PNWPhotos.com a friendly and growing community of photographers with an interest in the Pacific Northwest region.
We feature a Photography Discussion Forum and Pacific Northwest Photo Gallery. It's a fun and friendly place to talk with other photographers, ask questions, share you knowledge, view and post photos and more!
Let's make the owl photo thread started by JaniceL an annual tradition. Post your owl shots taken in 2014 here along with a narrative of when/where/how you took the photos plus any other info you think we may find interesting. This year's thread should be very interesting, as we now have owl photographers ranging from Portland to Bellingham.
To kick things off, here is one of the Yost Park (Edmonds, WA) resident barred owls sleeping under the dark canopy of a thick stand of Doug firs high up the Shell Creek ravine in a corner of the park on January 6th. The leaves have fallen off the trees of the owls' summer hangouts at the bottom of the ravine, so there is no protective cover from harassment by the evil minions of the Dark Lord and their henchbirds, the robins and Steller's jays.
Owls are right at the top of my favorites list. I have many shots to offer so let me know when I've reached my quota.
Snowy Owl
This is one of the Boundary Bay gathering from two years ago. Not 200 hundred yards from the car, I observed 36 individuals, all prime for digiscoping. This was just after sunrise and the owl was a good 50 yards away from the dike trail at the end of 72nd Street, off the Ladner Trunk Rd.
Let's make the owl photo thread started by JaniceL an annual tradition. Post your owl shots for 2014 here with a narrative of when/where/how you took the photos plus any other info you think we may find interesting.
Definitely one of my favorite owls, especially when they're sharing an open field with Northern Harriers. Their aerobatic skills are quite impressive and fun to watch.
Short-eared Owl
This cooperative individual allowed me to drive right up and shoot at will.
(Notice the different-sized pupils....one in the sun and one in the shade.)
I read that short-eared owls are the only owls which hunt during the day, which makes them very photogenic. Two years ago Terry and I were up at the West 90 where I shot a sequence of a northern harrier harassing a short-eared owl which had caught a mouse. During the aerial dogfight the owl dropped the mouse. I got a shot of the owl, the harrier and the free-falling mouse all in focus.
Owls adjust their hunting schedules when they have young to feed. I've spent many hours with Barred Owls, watching them catch crayfish with a high success rate, throughout the day.
Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to photograph the great horned owls at the Tualatin NWR near Sherwood, OR. If you or any member of your team is captured by the local eagles or coyotes, the Moderators will disavow any knowledge of your actions.
Seems they're always tougher to find, maybe because they're so small and usually well hidden. The Reifel sanctuary on Westham Island, west of Ladner, BC, is usually good for 2-4 during the winter months.
Seems they're always tougher to find, maybe because they're so small and usually well hidden. The Reifel sanctuary on Westham Island, west of Ladner, BC, is usually good for 2-4 during the winter months.
Is that one of the Reifel saw-whets in your photo? Terry and I photographed them last year. There were three of them sleeping in successive trees on branches which hung over the trail. They were so close that I could have reached up and touched them. I had to back off to the short end of my 100-400L zoom to get them in focus
I wondered why three of them were at that one spot until I spotted a bird feeder nearby. I surmised the owls preyed on mice which fed at night on spilled seeds under the feeder.
Yes, that's a Reifel Saw-whet, and your theory about the proximity of their perches to feeders is pretty valid. I had a conversation a few years back with the John Ireland, the longtime manager of the refuge, and he had a similar thought.
Since Reifel always has Saw-whets during the winter, it makes sense that there has to be a reliable food source.
When I was monitoring a nesting pair a couple of years ago, I was fortunate to find THE spot where one particular juvenile perched every evening to catch crayfish. I was recognized as non-threatening so I was able to spend a lot of time with this one.
Barred Owl, juvenile
I'd go down to the creek and if the owl wasn't there, I'd wait; and sure enough, it came to its preferred perch, checked me out, and watched for prey. I always had a sandwich.
Affiliate Disclosure: We may receive a commision from some of the links and ads shown on this website (Learn More Here)
PNWPhotos.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com
