I was recently hired by Cargill’s equine division (with brands like Nutrena and ACCO) to do a photo shoot where I was helping to build a stock photo library for them. What was supposed to be a three day shoot, turned into one crazy 14 hour shoot! I shot a wide variety of images from horses at liberty, to jumping, to groundwork, to lifestyle images and even some dog photos. Look for these and many more images to start to show up on products and in advertising in the near future!
The Cargill staff was fun to work with and the horses and models we had to work with were wonderful. I also have to give a shout out to my friend Nanci Fulmek, a super talented fine art painter and great friend who was my assistant and moral support for the day. I can’t think of anyone else I would have wanted assisting me that day. Her knowledge of art and horses, and her personal support of me were invaluable. Nanci always makes me laugh and I needed that to keep me going – thanks Nanci!
We had scheduled to start at 6:30am. As I drove to the first location, Bleu Valley Farm, a beautiful fog covered the ground. I prayed that it would stick around until I could get my camera out and start taking photos. Thankfully, it did, and I had an amazing opportunity to photograph the horses in the fog!
To view more images, visit the slideshow.
After the fog lifted, I had beautiful morning light to work with.
Our next location was Square Lake Farm. It’s a beautiful new high-tech facility that was a dream the work in. The footing in their indoor arena was like tropical beach sand. I wanted to take off my boots and let it squish between my toes.
Up until last year, I had never photographed jumping. It’s harder than it looks (unless you look at it and think it’s hard!), and I was so thankful I had taken the opportunity to learn it, because this fantastic horse was jumping big jumps and we couldn’t do it all day long until I got it right. I was super happy to nail most of the shot.
Next up, some dogs! The little Jack Russell was really well trained. It was fun to work with him.
And of course, what breed can match the intensity of the border collie!
Our last location was Medicine Bar Ranch, owned by Ed and Missy Millhouse. I did a workshop here a few years ago and it was likely one of the connections that got my name in front of Cargill. I so love this location for it’s variety and beauty and the really fun people I get to hang out with when I’m there. :) The focus at this location was lifestyle images.
Exhausted, we called it a day!
To view more images, visit the slideshow.
