This evening was overcast, but there was a window of clear sky out to the west. Fortune smiled on me as the setting sun dropped below the clouds – it sent a shaft of golden light into the oak tree and illuminated the bough that was the parent owls’ favourite place for scowling at the world and bringing food to the chicks.

I had put a flashgun on a lighting stand aimed at the bough to illuminate them from the front – they would otherwise have been near silhouettes. With the lighting – both natural and man-made – perfect, the owls and chicks played their part and performed on their usual stage.

The opportunity to photograph these charismatic birds with their offspring lasted a mere four days, from the day they emerged from the nest-hole to the day they left the oak tree for the wider world. I was truly fortunate that those golden sunbeams lit up the bough in the oak tree for one of those days.

Steve Palin is a lucky man. Across the field at the bottom of his garden is this oak tree which is the nesting site for a pair of Little Owls. He has watched life unfold for these engaging little birds with the aid of a scope from his bedroom window, and was kind enough to let me in on the secret.

Back in April, I set up my hide in the field and it wasn’t very long before one of the owls turned up and gave me a big stare. However, that was it. I left with Steve’s promise to let me know when there were owl chicks around. In retrospect, the female must have been about to lay her first egg. Today, Steve has given me the word and sure enough, there are three chicks active around the nest hole.

One of the adults greets me with the big stare again, but they tolerate me and my hide.