Shooting Horses....like....photo-wise :)
By Chiara Fulgoni
30 March 2008
So. When i started photography, the first things I actually really took photos of were horses. Mainly because I went out on trips to 'the field' with my major-horse-loving friend. At first I took so many photos but they all seemed to look the same. The traditional front of face of half face with the body going into the background.
I really had to bond with the horse before even lifting a camera, you need to make them feel comfortable with you around them and reassure them that the camera isn't some machine that will rip their head off. You need to be careful of the flash popping up too, it can startle them easily....then again anything can really startle them easily. You also need to feel safe around them, choose the right horse and make sure you feel okay when very close to them.
You need to be creative if you want to take loads of pictures of them without ending up with the same photo every shot. Get someone to hold the horse still if you are really desperate for a certain position. Look at all the possible angles, unlike people, horses don't look horribly unattractive from below, in fact it could make a great comic shot. Try taking pictures of other things rather than their faces and take full advantage if they break into a gallop. I haven't been lucky enough go get any good action shots but I'm still waiting.
Tip: don't put your bag in the middle of a field and leave it so the horses can trample on it and almost break your mobile phone inside. :)
