I’m revisiting Short-eared Owls this morning just because I miss them.
This past spring and early summer SEO’s were ubiquitous in the Promontory area (“Owl Alley”). It was the most dense and longest-lasting concentration of the species I’ve ever experienced but on my last two trips to the area I haven’t seen a single one and combined with a recent inquiry about them from Neil Rossmiller they’ve been on my mind – thus this post.
1/1600, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
I spent some time with this adult Short-eared Owl in the Promontory area in late May of this year. The bird was hunting voles from fence posts so I took some shots of it with my teleconverter attached for good close-up detail…
1/1600, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM, not baited, set up or called in
and then removed the tc for takeoff so I wouldn’t clip any body parts when those long wings went up (and down).
Well, you know what they say about the best laid plans of mice and men…
1/1600, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM, not baited, set up or called in
Sure enough, I clipped a wing anyway.
I was disappointed in the clip because otherwise I like the image quite a lot – for its eye contact, wing posture, spread talons and flared tail. I also enjoy the somewhat unusual and layered pastel colors in the background. These opportunities with owls don’t come along every day so it always stings when I screw them up.
Don’t get me wrong, I still like the photo – otherwise I wouldn’t have posted it. But I can’t help but think about what could have been.
Images like this always remind me of one of my core mantras – “Bird photography ain’t easy”.
Ron
Sorry I am late on this one. I was out for a day shooting with David Middleton. I was the student he was the professor! Had a great time learned a ton!
I absolutely love the first image Ron, just a gorgeous shot. I like the others too, but the first is exceptional in my mind.
Thanks for sharing.
Wonderful take off shot! I love the energy – the position of the wings and talons and the birds direct stare. Were you tempted to add the feather tips with Photoshop? Such a tiny clip! I do appreciate your photographic integrity though. When I start editing my bird photos too much, they start to feel like a mix of photography and digital painting, and I get this uneasy feeling of fakeness.
No, I wasn’t even tempted, Miriam.
When I first started photographing birds I did occasionally make those kinds of “corrections” but it was a trap, a Pandora’s Box of sorts.
Where do I draw the line? Am I a nature photographer or a con artist? If I do it do I disclose what I did? Is it honest to the viewer? Is it honest to nature?
So it didn’t take me long to learn that doing that kind of thing just wasn’t my style. And I’m MUCH more comfortable with that.
Thanks for sharing your gut feelings on editing bird photos, Ron. I recently reconstructed a hawk eye that was partially covered by a branch in a photo. It was fun to do but, though the end result looked pretty good, it didn’t feel natural. I didn’t want someone to draw the eye and think that it was actually the hawk’s eye. If I showed the photo to someone, I would feel obliged to say the eye was a construction, not a photo. Part of it is that an “over-edited” photo no longer captures that particular photographic moment. That edit made me realize that there are probably a lot of “over-edited” photos out there (not just of birds). So many partial truths!
Owls, britches, soft skies. Blissful start to my morning.
Megathanks.
And I am so glad you persevere with the hard yards of photography (and no, I am not being sarcastic).
Thanks, EC. Those yards are hard but they’re also rewarding.
Never get tired of seeing your Shorties! They are a winter bird for me, so your summer photos help tide me over until mine return!
And I seldom see them in the winter, though I occasionally do. Thanks, Diane.
Now see? You’ve ruined me. LOL I looked at the third photo and couldn’t STOP looking at the clipped wing. 😀 I did love the face but dang it, I kept hearing your voice in my head. Oh, I make up voices for people online so you sound somewhat like Richard Dreyfus as the red panda in Kung Fu Panda. 😀 Yerrrrr welcome!
That’s the way I am about clipped wings – can’t stop looking at them (and bemoaning them…).
I’m pleased with your choice of Dreyfus for my voice, Arwen. I’ve always liked him!
