What Came First, the Chicken or the Egg?
Last week’s story chronicled my experience of the “First and Best” photo assignment in my online intensive with American Master photographer Sam Abell. The location for the photo shoot was a chicken coop.
We had chickens when my children were young. Chickens are small enough and friendly enough for young kids to handle. In fact, most laying breeds make great pets. The trip to the barn to collect eggs was like going on an Easter egg hunt every day. The kids would carefully place the eggs in a basket then pat or hug a chicken, thanking them for the warm eggs. If an egg was accidently dropped or broken, no worries, we knew there would be more the next day.
There is something special about close contact with one’s food source. Caring for the chickens and enjoying the delicious reward of farm fresh eggs is a very different experience from reaching into the cooler at the grocery store.
During my photo shoot I became determined to see if I could capture the exact moment of an egg being laid. Here are three short video clips to go with last week’s story. Enjoy!
1. Hen 1 is relentlessly harassed by Hen 2 until she lays her egg.
2. After the event she shrieks her achievement to the feathered community.
3. Hen 2 puts on a great solo performance. Turn up your volume, if you listen carefully, you can even hear the “plop” as the egg hits the mat.
