Awe for Owl
While mid-winter winds still whistle with cold and blowing snow, owls are some of the first to warm up the season with plans of springtime progeny. In the marshes and deeper woods, a whole lot of hootin’ and hollerin’ happens as calling remains a courtship ritual across most species, even as they claim or defend territories and attract mates. Males will often offer a prospective female fresh kill, not so much a bribe as a testament of hunting ability, in hopes of attracting them to their chosen nesting site, usually a ready-made hollow of a tree, ground depression, or even a building.
Perhaps it’s their privacy or simply the legendary prowess of their night-hunting skills that draw me to the difficulties of capturing them by lens. Part of it too stands in the mystique of their gaze; eyes as yellow as the sun pierce the darkness. An attuned sense of hearing helps them “see” prey in the dark, even as their head defies traditional necks, turning like a carousel. The stealth of silent flights further cast spells of awe for a winged wonder known for wisdom.
While photography is the tool, the craft is curiosity. Drawn to how other species both create and interact as families remains a gift I’m always honored and humbled to witness, let alone capture in frame. The regal qualities of an owl parent, overlooking absolutely adorable owlets, leaves me wondering of the personalities already rapidly developing into moods, expressions, and skills. These start with surviving the nest, as competition for food builds the strongest even while it starves the weakest in leaner years, allowing for survival of those most resourceful and fortunate.
I’m grateful for the honor of documenting the passion I feel for wildlife and all of nature’s splendor in the wider, wilder world. Thanks to clients and fans and friends, I continue to pursue and hone these skills of capturing a world always in motion, ever able to command our awe, another word for involuntary wonder.
Please enjoy this sample of some of these first images of new life in earliest spring, captured thus far from northern Wisconsin to the Twin Cities. I’ll have some printed and framed for our gallery in downtown Hayward, Wisconsin, while more can be found online at www.jamesnetz.com.
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