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Barred Owl
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Barred Owl

by Matt Shellenberg

Gallery: AvianPosted November 28, 2016529 views6 comments
Strix Varia

I found this Barred Owl recently in a local wetland area off of the Mississippi River.

1DX, 800mm f5.6L IS
1/250, f13
ISO 800
Shot from truck window

Please view larger image for detail.

All comments and critique are very appreciated.
Thank You. 

Comments

6 comments
Comment posted by Max Waugh on November 29, 2016 at 10:52 AM
Matt, the vertical brown lines make for an interesting pattern.  It doesn't hurt that they complement the owl's plumage well.

Max
Registered on September 26, 2008, 428 Posts, 2329 Comments
Comment posted by Jefferson Silva on November 29, 2016 at 3:51 PM
Nice image of the barred owl.
I'm curious about why you used f13. 
Registered on December 18, 2012, 162 Posts, 975 Comments
Comment posted by Matt Shellenberg on November 29, 2016 at 4:10 PM
Thanks for the nice comments, Max and Jefferson.

Jefferson, a Barred Owl is a pretty big bird and at 800mm I have around 10 or 11 inches of depth of field at 50 feet at f13. I was concerned about getting the entire bird sharp.  I did have time with this bird to use several different exposure combinations, but I liked the eye contact and head position of  this shot. I rarely go below f8 with the 800mm lens for birds because of the very narrow depth of field.
Registered on February 6, 2008, 168 Posts, 3118 Comments
Comment posted by SandyRichardsBrown on November 29, 2016 at 4:15 PM
Great find! The owl is gorgeous, tack-sharp, and in a classic pose.
Wish the diagonal tree were not so large, almost overpowering,  but an excellent shot nontheless.
Sandy
Registered on November 24, 2003, 3937 Posts, 12909 Comments
Comment posted by Dennis Plank on November 30, 2016 at 6:51 PM
I love this, Matt.  The dead vines and leaves make a perfect bg without being at all distracting.  The post on the left does draw my eye just a little.  You might try fiddling with the relative brightness of it and the owl a bit.

devil
Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments
Comment posted by Ken Archer on December 1, 2016 at 3:38 AM
This one's beauty Matt! The soft light works well in this scene, I really like the fluffed out pose with the separation of the wing feathers.
Registered on October 28, 2004, 222 Posts, 6683 Comments