A Ural Owl chick that had just left the nest was attacked by a crow and fell to the ground. It lacked caution and had an innocent look. It truly looked like a sprite of the woods. At dusk, the area became dark, but thanks to the powerful image stabilization and bright lens, I was able to shoot with minimal noise and without excessively raising the ISO sensitivity. I shot a couple of photos and backed off to a distance that wouldn’t alarm the chick’s parent when it called to fledgling. The chick then climbed a nearby tree. I always endeavor to pay close attention to my surroundings and shoot without bothering birds in the wild.
Kei Sato
Kei SatoJapan
Born in Rumoi, Hokkaido in 1979. Animal photographer and representative of SLASH Photography Studio. Mainly photographs natural landscapes, wild animals, and birds in Hokkaido, providing his photos to companies, nature magazines, and online magazines. Also active as a writer.
Focuses on photographing Ezo Chipmunks and Ezo Northern Pika, and has been climbing and recording the ecosystem of Hokkaido’s Daisetsuzan Volcanic Group for over 10 years.
Ambassador for the alpine brand Millet, and an OMPS (OM SYSTEM Pro Service) member. Main published works include Yama no Engeiya-san - Ezoshimarisu (Ezo Chipmunks, the Gardeners of the Mountains) (Bun-ichi Sogo Shuppan Co., Ltd.), Sato Kei Shashinshu - Himitsu no Zekkei in Hokkaido (Kei Sato Photo Collection - Secret Vistas in Hokkaido) (Kodansha Ltd.), and Nakigoe de Kizuna wo Musubu - Ezonakiusagi (Forming Bonds Through Cries - The Ezo Northern Pika) (Bun-ichi Sogo Shuppan Co., Ltd.).
At high altitudes in Hokkaido’s Daisetsuzan Volcanic Group, there are areas of loose rocks.
The breeze is cold even in summer, making it the perfect habitat for the Ezo Northern Pika,, which prefers cool climates. Ezo Chipmunks and Ezo Stoats also live here, and a variety of wild birds such as the Black woodpecker, Blue-and-white Flycatcher, and Narcissus Flycatcher raise their young in the forest.
Simply seeing these rocky areas is exciting for me, and I wonder what kind of drama awaits.
I choose the OM SYSTEM because it is compact, lightweight, splash & dust proof, and offers high-performance autofocusing thanks to AI Detection AF.
I tend to search for wild animals and birds to photograph in the mountains and village forests, so lighter equipment means I can go further and cut down on travel time.
Unlike humans, wild animals are active even in the rain and snow, out looking for food in poor weather. The splash & dust proof design, which fears no rain, allows me to capture such moments without fail. I love rainy and snowy scenery for being so photogenic.
My forte is photographing animals amongst vast landscapes, so the autofocus allows me to devote myself completely to the composition without worrying about focusing. It’s a powerful tool.
M.Zuiko Digital ED 50-200mm F2.8 IS PRO
We define. We don’t follow.