Bighorn Sheep, Rocky Mountain Nat'l Park, CO

Canon 5DMKII ~ f/5.6 ~ 1/800sec ~iso100 ~ 400mm

We were travelling back from an early morning shoot on the west side of Rocky Mountain Nat'l Park via Trail Ridge Road.  We had constantly been on the lookout for Bighorn Sheep, but, the chances of seeing them are very rare.  Well, as we turned around one of bends, we saw one of the sheep.  Parked on the road, I quickly jumped out of the car to get a shot of the sheep.  They were easily spooked and ran off a little way down.  We doubled back the car and parked safely in a pullout.  We then discovered there were about 8 more sheep in the herd!  As other tourists realized what we had discovered they all began to pull over...we started a sheep jam!

The herd of sheep began to relax and allow for many photo opportunities.  Challenging with this shoot was that I was already dealing with mid-morning light, creating some harsh shadows.  So I knew I had to get the sun over my shoulder.  After I positioned myself, I began to get the photos I was after.  This particular sheep perched itself up on the rocks overlooking all that was happening.  The negative space and majestic pose by the sheep make this a great calendar photo for April.

Photo tip: The photo above is an example of 'negative space'. Negative space defines and emphasizes the main subject of a photo, drawing your eye to it. It provides "breathing room", giving your eyes somewhere to rest and preventing your image from appearing too cluttered with "stuff". All of this adds up to a more engaging composition.

Good Light,

Bill

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