top of page
Writer's pictureWildlifeKate

A Return to the Little Owls….

You may remember that a few months ago, I visited a farm site that friend, Pete Walkden, had been working at. He had discovered there was a family of Little owls there and, after many hours spent building up trust with these great little birds, he started to get some great shots of them.

Yesterday, after a morning spent at the computer, I packed up my camera and headed up to meet Pete at the site. Earlier, both the adult and a youngster had been there, but it was just the adult when I arrived. Staring down at me from its vantage point in the Oak tree, we set up a perch I had brought among. Some years ago, I found this old gate post buried in a nearby hedge. I had kept it for photography and this seemed the perfect chance to use it!

Returning to Pete’s car, which we use as a hide, we waited. The owl was a little suspicious of the new perch and the new visitor, but before long, it came down to investigate. The weather was variable… bright sun one minute then grey, threatening clouds the next. With the sun behind the owl, I took this shot… I rather like it with the swarms of flies in the air…


littleowl_-7934

This little guy is such a character and they are real posers, giving lots of opportunities to get a  shot..


littleowl_-7954

I love the patterned plumage of these owls and, combined with the textures on the perch, I wanted to try some shots in black and white. I processed these in Photoshop to increase the contrast and enhance those lovely textures!


littleowl_-7952

I only had limited time and had to head off to face the traffic hell that was the M42 on a Friday, but this visit has made me want to return again in the near future to watch and photograph this little character again.

You can find out more about booking and contact Pete if you are interested in photographing at this site. I would recommend it… Pete is also good at jacking up your car if you happen to accidentally drive over a bucket on exiting the site, wedging it underneath! Thanks Pete!!!

Comments


bottom of page