Forest Cuteness

My neighbor, friend, and photo-mentor Cheri is a great resource when it comes to photographing wildlife.  Over the many years as a photographer she's gathered a ton of information on the local birds in our area.  I've been the lucky beneficiary of her vast experience.

Who-o's there?

Recently Cheri discovered how to find and photograph the elusive pygmy owl.  This tiny raptor, the size of a large potato, lives on the edge of forest clear cuts in the Oregon Coast Range.  After seeing the fabulous images Cheri captured of this adorable bird, I asked to accompany her on the next owl hunting trip.

Adorable little raptor

Wildlife photography requires lots of patience.  There's never a guarantee of successfully spotting the critters you're seeking.  After the first attempt netted us exactly zero owls, Cheri took a solo trip to another spot, where she had better luck.  So she offered a second invitation to myself and another photography friend.

Those eyes!

This time after a couple hours in the forest, Cheri found her prey.  A tiny pygmy owl landed nearby and was nice enough to pose on a low tree branch for our eager cameras.

Stare down

Not knowing how long this little guy would hang around, I quickly focused and shot away.  I loved the owl's large, yellow eyes.  Surprisingly, it had a very expressive face.

"OK ladies, cool it with the photos!"

The owl flew from tree to tree for several minutes, so I was able to get several images of him (or her?) against different backdrops.  But eventually the little raptor tired of our photographic attention and decided to escape the paparazzi.  

"I'm outta here!"

I really don't know how I managed it, but was lucky enough to get one fairly clear image of the pygmy owl as he flew away.  I didn't even realize what I'd captured until reviewing my photos afterwards.  I had my camera set on high speed continuous drive and it happened to record the owl as it took flight. (I continue to be impressed by the functions of my Canon R6 camera, especially the animal eye detection feature.)  The moral of the story - just keep clicking your shutter so you don't miss anything.

Thanks Cheri for graciously sharing your knowledge with this very amateur wildlife photographer!