Nikon D200 Soup | Bull Elk Resting

9/22/2021 Nikon D200 Soup | Bull Elk Resting

Nikon D200 Soup | Bull Elk Resting   In the fall, the grass turns a bit brown.  This bill elk appears to be taking a break; resting up for rut season.  To learn more about elk, see Elk | a 7 Image Story.

The Back Story   Simple click.   Note: I post an image everyday at hankconrad.com.

Details…

EventDay in Yellowstone
LocationYellowstone NP
Date/Time9/25/2008  5:07pm Local Time
WeatherFair Skies | 63°F | Light Winds
MethodSimple click.
GearNikon D200 with an AF 80-400mm f4.5-5.6D ED VR lens
Exposure
400mm (600mm)  f/5.6  1/30s  0ev  100iso
Post

Fine Art Portfolio | Elk Bugling

Fine Art Portfolio | Elk Bugling

Fine Art Portfolio | Elk Bugling   Fall in Yellowstone can be majestic with the Bull Elks bugling during their mating season.  It’s truly the call of the wild.  The unique, distinctive sound of an Elk bugling can be heard for miles.  This Bull Elk had gathered a rather large harem around him.  The Elk are in their best condition in the fall; ready for the coming winter.  Harsh winters at Yellowstone can also provide some interesting images.  Normally, black & white wildlife images just don’t work for me.  Color just seems more natural to me.  However, this image really captures the spirit of rut season in Yellowstone for this ionic animal.

The Back Story  This Elk was far from the road and on the other side of a long grassy field close to the Madison River.  We had to hike a good half a mile through tall grass and some tree stands without alarming this Elk as well as numerous elk around him.  The D200, a DX camera with a 1.5 crop factor, makes a 400mm lens an effective 600mm lens.  Even with the long reach of the lens, the hike had to be slow and cautious.  As a wildlife photographer, I try hard not to disturb the wildlife.  Also, Elk an be aggressive animals; even dangerous, year-round.  Males get even more aggressive in the fall during rut.  Finally, after finding a location close to a stand of trees, I setup my tripod for numerous clicks.   See Elk | a 7 Image Story for more Elk information and images.  For more images and information about Yellowstone, see Yellowstone NP Wild | a 7 Image Story.

Details…

EventA Fall Day Trip to Yellowstone NP
LocationYellowstone NP along the Madison River
Date/Time9/24/2008  5:43 pm Local Time
WeatherPartly Cloudy  |  58°F  |  Light Winds
MethodPark in a turnoff area, hike closer to the Elk herd, setup tripod, clicks.
GearNikon D200 with 80-400mm lens, tripod

Yellowstone NP Wild | Elk Cow & Calf

Yellowstone NP Wild | Elk Cow & Calf

Yellowstone NP Wild | Elk Cow & Calf   Yellowstone is all about its wildlife.  It’s hard to miss the affection this mom Elk has for her baby; well her bigger baby now.  Yellowstone has thousands of wildlife stories every day.  It’s a real privilege to witness just one of those stores.  For the whole story with all images, see Yellowstone NP Wild | a 7 Image Story.

Yellowstone NP Wild | a 7 Image Story

Yellowstone NP Wild | American BisonYellowstone NP Wild | a 7 Image Story  Wild describes the essence of Yellowstone.  It’s a vast wild place providing habitat where Bison, Wolf, Elk, Coyote, Pronghorn, and Bighorn Sheep as well as Bald Eagle and Raven call home.  Life’s survival in wild Yellowstone is always challenging with winter being the hardest.  Yellowstone is a land of fire and ice while beautiful and harshly wild.  Yellowstone’s habitat is also beautiful scenery no matter what time of year.  It contains contains 45 named waterfalls and hundreds of unnamed waterfalls.  It’s not known for its rock formations, but it does have a few nice ones.  Yellowstone’s thermal features keep the rivers from freezing in the winter and provide unique beauty year around.

