Focus on Horses Workshop | Toronto Equine Photography
As a photographer, it is important to always be learning, to stretch yourself creatively and try something new. It’s also often a chance to do a little bit of travel and connect with other photographers who share similar interests. So, each year, I look for educational opportunities that will allow me to expand my skills, and thus, the work I am able to offer to Posh Pets clients.
For some time now, I have wanted to try my hand at equine photography. Horses are gorgeous creatures with such grace and speed, and, having taken English riding lessons myself (many years ago!), I knew that photographing them would require a different approach from how I photograph dogs and cats. After doing some research, in September, I had the absolute joy to attend the Focus on Horses workshop in California. It was run by the immensely talented Eden Halbert of Sierra Luna Photography and Suzon Murray of Fuzzywunkle. I had followed Eden’s work for some time and had been astounded by the horse imagery she produces. (Please check her out – her ability to capture the spirit of the wild horse is breathtaking.) I was not as familiar with Suzon’s work, but after the time we spent together during the workshop, I was in awe of the wealth of experience she has working with horses in all types of situations, and her mastery at processing an image to create a final piece of artwork. All of which she was more than happy to share with us!
We had 3 days of a combination of in-class business information and post-processing techniques, as well as hands-on time to photograph horses and models. (The in-class portion was a welcome relief from the California drought and crazy heat!) I’m immensely proud to share with you here some of the images we were able to create.
We started with the traditional western seat. Lily brought her horse and a lovely outfit for us to photograph in the early morning sun.
Elaine was the English rider, Hunter seat specifically. The bond between Elaine and her beautiful horse was amazing to see and photograph.
Our final model was Sandy, who wore a stunning bridal gown for the session. Under the never-ending California sun, she was able to give us some truly unique and beautiful images.
And just because I do truly love the little furry faces, I couldn’t resist this little barn cat who followed us around all 3 days and, at this point, seemed to be saying, “Hey! What’s with all of the interest in the horses? I’m standing right here. How about you photograph ME?” Saucy little thing. I wanted to bring her home. 🙂