Arctic Spirit 1

Snowy Owls breed in the empty spaces of the high Arctic, and normally spend the winter way up north. During the winter of 1996-7 thousands of snowy owls moved down to the northern tier of states, desperately in search of food. I photographed this beautiful bird right at the end of the day along the Washington coast. It had just awakened from resting during the day and was starting to hunt for ducks as the low-angle sun emerged from the clouds. Of the hundreds of photographs I took during three days, this is among my favorites because of the crisp, clear light on the bird. It is a magic reminder of a photographic experience so rare that I will probably never be able to repeat it.

Lee Rentz