bothered to open their eyes at all or gave me more than a quick glance. Baited owls look and behave differently.
    I agree it might be a matter of perception, FYI the image was taken with 300 f/2.8 and 1.4X TC because I didn't have a longer lens (hard to travel with the 600 on CRJ's). it is 35% of the full frame so not very close. I've also photographed many owls myself, majority non baited and I agree it takes lots of patience to get a good shot with eyes wide open but it is definitely possible without baiting.
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    Lifetime Member gail bisson's Avatar
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    Our one and only GG owl (that we photographed)!
    This guy looks as cold as I was! I have never been so frickin' cold in my entire life as I was standing in that field. Good thing you were able to lend me your winter overalls!!Thanks for that!
    My fav part of the image are the ice crystals around the eye.I just wish the owl's right eye "matched" the owl's left eye. (I know that it cannot be that way IRL but a girl can hope.)
    The light was nice that morning and the perch looks great.
    Gail

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    This reminds me of a GGO I photographed locally a couple years ago...first light, and its' whole front was covered in hoar frost. The branch it was on as well. Pretty cool. These guys really are all feathers and light, still impressive in size. You did really well here. I'm digging the perch!

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    Really nice shot of an owl I'm dying to see and photograph. I love the frost on the eyes. The light and BG is beautiful and the perch is great. I'm also amazed at how the bird can fit on such a small twig -- I had no idea they were that light. TFS

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    Isaac, nice shot of the owl, but it looks like it was over sharpened, the face looks crunchy especially around the eyes.
    Nice perch and BG though.

    -Tim

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    Tim I take it you didn't read what I wrote. The face is not oversharpened or crunchy. The bird has frost all over its face, especially around the eyes. It was -11F and the bird was showing signs of that.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Isaac Grant View Post
    Tim I take it you didn't read what I wrote. The face is not oversharpened or crunchy. The bird has frost all over its face, especially around the eyes. It was -11F and the bird was showing signs of that.
    Still looks over sharpened and crunchy, the body is on the same plain but not as much detail.
    Looks like you were trying to pull out details that weren't there IMO.

    -Tim

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    I love the warm colors on the feathers Isaac.
    I have noticed the same thing with snowy owls when sharpening. There is almost always ice/frost around the eyes and that is what looks a little funky. It looks good on my screen.

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    It looks very naturally cold to me and the frost is obvious. Not sure what others are seeing.
    I like the look, different and the perch is cool.....
    Dan Kearl

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    Man that is just to flipping cold for me. I have been in sub zero wether before and shooting becomes very difficult, even out of a car. Love the frosty eyes and the ridiculously thin perch he is sitting on. Nice capture considering it was almost a bust for you guys.
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