When I am out photographing birds, wildlife and landscapes I occasionally shoot some video at the same time. Here is a little video sampler of some of our photo adventures over the past few years. The still photos can be found throughout this web site.

I gave in. I finally decided to post some pictures on Facebook also. Go to my Facebook page then click the Like or Follow button and you can stay updated on some of my photo adventures. Of course you will need to log in to Facebook to see them. -
https://www.facebook.com/brucegmckeephotos

After an exciting day at the Buffalo Roundup (see previous post) at Custer State Park in South Dakota, I got up early to look for a sunrise photo opp. Unfortunately, staying in Custer City we were on the wrong side of the mountains (hills?) and it was a longer drive than I had expected to get to the top to see the sunrise. Driving on the Wildlife Loop road on the south end of the park I spotted a Coyote prancing down the middle of the road in the twilight about 15 minutes before sunrise. I got the camera ready, resting it on a beanbag lens rest on the door window and slowly approached the spot were I had last seen the Coyote. To my surprise it was laying in the grass, about 30 feet from the road. I took several shots from the car window without even shutting off the engine and then the Coyote got up and walked away, poking its nose in several prairie dog holes along the way. This was just the start to an interesting morning. A short while later I saw several Wild Turkey walking along the road and in the grass along the road, Western Meadow Larks, Mountain Bluebirds, Magpies, Mule Deer, Pronghorn Antelope, Prairie Dogs, and of course Bison.
Click to see more photos of Custer State Park Wildlife (bottom half of the page).

The "Buffalo Roundup" at Custer State Park in the Black Hills of South Dakota is an annual event that draws thousands of spectators. Every year the park staff and a few select riders on horses and in pickups round-up the 1,300+ roaming Buffalo (ok, I know that they are really American Bison, but the event is called the "Buffalo Roundup"). The animals are herded in to the corrals where they vaccinate the young and cull out a few hundred animals for sale. According to what we have read they try to maintain the herd at about 1,000 so that there is ample grazing land for them. 

We arrived at the entrance of the park before sunrise and waited in our car until the gates opened at about 6:15 am. There was a long line of cars both directions and there seemed to be much competition to get the best spot to viewing and photography. There were two viewing areas and we were at the North viewing area on the side of a hill facing the valley. We had a long wait, but a great view as the herd of Bison came thundering over the hill across the valley and were eventually herded in to the pastures adjacent to the corrals. It was a cloudy, drizzly, dreary day and had rained the night before. I had imagined the Bison stirring up clouds of dust in the morning sun as they stampeded across the prairie, but it didn't quite happen that way.  The photos were taken with telephoto lenses, because they never did get really close, but I still got some good shots. You can do a bit of searching online and learn much more about the event.
See more photos of the "Buffalo Roundup" and Custer State Park.