Memories at Feeding Time

“Feed Truck” from Hillingdon Ranch: Four Seasons, Six Generations

David captures the Giles’ feed-truck with cows in tow, against the gorgeous backdrop of the Laurels, and immediately I reminisce about feeding cows with my grandfather and, later, Robin in his stead. Likewise, some of the only memories I have of my grandfather are riding out in the pasture with him in an old, black truck, when I could not even see over the dashboard. As a toddler, I remember standing in the truck bed watching him pour feed and relishing the experience.  Even at such an early age, witnessing him love the land and love his job left me with memories I will cherish for a lifetime.

Feeding cows with Robin was especially meaningful to me because I was directly reminded of times that I spent with my grandfather before he died.  The truth is that Robin and I both missed him at the same time. Without Robin saying a word, I knew how much he cared for my family, and, undoubtedly, I knew he would work as hard as he could to pull us through such a difficult time.  He willingly took on the extra work load to make our lives better and keep the ranch intact.

Whether I focus on the beautiful land, the livestock, or the hard working ranchers, David’s photograph instantly transports me to a time when I did not know what would have happened to Flat Rock without the Gileses. Similarly, I am thankful to David for providing a powerful visual so that I can remember wonderful times with my grandfather and give credit to the work that Robin, Carol, Grant, and Misty do every day at Hillingdon.

Blog written by Amy Clark.  Amy Clark, M.S., is the great-great-granddaughter of Annie Laura and Alfred Giles, founders of Hillingdon Ranch. She is the great-granddaughter of Beatrice Giles Dreiss, and the granddaughter of Alfred Giles Dreiss, who before he passed away, ranched in partnership with Robin Giles. Robin and David K. Langford are Amy’s cousins and are part of her extended family that lives on Hillingdon Ranch. Even though Amy currently resides in Denton, Texas, she is excited to share her childhood memories of living at Flat Rock (the area of Hillingdon closest to Comfort) and visiting the Gileses often. 

Photographer’s Notes

The specifics

• Camera body: Canon EOS 7D
• Lens: Canon EF 28-300 mm, f/3.5-5.6L IS USM
• Settings: ASA = 200; Aperture preferred, f8; shutter speed, as auto-selected.
• Other: Tripod with leveling ball head; auto focus on; stabilizing off due to on a tripod; available light, walkie-talkies.

The story

This is one of those images where everything has to fall into place, the light, the cattle, the truck, everything. And I got really lucky, as you will read.

I had worked out the timing with Robin and Grant. On a clear afternoon, they were to use the feed truck to gather the cattle at the Laurels pens. Since everything had to work on the exact timing of sunset, we would use walkie-talkies to communicate. Myrna and I set up on Skyline Ridgeline very late in the afternoon of the appointed day. The camera and lens were set up on a tripod to limit any vibrations caused by the distances involved and the telephoto lens used. We could hear the Giles conversations to us from their radio, but there was no response to any of mine. It seemed that my radio was not functioning. However, as the sun began slipping below the horizon, all the pre-planning conversations and instructions proved their value. With only about half the sun remaining visible above the horizon, here came the truck with the cows and calves following diligently behind, exactly at the absolutely correct second. I hurriedly shot a few frames, and the beautiful light was quickly lost. But I had what I wanted for the book.

And guess what? The radio’s malfunctioning was operator error. It was a new set of walkie-talkie radios, and I did not know there were one-tenth settings between the whole channel numbers. (I’m not much on any new technology, much less that of walkie-talkies!) I was one-tenth off the correct channel, yet I could hear the Giles’ transmissions, but they couldn’t hear mine. Planning and luck prevailed, thankfully.

Photographer’s Notes are written by David K. Langford, photographer and co-author of the book, Hillingdon Ranch: Four Seasons, Six Generations.  

Click here to read David’s full bio.  

Purchase the photo, “Feeding Truck”