Short-eared Owl banking in flight

A Short-eared Owl banking in flight from last winter’s Owl Workshops. While I love cloudy, bright conditions for bird photography, there was no shortage of white sky days last winter. Lake Ontario never froze, which meant a lot of lake effect clouds and light snow.

Lake Effect clouds and snow occur when cold air moves across the open waters of the Great Lakes. As the cold air passes over the unfrozen and relatively warm waters of the Great Lakes, warmth and moisture are transferred into the lowest portion of the atmosphere. As the air rises, clouds form and grow into a narrow band that can produce snow, which can be heavy at times.

Short-eared Owl Banking in Flight (Asio flammeus, Hibou des marais, SEOW). From my first Winter Owls Galore workshop that concluded on Friday. Image Copyright ©Christopher Dodds. Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless camera & Sony FE 600mm f/4 G Master OSS Lens with Sony FE 2X Teleconverter @1,200mm ISO 10,000, f/8 @ 1/5,000s Manual exposure.