On any given summer Friday or Saturday night in the Western United States a rodeo can be found within driving distance. In eastern Nebraska the Wahoo rodeo has been a long tradition for 58 years.
In his younger days my husband traveled the rodeo circuit as a steer wrestler, otherwise known as a “bull dogger”. Every rodeo event has a practical working purpose on the ranch. It didn’t start as a sport, but as a way for a ranch to gain bragging rights and cowboys to one up each other. The history of rodeo dates back to the 1600 Spanish ranchers and their Mexican cowboys.
Patriotism is Strong at the Opening to the Wahoo Nebraska Rodeo. Note the young boy with his hat over his heart.
The rodeo opened with the announcer giving tribute to family, thanking all military personal, and saying a prayer for God to protect the cowboys and keep them safe during the night. I wish I had brought my video camera as the speech is extremely moving and brings a tear to your eye.
Calf Roping at the Wahoo Nebraska Rodeo
Cowboys waiting for their turn
Saddle bronc riding (click for larger image)
All photos were shot with a Canon Rebel XS with a 75-300 lens. Since the rodeo doesn’t start until 8pm and everything is fast I had the ISO cranked up to 800 right away and it wasn’t long before it went to 1600. Aperture was high at 5.6 and shutter speed no lower than 1/100 sec.
Being around horses and attending previous rodeos I could anticipate my shots to get the best picture like this bull exploding out of the chute.
Bull riding
Lightroom 4 was used in post production for cropping white balance and increased clarity. Noise reduction was accomplised in the Luminescence function I described last week.
Related articles
- Rodeo: Days of ’76 Rodeo starts strong (rapidcityjournal.com)
- Rodeo: Cowan values family over rodeo success (rapidcityjournal.com)
Filed under: Events, Photography, Small Town Living Tagged: Bullriding, country, cowboys, Horses, midwest, Nebraska, Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association, rodeo, rural
