1704_0862 Great Horned Owl
I had just walked a few km with my friend and her dog in biting-cold weather (happy Easter!). We had brought two vehicles to the trail head, and I was about to find out why. As I followed my friend's pickup out of the parking area - imagine a dirt road, a grove of trees, endless rolling prairie hills ahead and a great valley behind, with no other vehicles, people, fences, houses, or sign of habitation - I happened to glance to my left. An owl was watching me from a bare cottonwood tree!
I stopped, waited a few minutes. Snapped a few shots from the car, but the bird was half obscured. Got out. Owl watching. Casually walked a zig-zag path down an embankment, through a sparse hedge. Owl still there. Got better shots. Owl flew to a different perch. I changed course. Owl continued watching. I feigned interest in nonexistent wildflowers. Gradually moved to an opening among the trees. Owl stayed put. Finally raised my hand held lens again (checked that VR setting was on) and there it was! Click-click-click (burst mode); adjust exposure, click-click-click; adjust again, click-click-click. Even shooting RAW, I bracket when possible because results are always better if you nail the exposure.
This is the final frame of the set. By this time the owl had enough of me and flew off to a higher perch in a different tree, and I called out a thank-you, gave a little bow, and left him or her in peace. The Great Horned Owl is a feared predator; its talons are reputed to have the most powerful grip of all North American raptors. But it is a shy bird that needs some privacy. This is why I love Grasslands and the surrounding area, and why I decided to move here nearly a decade ago. The wildlife photo ops are plentiful and pressure from humans on the animals is minimal. I can spend a few minutes with an amazing critter and know that I am probably the only human it will have to deal with this week, this month, perhaps all year. It makes a cold, rainy Easter weekend sunnier and warmer.
Photographed in Grasslands National Park, Saskatchewan. Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission © 2017 James R. Page - all rights reserved.
1704_0862 Great Horned Owl
I had just walked a few km with my friend and her dog in biting-cold weather (happy Easter!). We had brought two vehicles to the trail head, and I was about to find out why. As I followed my friend's pickup out of the parking area - imagine a dirt road, a grove of trees, endless rolling prairie hills ahead and a great valley behind, with no other vehicles, people, fences, houses, or sign of habitation - I happened to glance to my left. An owl was watching me from a bare cottonwood tree!
I stopped, waited a few minutes. Snapped a few shots from the car, but the bird was half obscured. Got out. Owl watching. Casually walked a zig-zag path down an embankment, through a sparse hedge. Owl still there. Got better shots. Owl flew to a different perch. I changed course. Owl continued watching. I feigned interest in nonexistent wildflowers. Gradually moved to an opening among the trees. Owl stayed put. Finally raised my hand held lens again (checked that VR setting was on) and there it was! Click-click-click (burst mode); adjust exposure, click-click-click; adjust again, click-click-click. Even shooting RAW, I bracket when possible because results are always better if you nail the exposure.
This is the final frame of the set. By this time the owl had enough of me and flew off to a higher perch in a different tree, and I called out a thank-you, gave a little bow, and left him or her in peace. The Great Horned Owl is a feared predator; its talons are reputed to have the most powerful grip of all North American raptors. But it is a shy bird that needs some privacy. This is why I love Grasslands and the surrounding area, and why I decided to move here nearly a decade ago. The wildlife photo ops are plentiful and pressure from humans on the animals is minimal. I can spend a few minutes with an amazing critter and know that I am probably the only human it will have to deal with this week, this month, perhaps all year. It makes a cold, rainy Easter weekend sunnier and warmer.
Photographed in Grasslands National Park, Saskatchewan. Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission © 2017 James R. Page - all rights reserved.