Tatanka!, a photo from Wyoming, West

Photographer's Note

For those of you who haven't seen the movie "Dances with Wolves" tatanka is a Lakota Sioux word for buffalo. Technical these aren't really buffalo as they are bison, American Bison. They are positively huge animals and command a lot of respect when they are this close. They can reach over 2000 pounds and can reach speeds of 30mph. Bison are actually part of the bovine (cow) family. Most of the time they walk slowly but they can become surprisingly nimble while in a gallop.

I got lucky here with getting every bison framed just right in the frame. I took quite a few pictures of bison while I was in Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons but this series is my favorite and I will post 2 or 3 more from it in the future.

This was taken in the Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park which is chock full of bison, elk, wolves, coyotes and grizzlies.

Taken around midday.

cunejo200, carper, fulvio52, cessy, alainh, fayeulle, ChrisJ, sabyasachi1212, john_c, plimrn, Emile, Didi, alvaraalto has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

nwoehnl (122) 2007-11-07 4:51

A nice take of the bisons, Steve. Good tight framing/cropping to have the "beasts" well placed in the frame, and with interesting postures. Good chance to use the full range of the tele lens; I wonder a bit about the ISO 400 at mid-day though. Overall a nice nature shot. Hope all is well.

cunejo200 (7281) 2007-11-07 5:22

Hello Stephen,
You are lucky and good in having all the bisons fit in your frame. These animals look massive. The exposure is just about ideal for this situation. Good work. Danilo

earthdomain (47) 2007-11-07 5:27

Very nice. The buffalos look very serene, which means you really got a good deal from a distance. I loved the color contrasts as well, between the light background of the bushes to the dark colors of the animals. The framing is also nice

Cormac (26565) 2007-11-07 7:15

The bison is a beautiful and incredible animal, and it is a real shame to think that it was almost hunted to extinction. I'm glad to see that there are still some left. I like the close in view and the grouping of this, with the animals very nicely arranged. Great work!

carper (96) 2007-11-07 8:07

Mighty Katanka Stephen.
I saw them in a lot cowboy and Indians films. the mighty Katanka. white buffelo,good photo Sthephen I likethe shot, good quality, well done, have a fine day.
gr. jaap

fulvio52 (8314) 2007-11-07 9:00

Wonderful, Stephen!
I hugely appreciate this kind of shots, regardless.
They help to preserve whatever is left of the great American legacy. Tatanka is part of it.
Once again, wonderful shot in all possible respects.
You have a great day, I'll see ya around.
Fulvio.

Sekhmet73 (4189) 2007-11-07 13:33

Hi Stephen,when I saw the title I thought about the movie, then looking at the picture I had a less romantic thought... And reminded the bison steak I ate in Montana.... The bison in the foreground is well detailed, good dof.
Sabrina

cessy (13647) 2007-11-07 15:15

Hallo Stephen
very nice capture of these bisons, excellent use of tele zoom to get them.
I think you have used the ISO 400, to get enough speed with 300mm focal length. good details and exposure, even the eyes still visible.

alainh (33209) 2007-11-07 23:53

Hello Stephen
What an impressive meeting. i like the light and the focus you choose.
very good capture .
have a nice day
alain

Mishe (3533) 2007-11-08 2:55 [Comment]

Show Comment

danyy (0) 2007-11-08 3:12

Bonjour Stephen,
j'aime beaucoup la note qui accompagne cette photo . Le photo elle mкme, trиs animйe, trиs vivante, montre la puissance de ces animaux.
Une rйgion oщ apparement, il faut кtre sur ses gardes, assez dangereuse.
With my best regards.
Daniel.

mumek (20226) 2007-11-08 3:20

Hi Stephen!
My favorite movie with Kevin Costner. Very good portrait of the bisons with nice light and good natural colors.Thanks for the note
best regards
ziggy

adelune (0) 2007-11-08 14:14

The quiet insurance of strength! Very successful! TFS so a great shot Stephen, alain

sabyasachi1212 (19779) 2007-11-08 23:02

Hi Stephen,
These Amercan Bisons are quite different from the Indian version, more popularly known as the Gaur. Love the way ther are looking in all direction. Never easy with wild life photography but you have done well here.
With Greetings from India
Sabyasachi

ChrisJ (171818) 2007-11-09 0:31

Hi Stephen

Yes I saw 'Dances with Wolves', but it still didn't prepare me, just how big these animals are. I saw some live buffalo / bison in Chiang Mai zoo in Thailand, & they're much bigger than a regular cow. Good dof & sharpness here, & nice to have 3 of a kind all facing the same way. Tfs!

devimeuxbe (58557) 2007-11-09 0:47

Hi Stephen
This vision is impressive. I know these animals could be dangerous. This is a nice attraction in Yellostone.
Nice picture
Bertrand

jemaflor (147046) 2007-11-09 4:00

Hi Stephen,
Impressive animals very well taken, close up and detail, it's well made.

