Bison bull drinking water under iceBison bull drinking water under ice – Nikon D500, f11, 1/200, ISO 400, -1.3 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

It has been some time since I photographed and shared American Bison photos so three days ago when I was on Antelope Island State Park and there were bison close to the road I decided to take a few close ups of them.

These portraits of bison bulls drinking from an iced over puddle were taken with my Nikon D500, my 500mm VR lens with a teleconverter attached from inside a vehicle.

When the bison bulls bent their heads down to drink from the puddle I could hear the thin ice crunch under the weight of their huge muzzles and their hooves as they walked up to it.

Bison bull close up while drinking waterBison bull close up while drinking water – Nikon D500, f11, 1/320, ISO 400, -1.7 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

When the bison finished drinking they raised their heads and the water dribbled from their mouths and their beards. At times they were just taking a break and would resume drinking soon after raising their heads.

Stink-eye from an American Bison bullStink-eye from an American Bison bull – Nikon D500, f11, 1/320, ISO 400, -1.7 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

I think bison can have expressive eyes, when I looked at this image I felt like the bison was giving me the old stink-eye. One of my sons used to give me a look very much like this one when I said something he didn’t like or want to hear so this photo made me laugh because it reminded me of those times.

Crazy-eyed Bison bullCrazy-eyed Bison bull – Nikon D500, f11, 1/200, ISO 400, -1.7 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

This bison bull looked a little crazy-eyed but it was really watching another bull that had moved towards the puddle behind where this one stood.

Bison bull headshot during winterBison bull headshot during winter – Nikon D500, f11, 1/250, ISO 400, -1.7 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

This photo is the same bison bull a few seconds later without the crazy-eyed look, I guess it decided the other bull wasn’t a threat. I chuckled when I saw that in both of these photos the bison had a snot bubble under its nose.

The bison still have their heavy winter coats at this time of the year and they looked quite warm despite the frost on the ground and the ice on the puddle. I wasn’t as warm as they were!

Bison bull drinking from an iced over puddleBison bull drinking from and iced over puddle – Nikon D500, f11, 1/250, ISO 400, -1.3 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

It was nice to photograph the bison on the island again, sometimes they are too far away to get quality images so when they are close like they were three days ago I like to take advantage of the opportunity.

Life is good.

Mia

Click here to see more of my American Bison photos plus facts and information about this species.

Safety around these huge mammals is important, even though they are used to people being on the island they are wild and can be very dangerous. I would never attempt to take closeups like these from outside a vehicle.