I am thinking equine photography is not really pet photography and not really nature photography. I guess it is a category all of its own.

That being said, here is a picture from today. It was dreary, windy and overcast

Ah, if you think of your horse as a pet, it's a pet. If it's a member of the family, it's a member of the family. if it's an investment, it's an investment.

I should add:

I have an English Springer Spaniel - he's the only male we have (we have 2 Cavaliers, too - and we've had them since BEFORE the breed was fashionable...LOL) - he's a pain in the a$$, but he's...

~ My Boy
~ My Guy
~ The Man
~ My Buddy
~ ...and, sometimes, my Dumba$$

He's not my pet, or my dog - he's a member of our "pack", which makes him family to me.

I know that sounds kinda granola-in-the-wind-corny-and-equality-for-animals, etc., but it's how I think of my pooches - they're our "kids"...and they'll NEVER ask for the keys to my car! LOL

Well said, Duane. Very well said. Very cute shot, Julie.

-JM

I bred her mother with the intent of getting a very nice horse. I did very well on that and she is exactly what I hoped for. So, she is a very loved member of the family.

She is also expensive to keep! Most horses are NOT good investments, as they are just something you feed large bills to monthly.

I think I am going to break into the paid photography business with equine portraits. I don't have studio equipment, so, this is a type of portrait I can do without it.

I do plan on getting studio equipment, but that will be more toward the summer. I am going to take a portrait and portrait lighting class this spring. Then, I will venture out into pet portraits.

Perhaps you could set up a "studio" in a vacant stall in the barn? (Don't know the arrangements there for your horse, so I'm guessing. Perhaps, if the current space does not exist, you could add onto the existing stucture to accomodate a space dedicated, and large enough, to allow "controlled-light" portaits of horses?

Just thinking out loud.

...and if you're feeding the bills TO the horse each month, just tell the collectors "my horse ate it" when they come knocking - see, no need to actually PAY the bills, just let the horse deal with it all... LOL

The barn is the dustiest place on earth I doubt anyone would mind, but, yech. You ought to see my camera when I leave the barn. Weathersealing was a must for me.

Here are a couple of her being ridden today. A friend was on her

This one was going for a dramatic lighting effect, not sure if I ought to crop it or not. I think it might loose the perspective




Here she is over fences

LOVE her color in the sun! Nice work.

...and the jump-shot (stealing the NBA phrase there...LOL) is fantastic - the only suggestion might be to crop THAT one along the right-hand side to blance the horse & rider to the midle.

That said, the space on the right side creates a nice dynamic of the horse "jumping into that open space" - if that makes sense.

Regardless - nice work.

Hey Julie,

Weather proofing is a wonderful thing...though I am not sure what system could help you with all the dust in the barn. This is an area that Olympus had really done a nice job with on the market.

Having said that, there are other alternatives. For example, I normally shoot weddings with two cameras on my body...one with a wide angle lens and one with a medium zoom. This eliminates any need to switch lenses during an event. I do this not because of concern for dust, but because I hate fiddeling with lenses during an event. Many people like lenses that cover an entire zoom range of 28-200. Not my cup of tea, but they do work.

Nice shots!
-JM

It is honestly why I bought the E-1. It was weathersealed and has the dust buster deal. I can still do an F22 sky shot with no dust on my sensor after 10k shots and changing lenses in the barn. There are things that other systems do better(like canon and high ISO) but, nothing that was more important to me. Plus I rarely have to mess with color.

I wish I was plush enough with cash to have multiple camera bodies. I am saving up for the replacement for the E-1. From the insider info I have gotten, it will be announced Jan 26 and shown at PMA. It is rumored to have double digit mp, excellent high ISO performance, more focus points, much faster AF and more fps. The biggie is that it may possibly have in body image stabilization.

My tax return is already slotted to paint the house and do some necessary things. Maybe by the end of the year....

Hey Julie,

When you say 'insider information,' can you say (obviously without giving it away) what that means? I am very curious about the E-1 replacement.

-JM