Bighorn Sheep at Yellowstone National Park + addition for JB

[John David Cubit]

These photos were taken in Yellowstone National Park at the end of May, 2012, just after the most recent snows had melted. At this time of year, males and females are in separate herds.

1. Male bighorn in new spring grass. (Females have short, spiky horns.)


2. Male bighorn picking his way through sagebrush habitat.


3. After a week of cold, wet weather, this male found a warm sunny spot to settle down and chew his cud.

[sury]

Great shots. First one looks almost like a tapestry. Thank you for sharing.

Sury

[KevinBarrett]

I was there at the end of April in 2009 and didn't have quite the same luck, though I got very close to some elk and bison. These sets from Yellowstone are fantastic! Keep them coming!

[Birma]

Very nice John - those horns look great

[Greg Beetham]

Excellent shots John.
Greg

[Dr. Harout]

For me, #3 is the best of all those great shots.
Agree with Kevin, keep them coming.

[jbtaylor]

Sharpness again.
Well done.
Would love to see a crop of the head in # 2 or #3.

[John David Cubit]

Sharpness again.
Well done.
Would love to see a crop of the head in # 2 or #3.

Thanks, JB. Here's the crop of #3. (#3, itself, is a crop.) The shot was hand-held to give me more mobility, but I was probably pressed against a tree or rock for stability. In addition, the lens is at 400mm-fully extended, where sharpness is less than the peak for the lens. You can see why this lens gets top reviews, ranking higher than the Nikon and Canon closest equivalents.

[mikeriach]

John,

The 70-400G for these?
On which body?

Excellent images with so much detail.

Mike

[jbtaylor]

Thanks John. I can feel the texture in the horns. Been debating reconfiguring my lens line up to allow for the 70-400. You are helping me to decide.

[John David Cubit]

John,

The 70-400G for these?
On which body?

Excellent images with so much detail.

Mike

Thanks. Yes, the 70-400G with the a900. Can't wait for the a99 with higher iso performance and bigger sensor(?)

[mikeriach]

The 70-400G is good on the A77 as well.

Mike

[aster]

Hi John,

Amazing quality with these hard-to-capture creatures, not to mention hard-to-find. : ) Certainly nothing out of the ordinary.

The lens is amazing in itself but I think you did wonderfully with the hand-held shooting also.

Thanks for sharing

Yildiz