MOMENTS IN FOCUS

River & Pride

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River & Pride -

One type of session that I do not do nearly enough is equine.

Similar to all my sessions, I always look for opportunities for a variety of images with horses, typically some headshot type portraits as well as some natural light images.

The most common type of portrait requested is that black background image (i.e., low key)..

It allows you to truly focus on the elegance of the animal.

The dark background really highlights the details and coloring of the horse as well.

One of my main focuses during an equine session is the angles created by the horse. Horses are gorgeous, but large animals. It is easy to find an unflattering perspective. Patience is key here!

Photographing horses takes a lot of teamwork. Typically we have a few roles in the equine session. Besides me holding the camera, there obviously has to be someone holding the horse. This person has to be knowledgeable about the movement of the horse and preferably have a trusting relationship with the animal.

This a great setup, but at least one more person is typically needed and that is the “attention-getter” (that is an industry term of course). The attention-getter has a serious but challenging role. They work hard to get the horses attention and to help find the perfect look. Especially in horses, the alert ears are vital…which is easier said than done. It is quite a scene with the noises, hat/branch waving, and jumping up and down, but it definitely could not be done without this person!

Send me a message with any thoughts or comments you have. I would love to hear it!