Awwww! This is such a cute, cute photo! They look like toy owls at this stage. So fluffy. Their nest is in a very nice setting, ideal for nice compositions of your photos!
Beautiful! I think it's a shame that each of the owls has an eye obscured (by the other owl and the tree), but that's what you get with animals. I'm not criticising at all, just remarking on the difficulty of composition when your subject has a mind of its own! That said, it's a very good photo and I really like that you almost feel a sense of wide-eyed wonder from the owls like you would from a young child! Very well done Chris.
wow, you're so lucky to have access to this! Awesome capture. I think I would have to climb a nearby tree and camp for a while.
Well, I've looked at this picture some more and decided I like the candid feel to their obscured eyes, it also makes them look more timid and gives more character to the owls. I also really like your composition; the way the photo is cut across diagonally by the tree appeals to me I did notice the focus seems to be sharpest on the tree, not the owls faces - was this intentional? All the best! Chris.
How thrilling to see those cute fluffballs peering down at you! (The second one is noticeable smaller. Hope he's getting his fair share of the grub!)
Thank you very much for the comments....they're hard to come by around here. Yes, I realize how lucky I am to have found this. It is hard enough to find owls in the wild, but to find their nest is a real treasure. No, this was not intentional, and I caught that when I was going throught the downloaded pictures. I checked my camera, thinking I had left it in dynamic focusing because I was attempting some in-flight shots of some other birds earlier in the day. I had indeed changed it back to single focal point, and I know I had them square in that box, so all I can attribute this to was the wind. It was blowing pretty good while I was out, and their feathers are more fuzz than anything else right now, so I think it was that movement that softened them up a bit. Funny, you read my mind. There is a tree about 15' away from these guys, and it is about 2' in diameter, but no good place to sit. So what did I do...I just went and bought a tree stand to strap to the tree, and I have the camo netting from my bird blind. My wife thought I was nuts, "But, Honey, this is a rather rare opportunity...." I haven't tried it out yet, as these guys are still just sitting in the nest, not doing much but looking around, and won't be "branchers" for a little while yet.
Perfect. I can't wait to see more shots. Be careful not to disturb them (I know you are). I just love this picture.
Ditto TCimages. I can't wait to see what you get with your new tree-hide set-up! Good luck, looking forward to the results! C.
