If you ever wondered what a penguin’s eye looks like, this is the post for you. The subject is a baby king penguin and it obviously let me get very close. It’s not a macro shot, however, but rather was taken with my telephoto lens from about ten feet away and then cropped. It’s always nice to have willing subjects and be able to experiment with different angles and points of view.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/8 at 1/500th of a second
Here’s another one from Yellowstone — a mother bighorn with her lamb. For most of the year, the males live in bachelor herds at higher elevations while the females can be found down below with the young. It’s only during breeding season that the rams and ewes get together. We came across several large herds of females and young on this recent trip, very habituated to our presence and going about their business as if we weren’t there.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 2000, f/4 at 1/320th of a second
The kob is a national symbol in Uganda, appearing on the coat of arms opposite a crested crane, the national bird. Kobs, which occur throughout sub-Sahara Africa, resemble impala, but are beefier. The males have impressive horns, although this young male hadn’t quite developed his yet. He was relaxing in tall grass but kind of looked like he was burrowing in the ground.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/160th of a second
One of the nice things about going to Yellowstone with people that hadn’t been there before was revisiting all the great landscape features of the park. Usually, I just head straight for the wildlife and drive right past the geothermal highlights. Both of these shots were taken at Mammoth Hot Springs, where travertine terraces of calcium carbonate dominate a large hill at the northwest entrance to the park. It almost looks like winter, although there was not yet any snow on the ground. The top shot was taken below the terraces while the second shot was taken from above.
Top photo — Nikon D800 with Sigma 15mm fisheye lens, ISO 400, f/22 at 1/100th of a second
Bottom photo — Nikon D800 with Sigma 15mm fisheye lens, ISO 400, f/8 at 1/500th of a second
Many consider the leopard the most attractive of all the big cats. Hard to argue with this young female. We saw her a few times in our six days in northern Botswana on our honeymoon trip two years ago. This shot was taken about twenty minutes before she dropped from the tree onto a grazing impala below.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 360mm) ISO 800, f/5.6 at 1/500th of a second
It’s been quite a few years since I posted a capybara, the world’s largest rodent. I was on a boat in the Pantanal of Brazil when I photographed this mother and her two babies (apparently there is no special name for a baby capybara). The little guy in the foreground was having a nice stretch after napping on the shore while mom kept an eye out for jaguars.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (with 1.4 teleconverter attached for 550mm) ISO 800, f/8 at 1/1000th of a second
Here’s another one from Yellowstone. This was the only night (or morning) that we had clouds in the sky and therefore any substantial color. These three pronghorn cooperated by running through the scene. I said this in previous posts about pronghorn, but it bears repeating — they are the fastest land animal over long distances (and only slightly slower than a cheetah in a sprint, at 60 miles per hour versus 61 miles per hour).
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 130mm) ISO 800, f/5.6 at 1/60th of a second
It’s my Aunt Sue-on-my-wife’s-side’s birthday today. So this mountain bluebird goes out to her. There are three species of bluebird — the mountain, the western and eastern (the eastern are the ones you see in Florida with the rust colored breast). The mountain lacks the rust, but is just as striking with it’s bright blue feathers. I photographed this one in the Mammoth Terrace area of Yellowstone last week.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/8000th of a second
Figured I’d post another double shot from the Yellowstone trip last week. Today, it’s a bull elk doing his bull elky thing. The first shot displays his impressive rack and rutting posture as he chases members of his harem around. In the second shot, the same elk is bugling — the term used for the bull’s call as he tries to attract a willing cow. Elk, like all deer, have antlers that they shed every year. With each growing season, the rack gets increasingly larger before being shed. In Yellowstone, elk usually “drop” in fall or early winter. The size of this guy’s rack indicates that he’s been around for awhile.
Top photo — Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 340mm) ISO 1600, f/4 at 1/400th of a second
Bottom photo — Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 1600, f/4 at 1/250th of a second
Here are two shots of one of the black bears we met last week in Yellowstone. Based on body size, as well as the length and shape of the ears, I think this is a female. She was causing quite a “bear jam” as a crowd of people were watching her go about her business of eating berries along the side of the road. We also saw a few grizzly bears, but none close enough for photos.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 2000, f/4 at 1/500th of a second (bottom photo 1/400th of a second)