Join JPI down in Cape Coral to photograph the Burrowing Owls. Burrowing Owls are small, sandy colored owls with bright-yellow eyes.  They live underground in burrows they've dug themselves or taken over from a prairie dog, ground squirrel, or tortoise. They live in  grasslands, deserts, and other open habitats, where they hunt mainly  insects and rodents. They live there all year round, usually nesting around March. Between April and June, the chicks are born. They soon learn to stick their heads out of their burrows. Hopefully, we will see a  few of these on this trip.

These are fascinating birds and protected by local, state, and federal laws. Harassment of them is strictly forbidden. Please click on the following link for owl etiquette written by Bill Majoros - Maps & Owl Etiquette.  He includes maps to help identify places. More importantly, he also describes the guidelines for photographing and observing the nesting owls. 

Recommended Equipment: 

• D-SLR or Mirrorless Camera 
• A Sturdy Tripod with a Gimbal  (You can increase your workflow in the field when you add a Gimbal to a tripod. )

A  super-telephoto lens - see below for lens recommendations. Getting the most benefit for this event, you need to use a super-telephoto lens. The following are the recommended lenses. 

• Tamron 150-600 G2 for Canon, Nikon or Sony (A-Mount Only) 
• Sigma 150-600 Sport for Nikon or Canon 
• Canon EF 100-400 II USM with a 1.4x Extender. 
• Nikon AFS 200-500 with a 1.4x Extender. 
• Olympus PRO 300 f4 with a 1.4x Extender. 
• Sony Mirrorless 200-600 G Master - with 1.4 Extender. 

You  might be asking, "Do I need that kind of lens power?" The answer is yes. A super-telephoto lens will provide much higher access to these magnificent creatures.  A standard telephoto lens will require you to crop more and therefore eat away at the pixels. Also, normal telephotos, although very good, are just not sharp enough to create a  crisp image of these tiny creatures.

Field Trip Fee – FREE

Meeting Place – Cape Coral Library, 921 SW 39th Terrace, Cape Coral, FL 33914. Call Johnson PhotoImaging at (941) 896-9921 if you have any questions.

Event duration may vary, somewhat, from the designated time - depending on group size and group involvement. The event has an active participation part and expects full interaction with each student. The goal is for everyone to learn, create, and enjoy.