More Owls; More Light, Less Snow

[NorthernFocus]

...for my taste the previous thread with all of the high key shots are far more interesting simply...

I totally agree, Manfred, I like the "white on white"/high key shots best. I've got a couple of hum dingers that I hadn't gotten to before I posted that first set. Maybe I'll make another post with more of the high key type.

[Manfred M]

I totally agree, Manfred, I like the "white on white"/high key shots best. I've got a couple of hum dingers that I hadn't gotten to before I posted that first set. Maybe I'll make another post with more of the high key type.

I'm looking forward to seeing that set!

[MikePapple]

I have a trip planned in March -southern Manitoba, Canada to photograph maybe 6 species of owls. It might be cold. I suppose the camera settings should be something like shutter priority, auto ISO, 1/1600s, f/5.6?

[NorthernFocus]

I have a trip planned in March -southern Manitoba, Canada to photograph maybe 6 species of owls. It might be cold. I suppose the camera settings should be something like shutter priority, auto ISO, 1/1600s, f/5.6?

Hope you have a productive trip, Mike. I'd not venture to advise any "rule of thumb" settings. Too many variables such as color/tonaillity of bird vs background, lighting conditions, camera/lens used, etc. The only advice I can offer is to use ss 1/1000s or faster for flight shots if you want to completely freeze the wings. Typically higher ss for smaller birds/faster wing beats. An aperture of f5.6 is usually adequate to keep both wingtips within DOF assuming a focus point on head/body. But if focus locks on one wing then the wing on the opposite side may drift out of the edge of DOF. Owls have pretty flat faces so f5.6(or wider if you have the lens) should work for any static shots regardless of range.

If you are going on a workshop with an experienced guide/leader he/she should be able to give you guidelines in any given shooting conditions.

[LePetomane]

Dan, very nice. Your wildlife photos are spectacular.

[NorthernFocus]

Thanks, Paul. Lots of hours involved to get to this point. Both in the field and behind the computer. A while back I did a rough estimate and I think I came up with about 300k frames fired since I went digital in 2005. Anything that I shot prior to that on film/slides is round-off error. Plus I shot mostly flowers back then.

[terrib]

These are amazing shots, Dan. It's always a joy to come back to CinC and find your posts.

[Golden Age Mentor]

Hi Dan,

Would it be possible for me to use 'Dawn of a New Day' on my website which currently having an upgrade. It's so beautiful and encapsulates my work beautifully.
Warmest regards,

Annwyn - Golden Age Mentor (you may google this to check the website)