American Bison   This Bison image comes from Lamar Valley on a cold February afternoon.  Notice his heavy winter coat to protect him from Yellowstone’s hard, long winter.  Bison are year round grazers requiring water every day.  They eat primarily grasses, but will also eat flowering plants, lichens, and woody plant leaves.  In the winter, they sweep their heads from side to side to clear the snow.  Bison lose so much weight from fall to spring just trying to survive the Yellowstone Winter, over nine percent of adult bison die during the winter.

The American Bison, also call Bison Bison, is our National Mammal and symbolic of the Great Plains.  It’s largest land animal in North America.  At one time millions roamed in herds across the grasslands of The Great American Prairie.  A mature Bison stands 5-6 feet tall weighing 1,800 to 2,400 pounds. They can reach speeds of 30 miles per hour.  Just like much of the Great American Prairie has gone the way of the plow; so most of the Bison have gone. Today, small herds are live in Canada and the USA; mostly in state and national parks like Wind Cave NP, Custer State Park, and Yellowstone NP.   With about 5,000 Bison, Yellowstone NP has North America’s largest population of wild Bison and is the only place in the United States where bison have lived continuously since the prehistoric times of the last ice age.  Also, see American Bison | a 7 Image Story for more information and images of the American Bison.

Yellowstone River   Yellowstone’s first snow of the year in mid November made for a great day to capture images along the Yellowstone River.  A snowstorm had fallen the night before, covering everything in sparkling fresh snow.  Actually, we only had a few minutes to capture this image between snow showers.  Although it was midday, the sun was shining through a thin cloud layer softening the light.  Blowing snow and the calming sound of water ripples from the river completed the experience.  The Yellowstone River, flowing north out of the park, was not frozen due to the thermal features of the park. It does not look like much of a river in this image, but it becomes a nice size river as it travels further north.   There’s nothing like Yellowstone in the winter.  Yellowstone always provides perspective and introspection.  Every time I go to Yellowstone, the experience changes with new vistas, wildlife, challenges, and accomplishments.

Coyote   This coyote is taking a break from hunting voles during the first snow of the year in Yellowstone.  Coyotes are very good at finding the voles. They can hear them in their underground burrows.  Winter in Yellowstone can be harsh.  The coyotes seem to be well suited Yellowstone’s 20+ below zero cold.  For more information on coyotes, see Coyote | a 7 Image Story.

Yellowstone Rainbow   A few rain showers in the distance yielded several rainbows.  This rainbow ends near Mammoth Hot Springs and Mt. Everts on the north part of Yellowstone NP.  It’s difficult to show the vastness of Yellowstone.  Although Yellowstone is not necessarily known for its mountains, the rocks help put the rainbow in perspective.

Raven Portrait   Ravens tend to hang around the parking areas in Yellowstone.  Ravens are among the smartest of all birds and have accompanied people around the Northern Hemisphere for centuries by following their wagons, sleds, sleighs, and cars looking for a quick meal.  Ravens are really quite amazing birds.  They can fly over 20,000 feet.  They adapt to a very wide variety of habitats including the harsh climate in Yellowstone.  They adapt to living around humans quite well.  They’ll eat a wide variety of foods.  They even befriend wolves while still sharing in the wolves bounty.  Yes, amazing birds!

Mammoth Hot Springs   This Mammoth Hot Springs image was captured during a rain shower.  Mammoth Hot Springs, in the northwestern part of Yellowstone NP, is a large complex of hot springs on a mound of travertine, a form of limestone, created over thousands of years as hot water from the spring cooled and deposited calcium carbonate.  The spring’s energy  comes from the same magmatic system that fuels other Yellowstone geothermal areas.  The hot water that feeds Mammoth comes from Norris Geyser Basin after traveling underground via a fault line.  The water temperature at the spring hovers at about 170 °F (80 °C).  Algae living in the warm pools have tinted the travertine shades of brown, orange, red, and green.

Elk Cow & Calf   Yellowstone is all about its wildlife.  It’s hard to miss the affection this mom Elk has for her baby; well her bigger baby now.  Yellowstone has thousands of wildlife stories every day.  It’s a real privilege to witness just one of those stores.

Each image will be posted individually this week with a bit more narrative under category Yellowstone NP Wild.

Click any image below for a slide show.

