Buffalo in Yellowstone

[Terri French]

We decided to take a drive up to Yellowstone National Park today. We actually saw lots of buffalo, two black bears mating, two grizzlies (a mom and her cub), elk, a coyote, big horn sheep, and mountain goats. We had a great time. The bears were too far away for me to get good photos of. But, we enjoyed seeing lots of buffalo close to the car today. I am very leery of the buffalo so the photos were either taken from inside the car or from behind the car.

Early this morning they had frost on their upper bodies. The little calves were very new. Both still had umbilical cords hanging and were not very stable with their walking.

Because I need to use lightweight gear now, I let Greg use my D610 and the Tamron 150-600. I used my little D5600 with the 70-300 F4.5-6.3 DX with VR. I got that lens at Christmas time and this was really my first outing with it. It worked quite well. I'm still trying to figure out a telephoto option for my Z6. This combination I used today, even though not the best gear out there, still allowed me to enjoy photography, so I am happy about that.

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[Jeff1]

Sounds like you had a fun day. Nice pics of the buffalo. There is a family that lives about a half mile from me that raises them. I’ve never seen any wild ones. Jeff

 

[Randy]

terrific shots Terri, you are very fortunate to live so close
IQ from that combo looks pretty good especially considering the weight

 

[Allan]

Superb images. I always like parents with their young ones. How close were you on 7? Have you tried the 70-300 on the z6?

 

[Bohdan]

looks like a great family outing. You were wise to be wary of their presence. Too often we hear of photographers taking chances by getting so close that they intrude On an animal's privacy and endanger their own safety

 

[Terri French]

Sounds like you had a fun day. Nice pics of the buffalo. There is a family that lives about a half mile from me that raises them. I’ve never seen any wild ones. Jeff

They are such big, powerful animals. Those ones being raised by your neighbors probably have a pretty easy life compared to these wild ones living in such a harsh environment. The grass is barely coming up. I don’t know how they get enough calories.

 

[Terri French]

terrific shots Terri, you are very fortunate to live so close
IQ from that combo looks pretty good especially considering the weight

It is fun to live close, although we never go there in the summer. Some of the parking lots were full yesterday when there were hardly any people there. I had very low expectations when I bought the D5600. But it came highly recommended by a forum mate who was getting some great results with it. It has exceeded my expectations. I love the Z6 much more but haven’t decided on a telephoto option for it yet. The crop factor of the D5600 gives it such an advantage. But it sure has a small viewfinder.

 

[bsinc1962]

Nice shots Terri. I'm going to head over next weekend.

 

[Terri French]

Superb images. I always like parents with their young ones. How close were you on 7? Have you tried the 70-300 on the z6?

Those baby buffalo were so wobbly. They must have been very new. It was fun to see them, although I don’t think they are very cute baby animals....not like the little chicks you are watching! The 70-300 that I own is the small, very plastic DX version. I’m thinking of getting the FX version, but haven’t decided yet. It was nice yesterday, having a wide angle lens on my Z6 and the telephoto on the D5600. I was ready for everything! We were mostly just in the car and shooting by the side of the road. I was probably about 20 feet or so away from the one in No. 7. I took it through the car window. It was just relaxing, chewing it’s cud and didn’t seem to mind me.

 

[Terri French]

Nice shots Terri. I'm going to head over next weekend.

Hope you don’t have that cold wind that we had yesterday! The crowds were light so it was nice. We are going back the first weekend in June, camping in West with the grandkids. I’m afraid it will be crazy there by then. I can’t wait to see your photos. The black bear pair we were watching were putting on quite a show and drew a big crowd. I just didn’t have the gear for photographing them. But it was fun just being there.

 

[Palouse]

Some of the best bison shots out there! Not many are from this time of the year. The frost sure looks cool on the bison. Nice stuff Terri.

 

[Terri French]

Some of the best bison shots out there! Not many are from this time of the year. The frost sure looks cool on the bison. Nice stuff Terri.

Thanks, Nick. Seeing the frost made it worth getting up at 4:30 a.m. to get there early!

 

[drr1531]

Really a nice set, Terri. Great content and details. The frost on their back shows you how well insulated they are. And the ribs showing tell the story of a tough winter. Well done.

 

[Terri French]

Really a nice set, Terri. Great content and details. The frost on their back shows you how well insulated they are. And the ribs showing tell the story of a tough winter. Well done.

Yes, that poor mama with the ribs showing and the new calf was lagging behind the others in her group.

 

[rick_reno]

Those are fantastic shots Terri. Did you enter the park from the Teton entrance north of Jackson? Wondering if that road is open.

 

[Terri French]

Those are fantastic shots Terri. Did you enter the park from the Teton entrance north of Jackson? Wondering if that road is open.

No, we went through West Yellowstone. According to the NPS.gov site, it isn't open yet. It said that if things go well it will open on May 10.

 

[Terri French]

looks like a great family outing. You were wise to be wary of their presence. Too often we hear of photographers taking chances by getting so close that they intrude On an animal's privacy and endanger their own safety

We went on a snow coach ride once and a couple of the tourists asked if they could open the window and pet the Buffalo we were passing. Some people have no common sense!

 

[Palouse]

We went on a snow coach ride once and a couple of the tourists asked if they could open the window and pet the Buffalo we were passing. Some people have no common sense!

 

[480sparky]

A nice set of images.

Too bad they're of bison, not buffaloes.

 

[Minuteman3]

Terrific set ... several of these would look marvelous printed large and hung over a fireplace!!

Well done!!

Ken