This is my first great horned owl photo of any “quality.” I actually do a couple dozen shots of this guy, slowly creeping forward. Then I looked down to change a setting on my camera and he had flown off, so I missed the real “moment.” Photos like this are okay, but what you really need in wildlife photography is action–behavior. Wings wide, eating, etc. Something unique. I don’t do action very well unfortunately, so it’s something I’m really focusing on.
I got amazingly lucky with how close this guy let me get. I wish I had been more patient and not taken my eyes off the bird. I also wish the sky didn’t have to be completely blown outto expose the bird and the branches weren’t running across his face. It’s a learning process though and I was happy to have the encounter.
I suspect good action shots are at least partly due to the luck of the draw — right place, right time, and all that — so you shouldn’t be too down on yourself for not getting so many of them. With the amount of time you’re spending behind the lens, your odds of bagging a winner must be increasing all the time. Now all you need is a chameleon suit… ;)
True that. It’s just a matter of being out there. I haven’t gotten out nearly enough this week. Weather’s really gotten cold and the light’s not been great except for yesterday which was okay.
At the rate of this economy though, I’ll have plenty more time behind the lens before going back to office slavery–er, I mean, gainful employment.