Wildlife | Bugling Bull Elk

Wildlife | Bugling Bull Elk

Wildlife | Bugling Bull Elk   Rut season in the Grand Tetons brings out the largest Bull Elk.  This one could be heard bugling for miles.  It’s such a unique sound of the wild.  Elk an be aggressive animals; even dangerous, year-round.  Females can be really aggressive in the spring when their babies are born.  Males get even more aggressive in the fall during rut.  See Elk | a 7 Image Story for more Elk information and images.  For the whole story with all images, see Wildlife | a 7 Image Story.

Wildlife | a 7 Image Story

Wildlife | American BisonWildlife | a 7 Image Story   Picking seven wildlife images from the thousands in my database was difficult.  These images were primarily chosen because they represent some of my best compositions.  Like these images, many of my favorite wildlife images come from the Great American Plains and the American West with only a few from the Midwest.  My favorite locations to capture wildlife images tend to be Yellowstone NP, Grand Teton NP, Badlands NP, Wind Cave NP, and the Platte River in Nebraska.  See more wildlife images in my Wildlife Portfolio. 

American Bison  This old Bison image, captured in the Solitude of Wind Cave NP, is one of my favorite images.  He has such character in his face and head.  A mature Bison makes in imposing figure. They stand 5-6 feet tall weighing 1,800 to 2,400 pounds.  Bison grow a thin layer of soft fine hair and a thick outer layer of course hair.  This old Bison is shedding his thick winter coat making him look very shaggy.  In the fall, he’ll grow a new coat.  Also, see American Bison | a 7 Image Story for more information and images.  The American Bison, also call Bison Bison, is our National Mammal and symbolic of the Great Plains.  It’s largest land animal in North America.  At one time millions roamed in herds across the grasslands of The Great American Prairie.  They can run at speeds up to 30 miles per hour.  Just like much of the Great American Prairie has gone the way of the plow; so most of the Bison have gone. Today, small herds are live in Canada and the USA; mostly in state and national parks.

Raccoon   This Raccoon image is clearly the nicest raccoon image I have ever captured and one of my favorite wildlife images.  This image was captured at Everglades NP while taking a little time off during a business trip to Florida.  Wild Everglade raccoons greeted our air boat as we docked on a remote island.  These guys roamed around an old native American house site which is still regularly visited.  They seemed thinner than the fat raccoons seen around the farms in Illinois.

Bighorn Sheep  This Bighorn Sheep image, captured in Badlands NP, really shows how they blend into their habitat. In the fall, Bighorn Sheep carry their full winter coat.  They look so majestic in the early morning sun against the mountains.  They seem to be more comfortable when they standing on the side of a mountain.  Just walking down the road does not appeal to them.  Photographing Bighorn Sheep seems much easier than some other wildlife; particularly in the national parks where they are more accustomed to seeing people.  Using a vehicle as a blind and safe cover allows you to get very close without disturbing the sheep. Their symmetric lines draw the viewfinder to your eye.  Also, see Bighorn Sheep | a 7 Image Story for more information and images.  Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep are found in western Canada and western United States.  Bighorn Sheep are the largest wild sheep in North America.

Bugling Bull Elk   Rut season in the Grand Tetons brings out the largest Bull Elk.  This one could be heard bugling for miles.  It’s such a unique sound of the wild.  Elk an be aggressive animals; even dangerous, year-round.  Females can be really aggressive in the spring when their babies are born.  Males get even more aggressive in the fall during rut.  See Elk | a 7 Image Story for more Elk information and images.

Pronghorn Portrait   This beautiful Pronghorn roams the Badlands.  The image was a simple click out the car window.  Sometimes, Pronghorn will pose for the camera.  Using a vehicle for a blind also helps to get closer without disturbing the critter.  Pronghorn are North America’s fastest land animal.  They roam the America West and The Great American Prairie Pronghorn live in grasslands, brush lands and deserts. They migrate from a summer feeding grounds to a winter feeding grounds.  Although they tend to travel in large or small herds, often they graze alone or somewhat apart from the herd.  They seem so majestic alone in a field.

Each image will be posted individually this week with a bit more narrative under category Wildlife.

Click any image below for a slide show.