I tried for three days to get some images of one of the Great Horned Owls on the farm. When I finally succeeded something a little weird happened.
This owl stays hidden away in an old granary all day but just at sunset it perches on this cutout for a few minutes as it surveys its kingdom before flying off in the gathering darkness to hunt. I’ve seen this happen several times now but was only able to get a few shots of the bird on one evening and they’re really not very good.
1/250, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
But there is something interesting about them. Smoke from the fire in nearby Glacier National Park (it’s called the Reynold’s Creek Wildland Fire) tends to drift our way when the wind dies down in the evening and it has some eerie effects on light when the setting sun hits the horizon. As the light tries to burn through the smoke it turns red and baths everything in this eerie colored light, including the barn wood.
I’m not sure I like the effect aesthetically but I still find it interesting because the owl seems to be staring at its suddenly red world and wondering what’s going on out there. The bird knew I was there as I pointed my long lens at it from behind another old granary but it seemed to ignore me and just stare at all that weird color.
I wonder if owls wonder. Probably not but my mind does go there…
Ron
I like everything about the photograph! Owls may not “wonder” as we do, but I feel certain they sense when something in their familiar environment is different. Like the color of the evening being different or how the different light (through the haze/smoke?) affects their ability to find prey or that human behind the granary who thinks he’s hidden………
Well worth the wait…love the owl, the quizical expression, the fluff of a feathered body, the inky black background, the texture and colors of the weathered wood and the overall golden wash…just wish the fite was out…completely….
I agree with everyone, beautiful shot. Could you smell the smoke? If so, the Owl might have been uneasy about the smoke, let alone the glow. The coloring worked for you!
Hi Ron, off topic, but I really like the crop of this shot!
Amazing light. Gorgeous bird.
Hate, and am terrified by what we call bush-fires, but love the beauty you captured.
Ron – I LOVE it!! The red glow that flows over the owl & granary is so unusual and beautiful at the same time. What is happening with the fire at the Glacier National Park? Have they been able to get it under control?
ron, no not very good, wonderful.
When given to anthropomorphizing I’d say looked pensive
thanks so much much
Thanks everyone for all the very nice comments. I was really unsure about how this image might be received…
Hi Ron, Love the picture of the old barn and the beautiful owl. Looks like a fantastic trip. Savor every moment! I’m enjoying it with you!
As always Ron, your images take my breath away… a magnificent capture in every respect.
When it comes to nature photographers, you are my hero, and during my 81 years of wandering
this earth, I’ve seen the work of a lot of nature photographers. Yes Ron, “you” are right
up there at the top. ;-)))
The colors work so well in this. I hate what caused it, but love the results. I’d happily purchase this to hang in my home.
The colors work so very well on this, Ron. Another one I would happily purchase, frame and place in my home.
If I were that owl, who had never seen a wildfire, I would probably be wondering, or confused by how weird my world had gotten. One of the things I like about this shot is the eerie color from the wildfire. The strangeness of the light in that circumstance is well-conveyed and draws me into the picture. My words are failing me this morning…
Lovely capture of the light and owl.
I think they do. beautiful.