Sunday, December 30, 2007

A Baby Boomer Dreams of Arabian Horses - The Third Foal Crop - The Photo Shoot Part 2



Part One of the Baby Boomer Series

The Third Foal Crop Part 1

Well, we still had lots of Arabian horses to photograph so Scandalous Rhythm and his mother, were put back into their stalls so we could get on with it. The vet wasn't going to be able to come for hours anyway so it was just as well that I had something to do to keep me from worrying about this colt.

For the rest of the mare and foal pairs, I needed pictures of the mares as well as those of their foals. Eric decided it would be easier to put show halters on the mares and hold them while turning the foals loose.

We sould photograph the horses in the yard where the background would be good. The only problem with that was I had really wanted pictures of the horses turned loose. I think they are more natural looking that way and I think the odds of getting shots that do the horse justice are much better.

Unfortunately, though I was the one paying the bill, I didn't do a good job of calling the shots. I think because Eric was my boss, I backed down instead of standing up for myself. We ended up taking the pictures in the yard as Eric wanted. I was disappointed before we took a single shot.

We started with Bey Aana and her foal, Scandalous Chase. Even though the colt was about two months old by now, he still was very insecure about anything new. He stuck to his mother like glue unsure of what to think about Mary Little jumping around with her talking pony on a stick trying to get his attention. Every time that pony would whinny, Chase would duck down like he was getting ready to flee and Aana was trying to figure out a way to exit with him.

Next, we brought out Kg Phadra Rose and her colt, Scandalous Chance. This colt was much bolder and actually left his mother's side a number of times, trotting around the yard and snorting at Mary's antics. He really wanted to check out that whinny. He just didn't get it was coming from Mary's stick horse.



The only problem was photographing that white muzzle of his. The light wants to reflect off such markings and make them appear bigger than they actually are. The result can be a head that looks longer, a muzzle twice as big as it really is. Doing this colt justice as not going to be easy.

We finished up with Lilly and her filly, Scandalous Hope. The filly was not quite a month old but she handled the shoot ok. She stuck close to her mother ducking behind her butt more often than not. It seemed like every time it looked like there was a shot, the filly wheeled around and hide again. My guess is that Jeff was just as frustrated by the whole thing as I was. Hope is such a beautiful filly but the looks she gave the camera were only fleeting.

None of the mares were sure of what to think of this whole plan. Turning them loose with their foals with strange things going on around them at least gives them the option to run. Making them stand still while their foals were turned loose made all of the mares more nervous than they would have been set free.

They adapted pretty quickly. At least none of them broke into a sweat but I could tell that I wasn't getting the kind of pictures I had wanted from either the mares or the foals.



I've always been able to see the shots as they are taken. I was pretty sure this time around I didn't have anything that did my horses justice. I know that happens a lot in photo shoots. Sometimes people spend hundreds of dollars for advertising shots and get nothing suitable.

It's difficult to capture that expressiveness that sets some horses apart. But I believe when you know your horses, as well as I do, that it's easy to set them up for great photographs. Knowing their personalities and their reactions helps to create situations that will give the looks that are so special. I really blew it by not insisting on taking the kind of photos that I really wanted.

I will always regret that decision. When the proofs came, my suspicions were confirmed. I had some photos that others would probably kill for but I had nothing that showed how special each of these horses are. And those babies are growing and changing all the time, you just can't go back and do it over. That look has long since gone and a new one has taken its place.

To be continued..........

The Injury

These pictures are in the order we took them. The top picture is Bey Aana with Scandalous Chase, The middle picture is KG Phadra Rose with Scandalous Chance. The bottom picture is Lilly (Ballyhoohoo) with Scandalous Hope.

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8 comments:

  1. I love the photos! Too bad ya couldn't get them shot the way you wanted though. I went through that when the boys were babies and I'm kicking myself now for not saying something to the photographer. Oh well...live and learn I guess.

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  2. Hmmm...I'm thinking I need to practice some photo skills on a few Arabian horses...

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  3. the photos look good tho!

    sometimes when there is a lot going on and your mind is over-loaded it's easy to let someone else call the shots. This happened to me when I was taking my senior pictures at 18yo. I took only a couple poses with Scooter, when I wanted many more.

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  4. I know you probably paid out a tidy little sum for those pics, but as you say you know your horses better than anyone else. When I do a farm shoot I always make sure that I find out what the owner likes about the horse and where possible do liberty shots. It looks as if you were dealing with a very sunny day too which doesnt help and the later it gets the worse it is to get balanced shots. In the summer I like to shoot and be finished before 10am, earlier if possible.

    Beautiful babies and mommas, I am gonna miss not having babies next year :-(

    Lori
    xx

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  5. Thank you for leaving a comment on my blog, GreyHorseMatters. I love your horses they are beautiful and the pictures are great!
    p.s. voted for you on the village
    Happy New Year!

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  6. Gosh, those are gorgeous photos of beautiful creatures!

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  7. I also meant to add that sometimes (as with people and I have photographed a lot of portraits) the subject is just absolutely gorgeous but no matter what you do you can't get that beauty to show in the pictures and the same goes for a plain looking person that just comes to life on film and looks gorgeous. I have a few of those, Wiggle has a bad head and some of my favorite pics are of her, and BB the blue roan filly with the wild markings, I battled in her first year to get pictures to show the co-owner to convey her muscle and build. No matter what I did she looked blaaah!!!

    Just thought that might be interesting LOL

    Lori
    xxx

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  8. equinespirit, I've been kicking myself since then as well. But never again...

    tracey, there is good money in shooting good horse pictures. There are several photographers who make their livings shooting nothing but Arabian horses. I think it would be a cool job!!

    barngoddess, yes they are ok, just not the spark I know could be there.

    I've heard others say that about their senior pictures. You'd think the photographers would have a clue about girls and their horses. lol

    lori, I don't think Jeff Little every shows up before 10 am. lol But he has taken some beautiful pictures for me. The problem that day wasn't his call either, it was Eric's.

    grey horse matters, thanks for visiting my blog. I will be coming back to yours soon, I hope.

    callie, I'm glad you like the pics, it makes me feel not quite so bad. I"m always shooting for the sky, I think.

    lori, I have seen that too. A gorgeous horse that can't be captured on film and a plain one that comes across much prettier than it really is. Particularly on video. With that being said I can't believe the number of people who buy horses on video alone. That could end up bad....

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