Great Grey Owls
p.1 #1Great Grey Owls
Congratulations to louie champan for winning Feature Thread of the Week with 6 votes - View Previous Winners
Photographing Great Grey Owls in their own wild world is something I’ve dreamed about for years. Last week, I finally spent four days among them — four days of incredible shooting.
It was in the charred hollow of a burned-out tree where I found the nest with one owlet still huddled inside. The other owlet apparently had already fledged and was perched on a fallen log nearby. Above them, the female watched from a high branch, her massive face disk turned toward her chicks. She was constantly emitting soft chitters and gentle clucks, what I took as her communicating with the chicks.
Every couple of hours, the male would appear gliding on its five foot wingspan between the tree trunks with a vole or squirrel clutched in his talons. He’d pass the prey to the female, who would glide down to whichever chick needed feeding. She waited patiently as each owlet swallowed its meal whole, then leaned in to groom them, delicately cleaning their faces with her beak. It was tender, almost ceremonial. Sometimes the chick would lean away, as if embarrassed by all the fussing.
It was an incredible trip, one I won’t forget.
1
ILCE-9M3 FE 300mm F2.8 GM OSS + 2X Teleconverter lens 600mm f/5.6 1/2500s 3200 ISO 0.0 EV
2
ILCE-1M2 FE 300mm F2.8 GM OSS lens 300mm f/5.6 1/1600s 4000 ISO 0.0 EV
3
ILCE-9M3 FE 300mm F2.8 GM OSS + 2X Teleconverter lens 600mm f/5.6 1/2500s 4000 ISO 0.0 EV
4
ILCE-1M2 FE 300mm F2.8 GM OSS lens 300mm f/5.6 1/1600s 1600 ISO +1.0 EV
5
ILCE-1M2 FE 300mm F2.8 GM OSS lens 300mm f/5.6 1/500s 2500 ISO -0.3 EV
6
ILCE-9M3 FE 300mm F2.8 GM OSS lens 300mm f/3.2 1/2500s 1250 ISO 0.0 EV
7
ILCE-9M3 FE 300mm F2.8 GM OSS lens 300mm f/2.8 1/2500s 800 ISO 0.0 EV
Jun 19, 2026 at 11:40 PM
p.1 #2Great Grey Owls
Great stough and experience Louie. I like them all yet the last is a standout
Morris
Morris
Jun 20, 2026 at 05:55 AM
p.1 #3Great Grey Owls
Congrats Louie! Terrific set and great account. The feeding and preening shots are tops, and the last is icing on the cake.
Easy vote.
Eric
Easy vote.
Eric
Jun 20, 2026 at 06:49 AM
p.1 #4Great Grey Owls
These are awesome, Louie! The first two are especially sweet.
They get my vote.
Greg
They get my vote.
Greg
Jun 20, 2026 at 07:43 AM
p.1 #5Great Grey Owls
Louie, I know exactly how you feel !! I'm thrilled with your images, but even happier that you got live out something you wanted and dreamed about. To witness this behavior, for me that's the real prize. Don't get me wrong, I love getting great images. The memories in my mind are priceless. Congratulations on checking this one off the bucket list. You make it easy !! YGMV and admiration.
John
John
Jun 20, 2026 at 08:37 AM
p.1 #6Great Grey Owls
Cool set Louie. Tough shooting in that harsh, contrasty lighting.
Tony
Tony
Jun 20, 2026 at 08:54 AM
p.1 #8Great Grey Owls
Just fantastic Louie ! Bucket list shots for sure.
Gary
Gary
Jun 20, 2026 at 11:08 AM
p.1 #9Great Grey Owls
Louie - Im at a loss for words ! Amazing ! Great Job. Easy Vote !!!
Jun 20, 2026 at 11:21 AM
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p.1 #11Great Grey Owls
Fantastic images. Excellent story. Thanks for posting.
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LB
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LB
Jun 20, 2026 at 02:53 PM
p.1 #12Great Grey Owls
morris wrote:
Great stough and experience Louie. I like them all yet the last is a standout
Morris
Thanks very much Morris, appreciate your commenting, it was quite an experience.
Great stough and experience Louie. I like them all yet the last is a standout
Morris
Thanks very much Morris, appreciate your commenting, it was quite an experience.
Jun 20, 2026 at 06:07 PM
p.1 #13Great Grey Owls
Wonderful images and description, and I can only imagine how incredible the experience was.
If you don't mind sharing, where (generally, not specific) was this?
If you don't mind sharing, where (generally, not specific) was this?
Jun 20, 2026 at 08:12 PM
p.1 #15Great Grey Owls
I am happy for you Louie!
What an experience and opportunity. These are really wonderful images
#7 makes me smile, what a character 
Karl
What an experience and opportunity. These are really wonderful images
#7 makes me smile, what a character Karl
Jun 20, 2026 at 10:17 PM
p.1 #18Great Grey Owls
Erictator wrote:
Congrats Louie! Terrific set and great account. The feeding and preening shots are tops, and the last is icing on the cake.
Easy vote.
Eric
Very much appreciated Eric. For me this was a first and an incredible experience to see and be able to capture some of the action I was witnessing.
Congrats Louie! Terrific set and great account. The feeding and preening shots are tops, and the last is icing on the cake.
Easy vote.
Eric
Very much appreciated Eric. For me this was a first and an incredible experience to see and be able to capture some of the action I was witnessing.
Jun 21, 2026 at 11:15 AM
p.1 #20Great Grey Owls
Amazing Louie! Stellar images and a wonderful story. What beautiful memories are made of. Voted!
Alan
Alan
Jun 21, 2026 at 01:45 PM