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ふくろうのストレスにならないように、見たり写真を撮ったりするのは午後6時までにしています。 NHK
So as not to cause stress to the owls it has been decided that viewing and taking pictures will be until 6 o'clock.

Not even certain I've translated this correctly. It feels like there is something missing. To my non-native brain, at least, it seems like it's lacking a potential form or some kind of expression of 'only'. Maybe 見たり写真を撮ったりできるのは6時までにしています.

I'd really like to add an 'only' as well: 見たり写真を撮ったりできるのは6時だけまでにしています. But then I started to wonder whether it should be までだけ or だけまで or whether they are both unnatural.

Could you please comment on the naturalness of all these variations of the sentence?

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The translation is correct. (Just in case, にしています means (we) have made it a rule that..)

Regarding only until 6 o'clock, it follows the basic rule of 'reversing'. That is, Japanese uses post-positions which reverses the English prepositions. So までだけ is the correct one. (If until only works in English, forget the explanation.)

Regarding できる, it sounds natural when it is talking about the speaker allowing someone to take pictures, e.g. in case of a zoo. Here it seems to refer to their own taking pictures, so 撮ったりする is correct. Note if it says that they can't take picture because it gets dark, then 見たり写真を撮ったりできるのは6時までです is correct.

Nothing should be technically wrong about 6時までだけにしています, but I feel 6 o'clock may be rather too usual to use only. Possibly it is early for owls, in which case using までだけ is fair.

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  • Thanks. I had assumed that the sentence referred to the shrine authorities allowing tourists to take pictures. What is it that makes it clear they are talking about themselves? In English, "only until" would be much more common. I can't decide whether "until only" sounds much more formal or just plain weird.
    – user3856370
    Commented May 20, 2022 at 14:36
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    @user3856370 I see you are right. But still here it is something request-basis, and they do not own the owls themselves, so 撮ったりする would be more natural. Using "撮ったりできるのは..にしています = making it a rule that shooting is possible only until ..," sounds the shrine has the complete authority to the matter. E.g. if they close the gate (which usually doesn't exist in small shrines), 撮ったりできる may be possible.
    – sundowner
    Commented May 20, 2022 at 23:02

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