COMPROMISE

Moonrise over Green Island Wetlands, Iowa, Nikon Z6II, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, FTZ adapter,  @ 340mm, 1/1000s, f/8, ISO1600, 4 images merged in Adobe Photoshop

Last Saturday the moonrise was less than half an hour before sunset. While I was out in the Green Island Preserve, hoping to get a glimpse on some Short-eared Owls during dusk, the almost full moon illuminated the landscape, with a little bit of light left from the sun that had just disappeared behind the horizon line minutes ago. Unfortunately no owl showed up this time. An ISO setting of 1600 would still have allowed to freeze some owl action at about 1/1000s but some luminance noise in the picture was inevitable. The trick was to shoot 4-5 subsequent pictures while handholding the long lens. Later at home, in front of the computer, the 4 pictures were merged (stacked) in Adobe Photoshop into one image. Since luminance noise is randomly distributed in each picture, it would disappear in the final photo. I liked how the vertical lines of the tree trunks at the bottom were emphasized, but overall the impression of a dreamy landscape was still left. Shooting this from a tripod is probably the better way to do, but how would I have caught a Short-eared Owl in case I had seen one? Photography is often about compromise…

NATURE CLICKS #478 - SHORT EARED OWL

Short-eared Owl, Mississippi River, Green Island Wildlife Area, Iowa

This is by no means a sharp photo and I’m not talking only about the blurred wings (which I actually like), but the eyes and face are not really sharp either. However, I couldn’t resist to post this image because a Short-eared Owl has been in front of my camera only once before. There was hardly any light left when the owl appeared and hunted along the dike that crosses the Green Island Wildlife Area. With its buoyant flight and constantly changing directions it was difficult to lock on the focus. After watching the Trumpeter Swans (see my last post) I was just about to wrap it up when the owl approached my location on top of the dike. I still had the Nikkor 70-200, f/4 on camera, I used just before for some landscape photography. The only way to get at least a documentary shot was to increase ISO to 1000 and leave the lens wide open (f/4). With a little bit of light on the owl’s face and stretched out wing, the photo gives us an idea about the time when the hunting starts for the Shored-eared Owl. They forage mostly at night and the diet consists of mice, voles, moles, shrews, ground squirrels, small rabbits, and muskrats, but they also take small birds and large insects. Open spaces, like grasslands, marches, and prairies are the preferred habitat and the Green Island Wetlands fall certainly into this category.

NATURE CLICKS #391 - SHORT-EARED OWL (FIRST SIGHTING)

Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, @ 600 mm, 1/125 s, f/6.3, ISO 800, photo is cropped,  ------------   

It was about time for me to get back into the Green Island Wetlands this evening. Beside the “regulars”, like Canada Geese, Bald Eagles, American White Pelicans, Sandhill Cranes (10), Mallards, lots of Red-winged Blackbirds, and the Northern Harrier, I watched the first pair of Wood Ducks this year. I also met my photography friend Kevin, who is the one who convinced me to join the Dubuque Camera Club last fall, and we shared our recent observations, discussed locations, and of course photography. As the sun went down and we said good bye, Kevin discovered this owl sitting in the top of a tree at the edge of the wetland area. First I thought it was a Barred Owl. We have them around our house and can hear their distinctive calls every night really close, but since they are mostly active at night we hardly see them and so I’m not so familiar how they look in detail. A closer look into the books at home revealed that this is a Short-eared Owl. The yellow eyes and the black triangle around each eye made that clear. Barred Owls have dark eyes and a different plumage.

This is a first sighting for me and even if the photo is cropped and a little noisy I’m very happy. I rather crop the image and keep a safe distance to an owl instead of moving in and become a threat. The safety and comfort for the bird come always first.