Night owl

The great grey owl is indeed a night hawk, a nocturnal bird of prey. Photography has the means of deceiving the viewer. It allows a similar deception to the word game, where you have to answer really quickly: “What colour are refrigerators?” Answer: “White.” Next question in quick succession: “What do cows drink?” Most people answer to that question: “Milk!” The correct answer is of course that cows drink water, but the created association between the white colour of a refrigerator and the white drink associated with cows is so strong that in most cases brings up the wrong answer.

This photograph of a Great Grey Owl is a similar deception, but instead of playing tricks with hearing, it betrays our vision. A sight of a night predator and a glowing celestial body will lead us to think that this is a photo of an owl hunting on a full moon night. Actually it is a deliberately underexposed photo of an owl basking in an afternoon sunshine.