Owl evening at Shuttleworth

[mart_d50]

I'm going there soon as a treat for my wife's 40th. All I know is that the evening will take place in woods looking at owls via torchlight. I am wondering whether to take my camera or whether it's simply going to be too dark to get any useful shots.

I've had zero experience with dark/night wildlife photography and would like to know if anyone has done this before and any useful tips they could give.

my equipment is:
nikon d50
nikon 70-300VR (probably use this lens for the VR)
sigma 105 (might use this because of the f2.8 to give a higher speed)
nikon 18-70 (maybe not)

I was also concerned about use of flash on the owls too, especially at night

thanks in advance

[JeffH]

Hi Mart

When I saw the heading to your thread I presumed you meant the Bird of Prey Centre at Shuttleworth and that you would be talking about seeing/photographing captive birds, in which case no problem with torches or flash.

However, as you mention "...looking at owls via torchlight...in woods..." I take this to mean wild birds, in which case the use of bright torches or flash could be very detrimental to the birds' wellbeing.

I did quite a bit of research on this subject earlier this year and here's an extract from my 'Barn Owl Diary (with photos)' thread which summarises my findings -

"I had contemplated the use of flash with an extender and although flash photography of Owls didn’t appear to raise any concerns during the days of Eric Hosking (one of my bird photographer heroes and renowned for his work with Owls), the current thinking on the subject seems to be that flash should not be used for wild nocturnal birds such as Owls and Nightjars. This is not for fear of causing the birds any permanent eyesight problems but flash does apparently disrupt their ‘dark adaptation’ and can seriously impair their hunting ability for up to an hour – during the short nights of summer and with young mouths to feed, such disruption could be disastrous and, as ever, the welfare of the birds must come first and so I have completely discounted the idea".

In summary, your concern about the use of flash (or even torches) on wild owls at night is well founded.

I hope that helps

Jeff

[mart_d50]

Hi Jeff, I did indeed mean the BOP centre at Shuttleworth and I assume they will be captive birds who would be fed at not at risk like those in the wild, but the information you supplied sounds vital for non-captives.

I was told there would be a flying display by torchlight and a walkabout in the woods looking at owls by torchlight, so I wonder how the captive birds handle this (together with any flashes from cameras) ?

Not to mention how to prepare for photography of owls by torchlight, both still and moving !

Thanks

[LoveT]

Hi Mart

I've done an 'Owls by Torchlight' evening at the Hawk Conservancy Trust in my area. Don't know if it will be the same as where you're going, but the Trust were pretty strict about photography - particularly flash photography at night.

Our torches were used purely to light our way along the paths - our guide took us to appropriate areas where they could use a torch to illuminate an owl while they told us about them.

The woodland flying display was something else - subtly lit, but so that you could see the birds flying - I still get chills thinking about it! They also did a display in the main flying arena, again with subtle lights but so that you could still see what what happening (they also flew one of the birds over our heads in complete darkness - brilliant!!).

It might be worth getting in touch with the place you're going to, to find out what restrictions may be in place. Either way, even if you can't take photos, I hope you enjoy it - I know I did!

Hope this helps.

Thea

[Brocker]

Hi Mart,

There is a way to do this, providing you have the full agreement of the guide who will look after the interests of the birds. It is called 'painting with light'. I have used this to great effect on still life so my guess is that it would work fine with owls. Firstly, set the widest aperature you can with the lens and the exposure to 'bulb'. Whilst the guide is illuminating the owl you could focus the camera. Ensure you use a tripod and a cable release. When the guide has switched off the torch and the owl is in darkness, press the shutter release button and ask him to illuminate the owl again for approx 30 secs after whichyou can close the shutter. This should result in a well lit owl on a dark background. There is an element of skill to this technique and it can take some practice so I would advise having a go onsome still life subjects first, to get a feel. It works particularly well in graveyards where you can get a particularly sppoky image. Anyway, good luck with the 'painting by light' and have a great evening owl watching. . . .

[mart_d50]

thanks for the responses, it sounds fantastic, I will try out this 'painting by light' technique in the garden tonight, and if it turns out I can't use the camera there I will be sure to relax and enjoy the show instead !

cheers

[peterjclarke]

Painting with light is great fun and easy to do with digital as you can see your results instantly. With a black sky at night it's pretty easy as you only have to expose for the light of the torch. I've not painted with light for quite a while and one of my most pleasing shots was just after sunset when there was some ambient light to expose for as well as exposing for the light from the torch. I was still shooting film then so it was a technically difficult shot but nowadays digital has made it much easier.



Peter

[Brocker]

That is a nice shot Peter. You have got the timing spot on. I like the sky in the background too. I may have to get out and have anoter go at it. . .