Morning Light in His Wings (Short-Eared Owl)
This image captured shortly after reaching the venue first thing in the morning.
Roosting Down Low (Short-Eared Owl)
After a successful hunt a short-eared owl rests down low in the marsh grass near the ocean. Flickr folks please left click for more detail.
Ocean in Her Eye (Short-Eared Owl)
If you zoom this up you can see the shoreline of the ocean reflected in her eye.
Another Short-Eared Owl in Flight
Got a lot of images like this with the short-ear looking straight into the camera. Flickr folks please left click for greater detail.
Vertical Bank (Short-Eared Owl)
Here is another one of those weird vertical bank shots from our trip.
Shortie Environmental Shot (Short-Eared Owl)
The conditions are rarely perfect for shooting these guys and as you can see they are usually found in a similar situation to this image . I guess if wildlife photography wasn't as challenging then everyone would be doing it.
Look Me in The Eye (Short-Eared Owl)
Another shortie close up portrait from our weekend shoot.
Friendly Bird (Short-Eared Owl)
This particular short-eared owl circled us several times at close range before settling on a near by log. Flickr folks might want to click a couple of times for more detail.
Down By The Sea (Short-Eared Owl)
A male short-eared owl rests on a driftwood log down near the ocean. Flickr folks please left click for more detail.
Banking Left (Short-Eared Owl)
Love it when you can see both eyes in flight. Flickr folks please left click for better detail.
Short-Ear Portrait in Morning Light (Short-Eared Owl)
The first close up perching image of a short-eared owl for me in a long time. Flickr folks please left click for more detail.
Shortie Environmental (Short-Eared Owl)
Another image from the Boxing Day shoot yesterday.
Low Light Shoot (Short-Eared Owl)
Managed a few images at the usual venue where the owl came a bit closer today. Not bad for low light situations and a 2X teleconverter.
Banking Right Looking at The Camera (Short-Eared Owl)
One from this afternoon's shoot.
Better Eye Contact (Short-Eared Owl)
The only problem with images like this is that the owl's wings are so big that the head of the owl ends up being only an inch and a half wide before the wings are out of frame. Flickr folks please left click for better detail.
Short-Ear Glide 2023 (Short-Eared Owl)
Liked the background in this image.
Skimming The Grass (Short-Eared Owl)
In this image a short-eared owl hunts at only a couple of feet off of the ground in search for voles.
Pop Up 2023 (Short-Eared Owl)
A short-eared owl pops up out of the tall grass to begin its evening hunt.
Takin' a Dive (Short-Eared Owl)
A short-eared owl dives on an unsuspecting vole in the deep grass near the ocean.
Banking Left (Short-Eared Owl)
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Golden Light Short-Ear (Short-Eared Owl)
Had some fun over on the lower mainland today with short-eared owls.
First Short-Ear of The Season (Short-Eared Owl)
Nice to see these guys again. Will try to get a bit closer with a better background next time.
Coming Out of The Cat Tails (Short-Eared Owl)
Another goodie from BP earlier in the season.
WIngs Up Version (Short-Eared Owl)
Got a few images up against the broom last week.
Side View in The Sunlight (Short-Eared Owl)
Another image from last week over on the mainland.
Out of The Blue (Short-Eared Owl)
A bit of a shadow on this one but not bad as regards clarity for 800mm equivalent hand-held.
Golden Light Glide (Short-Eared Owl)
This image taken in the last half an hour before sunset.
WIngs Up Version (Short-Eared Owl)
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Boo! (Short-Eared Owl)
Had another one of these "Pop Up" owls yesterday. Always good for keeping you on your toes.
Shortie Close Up (Short-Eared Owl)
Lots of good shortie images to be had at the venue yesterday. I will be processing for at least another couple of days.
Another Sunny Day Short-Ear (Short-Eared Owl)
A struggle for good images yesterday in shadows and harsh light.
Banking Into Golden Light (Short-Eared Owl)
I have been holding back on some of my short-eared owl images from last month so as not to be too repetitious. Here is one taken during the golden hour just before sunset.
Don't Go Into The Light! (Short-Eared Owl)
Nice position for me but not so great for these guys. Can't imagine what they were thinking.
Skimming Over The Bulrushes (Short-Eared Owl)
Still a few good shots left from my last two trips to Brunswick Point.
Pop Up (Short-Eared Owl)
About a hundred feet from where we were standing this short-eared owl just popped up suddenly out of the grass. Missed the initial burst shot but managed to catch him in mid air after a couple of wing beats.
Twilight Glide (short-eared owl)
Just after sunset a short-eared owl glides by during a hunt.
Cloudy Morning Flight (Short-Eared Owl)
Worth a left click or two for better detail.
Hunting in The Bulrushes (Short-Eared Owl)
Another frame from one of my trips over to the mainland.
Simple But Pretty (Short-Eared Owl)
A sky shot from Saturday.
