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mariaserrano

"I Love You, Honey!"

Burrowing Owl preening its mate.

Burrowing Owl preening its mate.
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NIKON D3100

settings

Aperture f/8.0 ISO 800 Shutter 1/800

upload_date

May, 2014

Views

1133

Likes

+47

Awards

Top Choice

Magnificent Capture

Absolute Masterpiece

Superb Composition

Peer Award

Great Find

Superior Skill

One Of A Kind

Outstanding Creativity

Love it

Emotions

Impressed

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Behind The Lens

Location

I took this photo in Menifee, California

Time

I took this at 6:37 pm.

Lighting

The sun was pretty low and the location of the owls' nest gave me the opportunity to position myself across from the sun to be able to achieve the natural backlighting that I love.

Equipment

I used a Nikon D3100 (Oh boy do I wish I had had my D810 then!) with a Nikon 500mm f/4G ED VR prime lens, mounted on a not very impressive tripod which could barely hold the lens.

Inspiration

Owls are such unique birds! I really wanted to capture them and had made one previous attempt with a 55-300 mm lens which was okay, but not great. I wanted to capture the owls demonstrating some kind of interesting behavior, not just a portrait.

Editing

I used Lightroom and Photoshop to post-process the image. I cropped a little to fill more of the frame with the owls, brought down the shadows, enhanced the contrast and colors, sharpened, and cleaned up the potty items around the nest.

In my camera bag

The equipment I use at the moment consists of the Nikon D810 and D3100, a Nikon 55-300mm lens, a Nikon 40mm prime macro lens, a Nikon 18-55mm lens, and 'Precious' - my Nikon 500mm prime. :) I have ND and polarizing filters for all my lenses. I use a Gitzo Mountaineer tripod with a Wimberley gimbal head. My Cotton Carrier is always with me as well.

Feedback

If you want to capture burrowing owls I would suggest getting to the location two or three hours before sunset and finding the closest spot possible to the nest/burrow, depending on the reach of your lens and how comfortable the owls seem with your presence. The owls I photographed were just a few feet away from a dog park and tolerated me sitting there for about three hours just 7-10 feet away from them. Take a comfortable stool or chair and use a tripod with a remote, preferably. Be observant and ready to shoot at any time. This pair was caring for eggs in the nest (May). I visited a few weeks later and was able to capture one chick. I had spoken to a resident who frequents the park regularly and she contacted me to let me know when the babies were out. So, community members can help you time your shoot. ;) The owls in my image are preening each other. This is part of courtship and helps the owls to bond as a pair. Researching animal behavior also helps 'predict' what the animals may do so you can be ready to capture it. Timing, equipment, patience, and a lot of luck helped me capture this image.

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mariaserrano

mariaserrano

"I Love You, Honey!"

Burrowing Owl preening its mate.

Behind The Lens

See more amazing photos, follow mariaserrano

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