Scharan (14144) 2007-11-09 9:55

Uma grande foto ou posso dizer... uma imagem de "peso". Bom trabalho Stephen, cores bonitas tambйm.
GA
Vera

robiuk (10807) 2007-11-09 14:04

Uh,
Stephen, have never seen them in a 'natural' habitat,
actually, can't remember when I last saw a
photo of tatanka, so from that perspective I
appreciate this entry.
How come the grass looks so pale? Time of year
or high ISO?
Cheers,
Robi

cam (9043) 2007-11-09 19:27

Hi Stephen
Well framed as you mentioned, imposing beast, the kind where you are happy to have a 300mm.
I like the way they seems to merge with the gray grasses behind them.
You got good details on the first bison, even if the light is not the best for him
Have a good WE
Charles

plimrn (21344) 2007-11-10 9:52

Hi Steve,
You certainly did get them well framed and cpatured with excellent detail and good light management as well. With such a dark coat it's easy to loose the eyes but you show good eye detail.
HLJ, Pat

john_c (24666) 2007-11-11 7:39

Good morning Stephen,
A dynamic shot of these great animals in motion. You caught this surely at a decisive moment and I am impressed with the clarity of detail and the balance of the individual bisons in the frame - its like you had them choreographed. Especially impressive given the mid-day light. Cheers...later.
John

rushfan2112 (2965) 2007-11-11 8:43

Great Photo of a wonderful animal, Stephen. The composition is excellent and it's nice and sharp on the main subject. However, it looks a bit over-exposed and the colours seem a bit wasked-out. I've done a WS that I hope you'll like.
Best wishes, Paul.

[workshop] [compare]

Leonie (8809) 2007-11-12 13:24

Hi Stephen,
Impressive encounter you made here!! The framing as you say is very good, the colours could have been a bit stronger maybe. But a majestic shot!
Cheers, Lйonie

Emile (20352) 2007-11-14 14:23

Hola Stephen.
Wonderful shot of the beautiful group of bisons taken through your 300mm lens and the good use of ISO400. Very well capture, good quality and great colors.
Well done. TFS.
Best regards.

PJE (20758) 2007-11-15 21:08

Steve

Just last week my neighbour returned from up northern BC from where he shot a buffalo for meat. His buddy was too lazy to have the hide removed the same day it was killed. The weather was below freezing up there but the cooling process was not accelerated enough to cool the buffalo in time. When he got the 2500 pounds of meat down to Chilliwack he noticed that the tendons started to turn green! He thought it was ok but had to make a decision the following day to get rid of it.

And now as a result there are some forest creatures that have been well fed as a result of my neighbour dumping the carass out in the forest woods. Thought I would share the story. The photo you took was very good.

quantabeh (5205) 2007-11-17 20:55

Hey Steve,
Nice to see you are putting all your 300 mm focal length to a good use. A nice catch! The background is really perfect and goes well with composition.
nice work,
B

Didi (61589) 2007-11-21 15:10

Hi Stephen
I remmember well this film Dances with wolves.
Very nice wild catch and very good selective setting on the main bison.
Very Well done.
Bu the WS is a bit over coloured.
Cheers.

alvaraalto (42804) 2007-11-25 14:49

Hi Stephen,

An impressive picture of these buffalo’s. Your info and the image remember me to my youth and the first movies I saw than. Westerns (cowboy-movies) with the fight between the Indians and the cowboys. The immense flock of bison’s, Old Shatterhand and White feather.

Groet Rob

Photo Information

Copyright: Stephen Inguanti (singuanti) (15250)
Genre: МЕСТА
Medium: ЦВЕТНОЙ
Date Taken: 2007-09-05
Categories: ПРИРОДА
Camera: Nikon D200, Nikkor 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED AFS VR, Hoya HMC Super UV(0)
Exposure: f/5.6, 1/320 секунд
More Photo Info: view
Версия: Оригинальная версия, Workshop
Date Submitted: 2007-11-07 4:42
Избранное: 1 [view]