Aerial Combat (Short-Eared Owls)
Plenty of territorial sparring going on at the venue over the weekend.
Saving The Best For Last (Short-Eared Owl)
This image also taken before the sun came out in the morning.
Soft Light Short-Ear (Short-Eared Owl)
Taken in the morning before the sun came out.
Golden Light Short-Ear (Short-Eared Owl)
This particular owl circled around us and barked for almost two minutes after we inadvertently disturbed it while it was eating a mouse somewhere in the grass. We were just trying to get back to the dyke and didn't even know it was there.
In Hunting Mode (Short-Eared Owl)
A lovely display of patterns and colors in this image as the short-ear banks during a hunt.
Better Eye Contact (Short Eared Owl)
Lots more to come. Have to charge my batteries 🙂
Evening Sunlight (Short-Eared Owl)
Had some fun on the mainland yesterday. Lots of short-eared owls.
Short-Eared Owl With Fall Background
A distant crop but still pretty.
Olden Golden (Short-Eared Owl)
Here is one from a few years back that I re-worked. I used the frame after this one for the original post as it seemed a bit sharper. Here is hoping that the shorties come in close like in this image. Can't believe we got shots like this with only 16MP.
Look Into My Eyes (Short-Eared Owl)
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New Filters - Old Photo (Short-Eared Owl)
Another good one from 2016 that was never posted. Left click twice for best detail.
Coming Straight At Me (Short-Eared Owl)
Another image in the series of a short-eared owl flying straight at the camera at close range.
Sunny Day At Boundary Bay (Short-Eared Owl)
Think this was taken on my first trip to Boundary Bay after buying the 1DX Mark 2. A bit of a crop but not too bad.
Shortie On A Snag ( Short-Eared Owl)
Here is another nice one from 2016 that was never posted. I probably won't be getting over to the mainland this winter so you may see me posting more of my oldies but goodies. Perhaps next year?
Autumn Leaf Background (Short-Eared Owl)
Here is one with some nice backlight on the wings and tail.
Boundary Bay Sentinel (Short-Eared Owl)
I am being watched closely in this image by a short-eared owl on one of the snags at Boundary Bay near Ladner.
Extreme Close Encounter (Short-Eared Owl)
This one taken a few years back with the EOS-1D Mark 4. Tried applying some of the new software filters to it. Didn't come out too bad.
Close fly Past (Short-Eared Owl)
Here is one from a sequence of several photos that were taken as the owl flew towards the camera. Taken in 2016 but never posted. Probably the best short-ear photography on Halloween for me so far.
Shortie Flight Shot (Short-Eared Owl)
Another nice short-eared owl flight shot from the archives.
Thinking of Shorty Again (Short-Eared Owl)
It's getting closer to raptor season. Hoping this year will be different from the last couple of years as regards the lack of short-eared owls at the local estuary. Haven't had any good images like this since 2017 and even then we had to travel to the mainland to get them.
Keeping Vigilant (Short-Eared Owl)
A short-eared owl gets ready to launch as he is harassed by a near by harrier just out of frame of this image.
Owl In The Headlights (Short-Eared Owl)
Another fun image from a trip to Boundary Bay near Ladner B.C.
Big WIngs (Short-Eared Owl)
You really get an appreciation when you see an image like this as to how big a shortie's wings are compared to the rest of the body.
2016 Landscape Version (Short-Eared Owl)
Another re-post from the archives. Thought that I would try it in a landscape version this time.
Thinking of Shortie (Short-Eared Owl)
Been a pretty poor year so far for photos of short-eared owls over on the island. In direct contrast here is an image from our local estuary in 2016. Sometimes they came too close. If you are viewing this on Flickr, choose download/view all sizes/original for best detail.
Keeping An Eye On Me (Short-Eared Owl)
In this image a short-eared owl female keeps one eye on me as she preens herself on a near by branch.
Short-Ear Remake (Short-Eared Owl)
Came across this in the archives from a few years ago at Boundary Bay and decided to re-work the filtering a bit. Didn't turn out too bad. Probably one of my best Short-Eared Owl post shots.
Tight Bank (Short-Eared Owl)
You really get a good idea of how big their wings are compared to the rest of their body in this image.
Evening Light (Short-Eared Owl)
Tried to take this photo at a better angle. Wrestled a bit with harsh light. Didn't turn out too bad.
Selective Focus (Short-Eared Owl)
I found this one rather interesting. I managed to get the head and tail in sharp focus while the wings are slightly blurred. Kind of adds a sense of motion and a bit of intensity to the image.
Sunday Edit (Short-Eared Owl)
I haven't posted much for a few days and the rain is really pounding down outside. Decided to edit some of the images from my first trip to Boundary Bay this year. Hope you like it. I got a million of them.
Wind Blown (Short-Eared Owl)
Interesting dark plumage underneath the external brown feathers.
Concentration (Short-Eared Owl)
A short-eared owl pinpoints a good location to land on a snag at Boundary Bay near Ladner B.C.
