Story Behind The Lens: Capturing the Unexpected
My Brush with a Great-Horned Owl
Hello everyone, I hope you’re all well.
I wanted to share my first wild owl encounter with all of you.
It was April 1st, of all days, 2024. I was still very new in my wildlife photography pursuit and had headed out around 5:30 PM to hike around my local area. I had brought my camera with me, just in case I saw anything interesting, and I am very glad that I did!
To my surprise, roughly 20 minutes after entering the forest, I noticed a new shape among the branches of some trees. At first, I thought, “There is no way it's an owl,” but as I moved to get a better look through the various branches in the undergrowth, there it was—a Great-Horned Owl sitting among the branches, seemingly unaware of my presence.
I slowly knelt down to provide less of a shape for the owl to focus on and to gain a bit more stability as I did not have a tripod with me. Although the owl was obscured by quite a few branches, I managed to get a few quick shots. I assume it was the sound of the shutter, but this was when the owl turned its focus to me, staring at me briefly before returning to whatever it was doing previously. I sat there for a few moments, enjoying the sight through my lens. I thought about switching my camera to video mode to capture some quick footage, but before I could do so, some nearby Crows noticed the Owl as well.
Crows will mob predators in their territory to lower the risk of predation, which also serves as a potential way to spot owls when you’re out—by listening to the crows. Once the mobbing began, the Owl quickly relented and began flying away.
I continued my hike for the next hour, but during that time, all I could hear was the sound of the Crows mobbing the Owl as they chased it around the area. Every once in a while, I would catch a glimpse of this aerial spectacle through the treeline as I made my way through the woods.
Although a short encounter, I am extremely thankful for it and for the fact I was able to come away with a photograph.
Until the next post!
-Greg