I dreamt of this moment and pictured it in my mind before any owl had ever visited this building. This year my vision came true, with a pair of fabulous barn owls moving in. I managed this shot after many many evenings of just watching them from a poorly constructed hide made from an old bit of camo. mesh and some sticks, whilst I lay in the long grass. They nearly always emerged when the light was too poor to photograph them (just as much fun to watch them hunt anyway😊). This picture I managed in failing light (but not terrible this time) by opening up the aperture to its max f2.8 and full focal length of 200mm...my personal favourite photo of the year (if not ever) and brings back some fab. memories.

The Barn Owl was given it’s scientific name –Tyto alba – in 1769, by G.A. Scopoli an Italian doctor and naturalist (1723 – 1788). Tyto alba literally means “white owl”, from the Latin word for white: alba and the Ancient Greek onomatopoeic name for an owl: tyto or τυτο.