- Post score: 20
- #1
Starting very early in my childhood, I have always had a thing for one particular type of bird, Owls. Their ability to hide in plain sight, see perfectly at night, and attack their prey silently is amazing and beautiful. The story that follows is my first (successful) effort, specifically to target and photograph Owls. Last Sunday, I embarked on a mission to find a couple of Barred Owls that a friend tipped me in on a few miles from my home. It was certainly not the best day for this adventure with gusty winds in the 30mph range. After a bit of searching with binoculars and listening, I was able to lay eyes on my hopeful prize but never get close enough to make an image. Eventually, I lost sight and was unable to locate it again. Hope was fading with each passing minute.
At this point, the beautiful dusk light was showing up fast. I decided to give up and switch gears. So I went to a different location entirely. There, I was hoping to possibly capture a backlit Whitetail Deer buck as the rut is in full swing here. Well, the first thing I heard when I got out of the car was the unmistakable hoots of a Great Horned Owl. OH HAPPY ME! The frantic search in quickly falling light was on. Although I might need glasses to read my phone...I can spot the silhouettes of wildlife like a predator on the wing.
Without question, I looked like a crazy person peering through the tree line I suspected as hiding my Owl. I soon spotted the iconic outline of "horns" in the trees from a good 150 yards. Quickly, but carefully I made my way closer and closer to a location I thought would produce the sidelight I was envisioning. Jackpot! No more fading hope for this day. Although I still needed a pretty heavy crop at decently high ISO, I am pretty happy overall. (Constructive criticism encouraged) It was a great outing and one that has certainly poured gasoline on my addiction to making more images of these amazing predators. Having almost no shutter time with my new D500 up to this point, I was amazed at how it was able to perform under the circumstances. This image was taken handheld, in very gusty conditions, causing my 200-500 to act more like a sail than a lens. An amazing piece of technology for sure. I feel like this camera and I will become great friends For our next outing, my new friend and I will be on a mission to improve this background before all the fall colors have fallen to the ground.
D500 1/500" ISO2500 @ f/7.1
At this point, the beautiful dusk light was showing up fast. I decided to give up and switch gears. So I went to a different location entirely. There, I was hoping to possibly capture a backlit Whitetail Deer buck as the rut is in full swing here. Well, the first thing I heard when I got out of the car was the unmistakable hoots of a Great Horned Owl. OH HAPPY ME! The frantic search in quickly falling light was on. Although I might need glasses to read my phone...I can spot the silhouettes of wildlife like a predator on the wing.
Without question, I looked like a crazy person peering through the tree line I suspected as hiding my Owl. I soon spotted the iconic outline of "horns" in the trees from a good 150 yards. Quickly, but carefully I made my way closer and closer to a location I thought would produce the sidelight I was envisioning. Jackpot! No more fading hope for this day. Although I still needed a pretty heavy crop at decently high ISO, I am pretty happy overall. (Constructive criticism encouraged) It was a great outing and one that has certainly poured gasoline on my addiction to making more images of these amazing predators. Having almost no shutter time with my new D500 up to this point, I was amazed at how it was able to perform under the circumstances. This image was taken handheld, in very gusty conditions, causing my 200-500 to act more like a sail than a lens. An amazing piece of technology for sure. I feel like this camera and I will become great friends For our next outing, my new friend and I will be on a mission to improve this background before all the fall colors have fallen to the ground.D500 1/500" ISO2500 @ f/7.1
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