King Of The Golf Course (Short-Eared Owl)
Caught this handsome dude hanging out on a fence post at the Kings Links golf course. The green grass makes an interesting change from the regular brown environment.
Banking In The Marsh (Short-Eared Owl)
Some nice flight shots to be had on this past Monday at Boundary Bay with the short-eared owls.
Reaching For The Wood (Short-Eared Owl)
A short-eared owl comes in for a landing on an old snag at Boundary Bay. Images like this were common today without even having to go into the marsh. Please left click for a bit larger image if you are viewing this on Flickr.
Beautiful Blonde (Short-Eared Owl)
Visited Boundary Bay today with Dave and Pius. Great weather, good friends, fantastic photos!
Another Nice Flight Shot (Short-Eared Owl)
No owls for the past couple of days. Here is a nice flight shot from last year that was never posted.
Short-Ear Portrait (Short-Eared Owl)
Haven't had a lot of chances for roosting images this year at least not up close. This is about the closest yet.
Soggy Lunch (Short-Eared Owl)
Not sure if the vole was already there or if the owl caught it on the fly. The tide was coming in and perhaps he thought that he had to move his cache or loose it. For some reason the short-ears are doing a lot of stock piling with their catch this year. Used to seeing them just catch voles and then eat them immediately.
Skimming the Grass (Short-Eared Owl)
He came a bit closer today.
Maintaining Eye Contact (Short-Eared Owl)
Cool how owls always seem to keep their eyes level even in a sharp bank.
Flying Close By (Short-Eared Owl)
There was one owl today that gave us quite a show. He hunted on and off for at least two hours all around us. Never did see him capture anything though.
Don't Let The Short-Ear Catch You Chimpin' (Short-Eared Owl)
Lots of activity today from a single short-eared owl that hunted for over two hours while I was there.
Banking in Evening Light (Short-Eared Owl)
It was raining pretty hard today so here is one from yesterday. Nice dorsal view with pretty good back, wings, and tail detail.
Tracking Troubles (Short-Eared Owl)
Had lots of nice opportunities for flight shots yesterday. However, my Mark 4 really struggled with tracking in the unidirectional light. Here is one of only a few images that I managed to get some good focus on.
Banking in The Brush (Short-Eared Owl)
A short-eared owl makes a sharp turn at the corner of a field to fly towards me during a hunt.
Spider Webs (Short-Eared Owl)
Trees in the background without any leaves look like spider webs in this one.
Single Handed (Short-Eared Owl)
Pretty low light yesterday out on the estuary. Here a short-eared owl catches a rather large vole for lunch. Note how they almost always seem to hold their prey in one talon. Must be so they can use the other one for defense against wood be theives? Not sure.
Shortie in Evening Light (Short-Eared Owl)
The shorties are coming a bit closer now. Just have to be there at the right time. Did my best with the light on this one but still not ideal.
Concentrating During The Hunt (Short-Eared Owl)
A short-eared owl scans the ground during a hunt at the Nanaimo River Estuary. If you are on Flickr, please go to "view all sizes" and choose "original" for the best detail.
Lovely Fall Colors (Short-Eared Owl)
Another good one from last year.
Oldie But Goodie (short-eared owl)
Spent most of the afternoon out at the estuary today and got skunked as regards owl images. Here is an image from almost seven years ago using my Canon 50D and my old equipment. Used some new Lightroom software to jazz it up a bit. Didn't come out too bad. That darned stick he is perched on is still out there!
Another One From the Archives (Short-Eared Owl)
It's a very snowy day today so I decided to go through some of my old images and try a couple of remakes. Here is one from 2009 taken in the days before I had a professional camera body and was still using my 500mm. It took me about a half an hour to move to the distance that I shot this image as I didn't want to stress the bird and make it flush. Very close on this. The original is full frame. I finished my shoot and walked away with the owl still sitting there looking at me.
Hawthorne Devil (Short-Eared Owl)
A short-eared owl enjoys the afternoon sun in a Hawthorne bush at the Nanaimo Estuary.
Raised Wings In Evening Light
Here is one more from Thursday's trip to Brunswick Point.
Stealth Bomber
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Resting In The Grass
A short-eared owl rests in the grass after hunting at Brunswick Point.
Two In One
Had to merge two photos together to get this picture. The short-ears were coming so close at times it was hard to keep them in the viewfinder. Ended up cutting one of the wings off and had to replace it from another photo. Turned out not too bad though. Best viewed at original size.
Brunswick Point Visit 2017
Went with the gang yesterday to Brunswick Point in Ladner. A bit cold but we had a lot of fun with the short-eared owls and the harriers.
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year Everyone! Here is another short-eared owl flight shot from last month that I had kicking around the hard drive. Pretty good detail overall. Trouble is when you include the entire wing span the face is rather small. Unfortunately, you will have to click the download icon and click "view all sizes" and then choose the largest size in order to see all the facial detail.
