Hunt for My First Owl Photo

Growing up, I wasn’t always into nature and photography like I am today. However, one thing about this world that has always fascinated me is owls. How an owl can fly silently, or just how difficult they can be to spot, is something that intrigued me from a young age. When I got into photography and wildlife almost ten years ago, the one thing I wanted to photograph more than anything was an owl, I just never knew how hard that task was going to be.

In all the years I have been out exploring, I have come across many different types of wildlife, from deer to raccoons, or butterflies to sandhill cranes, I have felt very fortunate to see everything I have, and most of the time get a good photo of them. But when it came to the owl, not only did it seem like I would never get a photo of one out in the wild, but it was also starting to seem like I would never even see one.

It took five years of going out in the early hours of the morning, almost weekly, in the woods before I even spotted one, and of course, it came when I wasn’t looking or ready. See, I used to work for the local park system and part of that job included driving the trails to make sure there were no fallen trees or just that the path was clear in general. It was an early morning start, and I was tasked with driving this particular trail that I had driven dozens of times at that point, so I wasn’t expecting anything of the ordinary. I turned onto the trail and after about 15 minutes I drove around this bend and out of the corner of my eye I saw, what I thought was a bird at first, swoop out of the treetops and down the path. As soon as my eyes focused on it more, I instantly knew this was no bird I had ever seen before and recognized it as an owl. However, because I was at work I did not have my camera, and I was also in a loud four-by-four so I couldn’t get close before it flew away again. I quickly turned off the ATV, hopped out, and began slowly walking down the path in the direction the owl took off in, but sadly I never saw it again. While I was bummed I never got a photo, I was ecstatic that I had seen my first owl and knew that I would have more opportunities in the future to capture my long-awaited owl photo.

It would take another four years to see my next owl after that first encounter, and this time I would be ready. No longer working for the parks, I had to get up early on the weekends and walk the trails if I wanted to capture a photo of an owl, always keeping an eye looking up at the trees. I was at Carver Park Reserve in Minnesota and had just walked over there floating dock. At the edge of the woods was a bunny that I tried to photograph but as I was bringing my camera up to my face it darted into the woods. I had my camera ready, so I followed it along the path, but never got a photo, it was too quick and ran deep into the woods. As I was about to put my camera back in the holder, I scanned the trees and couldn’t believe what I saw, something I had only seen once, was flying right toward me.

This beautiful bird, which I knew was an owl, flew from a faraway tree and landed on a high branch of a tree along the edge of the trail. Not only was it in view of me, but this time I was completely ready for it. I had my camera, and it was out and ready to capture something I had been wanting for nine years. I pointed my camera up at it, expecting it to fly away at any second and got the photo, a gorgeous Barred Owl looking right at me through the full canopy of leaves of middle summer (see below). As I snapped this photo, I looked at the back of my camera, on the display screen, and started to tear up. I couldn’t control it, it was something I had wanted for so long, and never dreamed it would turn out so perfect. The leaves cleared away as incredibly as they could so that the owl was almost framed perfectly by them, you could see straight to the owl, and it was looking directly at me. What I wanted so badly finally came and it was better than I ever expected it to be.

Barred Owl sitting on a branch in Carver Park Reserve, MN

I took a couple more photos while the owl was in that position, but nothing compared to that first photo I snapped. It was everything I ever wanted in that photo, and I just could not believe it was letting me take more photos. Eventually I saw it was getting ready to fly on, stretching out its wings, and I was okay with that. Though it did begin to fly, it was flying away from me, just to another branch directly over the trail. One where I could get another photo (see below) and I just could not imagine it stayed so close. Yes, it still was not a completely obstructed free view, but it was more clear than ever and stayed there long enough for me to snap a few more pictures. I, again, started to tear up at the beauty of this owl. It did not seem scared or afraid of me at all, to me it seemed curious, trying to get a better view of me, and in turn, I got a better view of it. I slowly sat down on the trail and just stayed still while we looked at one another for a couple of minutes, I did not want to take any more photos but instead, enjoy this moment. I wasn’t sure when I was going to get another opportunity like this and wanted to really appreciate what was happening. Then, like it did before, it stretched out its wings and I got a feeling it was going to fly far away this time. Only it didn’t.

The second time it moved positions I was not sure where it was going to land, I was contempt with the experience and moment we shared, I would not have been upset in the slightest if it had just flown deep into the woods. However, the owl had a different idea. It flew to another branch directly in front of me and let me see it in all its beauty and I got my favorite photograph I have ever taken (see below). It landed in an unobstructed view and again continued to stare right at me, curious to see what I was doing. I quickly snapped a few more pictures but after I saw my favorite one on the back of the display, I decided to put my camera away for good and just enjoy what this owl was giving me. I sat there for a few minutes, just us looking at each other. It was just after five in the morning and no one else was on the trails yet, it was just the owl and myself, and it did not seem like the owl was in any rush to fly away.

After about 10 minutes of sitting on the dirt trail with the owl in clear view of me, I was happier than I ever knew I could be exploring. The owl seemed to be happy where it was, so I decided to let it be and, although hard, turned and continued down the path. My mission was complete, and I did not need to take any more photos or be in its home any longer. As I began walking away, I looked back one last time, the owl still staring at me, and thanked it. Thanked it for not only letting me get the one photo I had been chasing but also allowing me to soak in the moment. I did not have to rush anything, I did not spook it, it was as curious about me as I was it. We shared that moment together, and I will always be grateful to experience that.

It may have taken nine years to get the photo I had been dreaming about since I got my first camera, but the experience that came along with it made it completely worth it. I was not surrounded by a bunch of other photographers capturing it or had to rush to only get one unfocused image. It was just the owl and me, for close to 30 minutes, sitting and staring at each other. It even flew a couple of times to get a clearer view for me and maybe for itself to check out what I was doing, either way, it was magical.

I have only seen one other owl since that moment and that was on my drive into work one day so no photos were taken, but now I have three moments of seeing an owl, and one that was more incredible than any other wildlife moment I have ever had. I will always cherish the photos I got in that moment, but more than that, I will always be thankful to that owl for giving me that experience. To sit and watch a wild animal for that long is already unusual, but an owl, something I wanted for so long, made it even more special and fulfilling. The “hunt” for my first owl photo is over, and now the hunt for my second can begin.

Wildlife Photography IS Frustrating