Elf Owl

[Walker Noe]

Here is a female Elf Owl in her nest cavity in California Gulch, southeastern AZ. I took a few quick frames and left her alone.

Postprocessing: Usual sliders, sharpening to bird, red-eye removal, NR to cactus, cropped to approx 80% FF

Tech:
Nikon D500
Nikkor AF-S 600mm f4
Nikon SB-910 (TTL, -1.7 EV)
Tripod mounted

1/800
f4 (in hindsight should have definitely been stopped down to f8)
ISO 1600