I never rode bucking bulls – I was just too darned scared. But I always admired and respected the guys who chose to climb onto those huge snot-slinging bundles of muscle, hooves, and horns for 8 seconds at a time, with nothing more than a braided, rosen-covered rope wrapped around the snarling beasts belly to hang onto.
I really liked the vantage point at this particular arena that allows me to shoot down on the riders and use the arena floor to clean up the background and concentrate the focus on the bull and the cowboy, and this one sequence highlights that view.
I used my Nikon Z9 and Tamron 35-150 F/2-2.8 lens for these night shots. This versatile lens allows me to shoot wide and telephoto at fast apertures without changing lenses – important in the dusty confines of a rodeo arena.
