Vole Patrol

[Tom Charles]

Short-eared Owl - (Asio flammeus) A beautiful sunny afternoon on open wasteland in February this year, watching these commanding creatures quartering the fields in their quest for Voles makes any lull in wildlife photography well worth the wait. The only downside was hand-holding the Canon 500mm lens for several hours shooting! lol

Tom

Canon 20d; Canon 500mm f/4
ISO 200
1/2500 sec
F/4.0
Partial Metering
Manual Exposure

[Judy Lynn Malloch]

Awesome image with excellent detail and it has a real sense of speed. The eye is wonderful and a slight head turn would have been good but just love this image and the killer BG adds so much to this capture. Thanks for sharing.

[Tom Charles]

Point taken regarding the gaze, Judy. So on request Ive just found this image, in my collection; just for you! :)

Tom

[Judy Lynn Malloch]

Wow !!! Ask and you shall receive.. Gorgeous image Tom and it certainly has my attention with that incredible look and the eyes are awesome. Many thanks for finding it and sharing .

[Raul Quinones]

Awesome picture, beautiful bird and excellent background.

[Arthur Morris]

I love them both but the stare not-withstanding the first image is stronger with a better wing position and lovely light. Sharpness exceptional in both.

#1: I thought that there were no good bird photo opps in the UK.
#2: I also heard on line that the 20D does not focus accurately.

I guess that you are just lucky. NOT! Welcome and congrats.

[Tom Charles]

Thanks for all comments and input.

Judy, youre welcome :)

Arthur, I recently returned a Canon 40D due to its having focussing problems. It was the reliability of my 4yr old 20D workhorse that confirmed the problem ( Im still hoping to purchase the 40D sooner than later)

Those shots were taken February this year; the light is so challenging over here, I dont think Ive had a decent image since! ;) lol

Thanks also for the welcome,

Tom

[Linda Robbins]

Both images are absolutely beautiful. I can't decide which I like best. Love the bg's on both, and thy are both razor sharp. The wing position is best in the first image, and the direct look with such wonderful face detail in the second make it impossible to have a favorite! Well done.

_______________________

Linda

[Cheryl Ertelt]

Gorgeous flight shot in sweet light. Thanks for sharing.

[Grace Scalzo]

Wonderful images, I like them both, for different reasons. Thank you for posting these beauties.

[Ramon M. Casares]

Congratulatons, terrific light and pose, BG looks simply awesome too! Welcome!

[Aristotle Georgiou]

Both magnificent images. love the head turn in the second shot, but prefer the light in the first.

Wish they were mine.

[Raymond Barlow]

excellent images, congrats!

[Tom Charles]

Thanks everyone. These birds really were a treat to watch; getting images was a bonus :)

Tom

[Brutus Ostling]

Congratulations! Really good. I prefer the second one, it's in a way more interesting even though wing position is better in the first one, a meeting between the bird and you. I had the same meting with the hunting short-eared Owl - when he or she is suddenly looking at me - but I think your image is better. It's in my Eagle book :D

Where did you shoot it? I shot mine photos of the short eared up north, close to the polar circle.

[Tom Charles]

Hi Brutus,

I love it when you make eye contact with a wild Owl; its a magic feeling.

These shots werent taken in such a romantic place as the Polar Circle; instead they were photographed on an industrial estate in North Wales, UK :)

Tom

[Juan Aragonés]

Very nice light and wing position. Excelent OOF background and details. The second image has a very nice eye contact but I still prefer the first one. Well done!

[Arthur Morris]

excellent images, congrats!

Hi Raymond, We appreciate your participation and your membership support. When you like an image, please let folks know why you like it. That way everybody learns something. There is a bit more on this above: http://www.birdphotographers.net/for...ad.php?t=10228