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This is my second choice of the two barred owl photos (see notes on the first). The reason for my preference is primarily the pose—here the owl’s gaze is to the right, and that draws the viewer’s attention to the tree trunk on the right (which in itself is beautiful, incidentally—the textures and color are really nice), and the tree then starts to vie for attention with the owl; it also makes the owl seemed hemmed in in a way the other photo doesn’t. Also, the owl’s head is narrower in profile, and that somehow makes the juxtaposition of the background tree with the owl’s head more problematic. Partly that’s due to the similarity in tone and color—it might be useful to try lightening the background tree a bit to make the owl’s head stand out from it (I’d ordinarily suggest darkening it, but the lower part of the trunk is so light that darkening the top part would make it seem like a different tree). But overall, both photos are really nice—if the other hadn’t been present, I’d be extolling the virtues of this one!

Thank you for this wonderful critique. I can see your points and really appreciate you taking the time to share with me. Thank you so much!

My pleasure, Steve. It's nice to have an excuse to spend some time studying such fine pictures!