Those are three great images, but the first is a classic portrait! I love the feather detail in the second, the view of those VERY sharp talons in the third, and the fuzzy britches in all three. The soft, pastel rainbow background is such a beautiful touch…seems almost magical!!!.
Thanks, Patty. I agree about the pastels in the background and thought they were a positive addition to that last shot especially.
Hi Ron,
Love the owls. And I am always impressed with your image quality using the 7DII. I get frustrated with mine due to the noise in many of my images and they never seem to be quite as sharp as I would like even though I have made some focus adjustments. So it sits quite a bit while the IDX gets most of the exercise. I get the frustration about the clipped wing. Can’t tell you how many times I try to get tight but end up with clips. Better to shoot wide, as you were trying to do, and crop to the desired composition. However again, the 7DII doesn’t allow for much cropping assuming you want to make a decent sized print. PS, although cumbersome, and not saying I could do it successfully, there are ways to fix that clip, but appreciating the desire to get the image “right” to begin with.
Thanks again for your regular posts. Something I really enjoy looking at in the AM with my coffee.
Thanks, Frank. These shots were taken with my original Mark II, the one with focusing problems, and to be perfectly honest the last two images aren’t quite tack sharp at 100 %. In a large version of the images that weakness would probably be apparent. I’m sure happy with the new Mark II though, at least so far.
I really haven’t had much of an issue with noise with either Mark II, though I usually selectively sharpen the bird without applying sharpening anywhere else since sharpening contributes to noise.
I have recently started selectively sharpening and am pleased with the results. What is should do is go back to some of my older images and see whether the results are better using those techniques.
Thanks again.
FRank
That first shot……I could swear you had an owl “esthetician” in tow—-I could almost feel the softness of its feathers; that individual
bird appeared to be in peak condition of health. The beauty that you captured was a fine gift with which to start my day–thanks !
“esthetician”
Love that form of the word, Kris – never seen it used like that but that’s one I’m going to remember!
For awhile, we were making the 95 mile, door to the turn off at ATK, drive pre dawn on a weekly basis. Getting there by sunrise and finding a subject wasn’t an easy task, but we were successful often enough to make it worth the effort and resulted in the “carrot” for the next weeks jaunt. Being able to shoot either SEO’s or Burrowing owls or both was addicting. and rewarding. I look forward to their return next year and hope they are even more plentiful from this years crop of youngsters. Thanks again for the heads up on the general area of where to locate the birds and the precise location where to find a killer cheese burger. Great fun!
I always look for you when I’m up there, Neil. And I know what you mean about having to leave so damned early to get there by dawn. For me it’s a 90 minute drive so in midsummer it means getting out of bed almost in the middle of the night. The owls, and those burgers, can make it all worth it though…
Great photos like these of any owl species are always a joy to view. There’s just something about owls for me, mostly in the eyes, the intensity of the stare. Perhaps I’m just personifying. But their body shape, head and talons are also fascinating, and watching them fly is fantastic. Anyway, really great images, love the beautiful background. I cringed when I read the part about you removing the tc, just like a suspense novel I could feel what was coming! 🙂 But it’s still a very nice image and a great moment, just lifting off.
“I cringed when I read the part about you removing the tc, just like a suspense novel I could feel what was coming!”
That made me smile, Todd – thanks for that!
Wonderful images.
Thank you, Kathy.
These are three terrific captures of a very special subject even with the wing clip. The background is extraordinary. Thanks for a great start to a new day.
Doc Hansen
I’m glad you enjoyed them, Doc. Thanks.
Awesome.
🙂
Good shots with lots of details even if you clipped the wing a bit. 🙂 If it were easy you probably wouldn’t be doing it! 🙂
Well, if it were easy it sure wouldn’t be as much fun, Judy.
FABULOUS! I enjoy seeing the owls.
Thank you, CaJ.
I always enjoy your SEO pictures. I hope they come back for you.
Thanks, Zaphir. I hope they do too but if it happens it probably won’t be until next spring.