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Great Grey Owl

These are elusive and rare and are relics from another time.

These are elusive and rare and are relics from another time.
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Canon EOS M5

settings

Aperture f/6.3 ISO 800 Shutter 1/1000 Focal Length 435/1

location

Oregon, US

upload_date

Oct, 2018

Views

328

Likes

+67

Awards

Zenith Award

Elite

Peer Award

+24

Top Choice

+16

Superb Composition

+16

Outstanding Creativity

Absolute Masterpiece

Magnificent Capture

Emotions

Impressed

Top Ranks

Top 10 rank

Top 10 rank week 1

Top 10 rank

Top 30 rank

Top 30 rank week 1

Behind The Lens

Location

This photo was taken in a high country mountain meadow at approx. 5000 ft. elevation on the outskirts of the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument in the southern Oregon Cascades.

Time

Late afternoon, following a 1/2 day birding excursion with professional birder Harry Fuller. Side note: In 2015 Harry published a new book, Great Gray Owls of California, Oregon and Washington. It was co-authored by Peter Thiemann who also supplied over 100 original photos of this phantom of the forest. They are notoriously hard to find even by skilled field biologists. The first Oregon nest of the species was not found until 1954, and the first nest in Washington State was not found until 1991. After the trip ended, and we were not successful in spotting the elusive Great Grey Owl, we decided to go home on a different route and check out the area known for occasional sightings of Great Grey Owls. These owls are very elusive and hard to spot as they blend in so well with their surroundings! We got out of our car and started to walk by one of the meadows where they have been spotted in the past. The owl blended in so well that my birding companion walked right by it only 20' away and I had to point out where it was!

Lighting

The Owl was in the shade of the big sugar pines. I was grateful that it was so close and I didn't need to use a long telephoto lens to capture it. The low f stop also allowed for the image to maintain good bokeh.

Equipment

I am a long standing Canon camera enthusiast. I was shooting with a 7D Mark 11 and a Canon M5 Mirrorless at the time. The lens was the Canon Canon EF 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 DO IS USM, handheld at f4, at 70mm no supplemental flash or tripod used.

Inspiration

I've traveled many times to this area in search of a siting of the Great Grey Owl. Many birding groups led by professional birders travel from all over the USA and outside the country to catch a glimpse of them! It was very exciting for me to get so close to a Great Grey Owl and stare into each other's eyes at such a close range. It was very captivating experience and one I won't soon forget.

Editing

I utilized Lightroom classic for the post processing of this image. I am not one that likes to alter the image and want to present wildlife as viewed in nature. This image required only slight adjustments in shadow and contrast, nothing more.

In my camera bag

I have three camera bags, one is a travel bag, another a day bag, and the last holds all of my equipment when stored at home. 2 cameras, a Canon RP, and a Canon M6 Mirrorless. Lenses - Canon RF 24-240mm, RF 800mm, Canon 100mm macro, Canon 10-18mm, Canon 18-135mm Canon Speedlight Travel Tripod, Bogen Tripod, Seinhauser Microphone,

Feedback

Be patient, learn the habitat requirements, enlist the help of others who have more experience in finding sightings. As with all wildlife photography, luck is always a part of the equation!

See more amazing photos, follow VisualCreationsGallery

VisualCreationsGallery

VisualCreationsGallery

Great Grey Owl

These are elusive and rare and are relics from another time.

Behind The Lens

See more amazing photos, follow VisualCreationsGallery

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