On Wednesday, Nadiya was enthralled with them, and I didn't have my camera and now I'm a tad bit upset because I had visualized what my photos would look like of those 5 Tiffany-blue eggs and instead I found this yesterday:
I know I should be happy that new life has been born on our farm, but these are not the prettiest of babies.
Here Greg is taking a gander at my find. It looks like he's smelling something really bad, doesn't it? I must admit, I like this blue-bird house. It's made really well and on one side (the side you can see) there's a door to open it for cleaning. Then on the side Greg is on, there's a door for viewing. When you open that door, there is a piece of plexiglass to keep you from disturbing the nest.
Well, our bluebirds may not be beautiful just yet, but look at this new cutie:
First, let me point out that now I know where the word "cowlick" comes from.
Second, let me scream in ecstasy, "YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYY!!!!!!"
This calf was born full-term and healthy without any help from us. Can you believe it?
Here she (I think it's a girl) is running back to her momma.
Here the momma is staring me down. I must admit I was more than a little bit scared taking these photos. A 500lb cow could do some damage to me.eta: I stand corrected by my husband and every farmer I know + one of my commenters. A full-size cow is about 900-1000lbs, so I was in much graver danger than originally stated. See, and I was just trying not to exaggerate in my story :)
And, Greg was more scared than I watching what I was doing. He was over the rise behind the momma cow and started screaming at me to back off, so I ran the opposite direction as fast as humanly possible in boots that are two different sizes. It was at that moment I realized an investment in a telephoto lens might not be a bad idea.
Here's a couple I've been looking at. Please let me know if you have any feedback:
Canon Telephoto EF 100mm f/2.0 USM Autofocus Lens which retails for ~$400
or do I need this one?Canon Telephoto EF 135mm f/2.0L USM Autofocus Lens which retails for more than twice as much (I'm guessing because of the L glass???) at $995.
I already own a 24-78mm (I think) f2.8 Tamron that does pretty well, but doesn't zoom in far enough for these type of situations.
The only other lens I have is the 50mm f1.4 by Canon that is my major crutch. I love the fixed lens because I think my photos turn out crisper with it than with the Tamron.
Like I said, any advice you could give would be greatly appreciated. I don't really want to spend twice as much money, but I will if I know I will love it as much as my 50mm. Oh, and I'm hoping to combine some birthday and xmas presents to get this one, so I won't be out the total expense.
Congrats on a successful calf birth! And as one 'converted' city girl to another - their is so much to learn and each day is a new adventure! ... That cow is more like 1,000 pounds! Your calf will be 400 pounds in a year.. Once I watched a cow come up behind my husband and toss him in the air - with her head between his legs... He got between her and her calf and his back was turned... I thought she was going to stomp the life out of him when he was down on the ice and could not get up...
ReplyDeleteWe have 60 cows and 250 sheep and all the stuff that goes along with them, plus a ton of chickens!
Wait until you have to bottle feed a calf.. You might want to have some milk replacer (bag of dry mix) in your shed, and a calf bottle and a few nipples ... We are bottle feeding 5 lambs right now.. Every four hours... we start calving next month.
I go to town (17 miles away) to run errands between those four hour increments!
But the lifestyle is so worth it! A great place to raise kids...
yay for the calf! and the chicks. isn't it crazy how they are just a weirdo yucky pulsating mass? it grossed me out the first time i saw a brand new baby bird.
ReplyDeleteno advice on the lens, just wanted to say hi. miss talking to you. ;) xo
wow those are some scary baby birds!! Looks like you guys are having fun on your farm. We just bought a baby cow - the kids think its the coolest thing. Not sure what to tell you on the camera thing as i'm nikon girl - don't know much about cannon - good luck with your decision!
ReplyDeleteYAY!!!! I am so happy about the calf and the blue birds! I have no advice about the lens but either one should keep you out of trampling range!
ReplyDeleteFor $900 you can buy a 70-200mm f/2.8 canon L series telephoto (used on ebay) ... of course, you don't need that.
ReplyDeleteHi April,
ReplyDeleteI'm with Stephen. Buy the 70-200 mm f/2.8 Canon L series lens. I got it a few months ago and love it. It is a heavy thing but you get used to it. The ability to zoom and have the 2.8 aperture the whole way through is really incredible. You will be surprised at how often you are at 200mm and wishing you had even more zoom. I don't think the other lenses you are looking at have enough zoom for what you want to take photos of safely. Also, the 70-200 mm is a really awesome portrait lens, seriously!!!!! The compression is lovely.
Congrats on the safe birth :) ... My hubby comes from a farm family, his Dad is a Vet and also had a "hobby" farm to go with it. I am so not a farm girl, but I totally get a kick out of all the cows up close when we visit his extended family! WOW! very cool experience :)
ReplyDeleteas for the lense... i am watching very close to answers. I have the same lenses that you have and would love to get a good zoomer too!
Uh - yeah - if you can find a 70-200 2.8L for 900??? That's the ticket. Of course, IS wouldn't be bad either. But regardless, I think you want more zoom than a 100 if the 78 isn't what you need. Give yourself more range than limiting to the 100.
ReplyDeleteoh my ... the 135mm is pricey, but it's FAN.TAS.TIC. seriously, you won't find a sharper lens at this focal length. and it's much more versatile than being fixed at 135 would imply. i love my L lenses more than my children some days, so they are definitely worth the $$. congrats on the beautiful calf!
ReplyDelete