Style1½ inches thick (3.75 cm) Product Details Artist grade canvas, archival inks, wooden stretcher bars, and UVB protective coating
AvailablityUsually ships within five business days. ArtistEd Bonkowski Platinum Member CollectionAnimals
Description This photo was taken on Wednesday 12-16-2009, at 1729 hours on Highway 79 and East Cottonwood Canyon Road, in Pinal County, Arizona. This location is about five miles South of where East US 60 and Florence Junction meet. I was on my way home from work traveling Northbound when I spotted him half way up a tree. I turned around and noticed him flying away. Not away enough to lose track, for I watched him land about 30 yards away on top of a wire fence. The rusted fence and busy tree area made for a nice shot. I already had my Nikon D-700 (Full Frame) D-SLR set up and ready to shoot in Manual Mode. I had the settings at (14) Bit RAW, ISO 2000, F 2.8, Shutter Speed of 1/125, Auto White Balance (0000 Degrees Kelvin), Spot Metering and Spot Continuous Auto Focus, with a 70-200mm F2.8 IF ED G Lens. I took about eight shots before he turned and looked at me. The sunset light was perfect because it was still about ten feet away from his location. Usually at this time of the evening, in this area, the shadows would be dominant, but I (we) were running a little early going home which worked out nicely. I photographed an Owl about a week earlier during a sunrise, which I believed this Owl was the same animal.I opened up the photograph in CS3 RAW, increased the Exposure Value (EV) to +1.10, customized the White Balance (WB) from 5300 to 5650 Degrees Kelvin for a slightly better feel, and applied 100% Noise Reduction (Luminance). I opened the file and applied some Levels (15 / 1.00 / 245), Curves (Output of 128 and an Input of 139), made a Quick Mask of the Owl alone using a brush tool and applied another Levels adjustment (00 / 1.00 / 255). I Saturated the entire photo to +10, slightly Dodged the white feathers and face area of the Owl. For my purposes, I sharpened the photo with a Highpass setting of 1.2 and made a layer mask to erase this sharpening from the background. (As we all know, when I send this photo to Arizona Highways for review, no sharpe
Ed Bonkowski, Mesa Member Since September 2008 Artist Statement The duality of my life is intimately expressed through my photography. As a nineteen year veteran in the State of Arizona, I create a balance through constant and vigilant service to the community with my photography. Seeing the world through my lens, creates a captivating display of natures most treasured gifts and the choices we all can make to view our lives and it’s surroundings in this beautiful, original way. My spiritual conviction is nurtured by recognizing, “life is but a fleeting moment and when I am able to capture just a little bit with my mind's eye through the lens of my camera; share it’s striking beauty with the world, I am truly doing my job as a human being.”
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Catalog Details Product No 2779415 Subjects Style Medium TagsBonkowski, Ed