Steve Greer Photography

Great Horned Owls at the nest

Recently I had the good fortune to photography a family of great horned owls at the nest.  Over a 26 day period, from when the chicks were tiny little balls of fluff until the young fledged from the nest, I witnessed some amazing intimate behavior one can only experience if you put in the time.

I used a permanent camouflaged blind that I crawled into everyday.  And even though I used a long Lens, these owls knew I was there – there eyesight is 30x more sensitive than humans.   

I would come to the blind everyday at 1-2pm.  Because they’re nocturnal, they were still deep in the cavity, mostly sleeping.  They would eye me suspiciously when I came, but once I was in the blind, they would tolerate me, and within an hour I was accepted and perceived as not a threat.  I would only leave the blind until it was completely dark – of course that was based on what my own optical nerve could perceive.  The consistency of this routine, regardless of weather, I was totally accepted. 

This photo was taken using a 600mm lens with a 2x teleconverter. It’s about 6:30pm when the owlets would generally start to wake up, preen, and stretch, in anticipation of their evening dinner. There is a third owlet tucked away behind it’s siblings.  At this point the young are about four and a half weeks old.

Ken Kaufman’s book “Lives of North American Birds”   has the Great Horned Owls first year mortality rate high; adult annual survival 45-90%   Considering the abundant food source the parents came home with every night, mostly rabbits, all the owlets fledged successfully and I’m hopeful they will improve this statistic a little.

For more images of my time with the owls visit my website

Male Eastern Bluebird in spring plumage

For anyone who has ever wanted to photograph blue birds up-close and personal, here’s your chance to experience and take pictures of these amazing songbirds during courtship and while they raise their chicks.

In a controlled setting, photographers are offered predicable views of wild bluebirds landing, perching, and flying within a suitable photographic range.

The logistics of setting up user-friendly, stand-up blinds, and prearranged photo props have been created to assure maximum shooting opportunities during the bluebirds breakfast rush.

In addition, a miniature low-light video camera with a highly sensitive microphone is mounted inside their nearby nest box.  With real time video, this is a opportunity to witness the rarely recorded movements and sounds of these songbirds as they raise their family.
Please check out last year’s bluebird video highlights on my blog.

After the bluebird’s breakfast is over, participants are invited to photograph the flowers and butterflies in the bluebird wildflower meadow.  Time allowing, students will have the opportunity to view their morning results and critiqued on a computer monitor.

This daily workshop is a one on one experience with your instructor, with personal attention paid to the student’s particular skill level and interests.

Because the bluebird’s courtship rituals and nesting cycle are weather dependent, the workshop dates will be flexible.  Every effort will be made to ensure reservations are kept.  In the event of a rain date, participants will select the next available opening.

Dates:              Bluebird Courtship          April 22 – May 1, 2012

Bluebird Nesting Cycle   May 19 – 30, 2012

Time: 6:30am to 11:30am

Experience: Basic understanding of camera functions.

Suggested Equipment:  Tripod, any type of camera, any standard lens from 16 to 100mm, a macro lens, and a medium telephoto lens – in the 100 to 400mm range.

Class Size: 1

Cost: $160.00

Location:  Lumberton, New Jersey

Registration is on a first come first serve basis.  Please email your requested date.

Providing availability, you will be sent a confirmation via email.  If your desired date is taken, then you will be notified, describing the available dates remaining.

I’d like to invite you to share in the adventures of a pair of Eastern Bluebirds as they raised their family in a nest box in Lumberton – see the following posts.

Inside the nest box is a miniature low-light video camera.   There are also highly sensitive microphones inside the nest box to record rarely heard sounds.   Below I have a  “Bluebird Video Highlights”  reel, where you can click on videos to see a summary of the day’s events, from hatching all the way to making their  first leap into a new world.

Rest assured that all the pictures and sounds were obtained through “bluebird friendly” methods.

Happy viewing

With more encouraging chirps from the adults, the three remaining chicks successfully flew from the nest this morning, joining the rest of their family where the forest meets the meadow.  Sometimes I see one or two of them through the trees, watching their parents hunt for insects.  Mostly, I hear them, still chirping their plaintive calls, begging for food.  The parents will continue to feed them until they are about 30 days old.

After 21 days of witnessing devoted parental care, editing over 300 hours of recorded video, and now listening to the melody of new bluebirds in the forest, the empty nest syndrome begins.

This is the morning of day 20.  The female is calling to the chicks almost constantly, encouraging them to leave the security of the nest and enter a new world of challenges and triumphs. They listened.

After much jostling about, the first nestling pushed off at 6:00am, arched down toward the ground, then climbed slowly into the air, landing clumsily on to a tree branch at the edge of the deciduous forest – whew!  The male flew behind the chick, and landed just above it on another branch. The second youngster did the same at 7:15am, only flying precariously low through the tall meadow grass and managing to swoop up and grab a hold of a low hanging branch.