Burrowing Owl

[Paul Kusmin]

Hey all, been a while but I've got some new work from the last road trip we took recently.

Checked out the Salton Sea in southern California and were amazed by the amount of owls there right now.
To say we saw at least a 100 wouldn't be far from the truth.

Dealing with the blistering heat was another matter however but shooting from the vehicle w/ bean bag worked rather well.

Exposure: 1/1250
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 700mm
ISO: 250
Exposure bias: -5/3 EV
Flash: no flash

Thanks for looking :)

[Axel Hildebrandt]

I like the tilted head, BG and stare. Interesting to see the different size of the pupils. I might selectively sharpen the head some more.

[Lorant Voros]

I like the light effect, the eye contact and the nice BG. I agree with some more sharpening on the head. Congrats.

[Erich Stevens]

Paul,

I like the warm light and the fact you can see him from head to toe. Not only his head, but his body seems tilted back. It's interesting but I wonder if you've considered a CW rotation to "straighten" him into more of a natural stance. Just a suggestion. Very good as presented!

[Brian Barcelos]

Paul, love this image. Feather detail and sharpness are good here and I like how he's almost winking at you. Lovely light and BG. Agree with Erich on the rotation. Wish I was into this hobby when I lived in Cali because these guys were all over the Mojave Desert were I lived. Congrats

Brian

[Paul Kusmin]

Thanks so much for pointing out the need for rotation, i totally missed that and totally agree that it needs it.
i had a sequence of 4-5 shots that i converted from RAW for processing and this second shot is 1 or 2 frames earlier than original posted.
same image pretty much but maybe second is wee bit better?

[Daniel Cadieux]

Yes, I personally prefer the repost with the "levelled" pose. Perhaps some fill would have helped with the sidelight, but still a nice looking effect. Great looking BG to go with the image!

[Harshad Barve]

repost looks great here
TFS

[Stu Bowie]

I like the direct eye contact in this, and he certainly stands out against the BG. Well captured.

[Joerg Rockenberger]

Definitely prefer the repost. Some additional light from the right would have been great. JR

[Kiran Poonacha]

the repost looks great, loved the pose and Bg.. congrats...

[Ákos Lumnitzer]

LIke your repost Paul. The lighting works really well here with this stunning subject. thanks for sharing. :)