Dusk flight - Vincent Munier - Wildlife Photographer of the Year2006

2006: Animal Portraits - Highly Commended

Vincent Munier Enlarge image Dusk flight

Vincent Munier (France)

Dusk flight

'The worse the weather conditions,' says Vincent, 'the closer I feel to snowy owls'. To get this portrait, he sat for hours through wind and freezing snowstorms, snow crystals lashing across the Canadian landscape. Feeling nothing but awe for these birds of prey, he adds, 'their resistance is simply unbelievable'. This male (juveniles and females have dark bars on their plumage) was one Vincent got to know well. At dusk, it would choose the same spot to hunt, close to a farm where it could find plenty of rodent prey. 'You would never believe from the mellow lighting just how cold it was,' says Vincent. 'The fine snow is blown in such a way you could be forgiven for thinking it was the Sahara.'

Nikon D2x with 300mm f2.8 AFS lens; 1/6400 sec at f4; 250 ISO; tripod.