Horse and Owner Portraits: Shelley, Moonbeam and Sunny

I’ve been enjoying Equestrian photography lately, and this session with our friend Shelley is a great example of why.

Shelley recently brought Moonbeam home to her farm. She’s wanted a horse just like this for a long time, and it finally happened. Shelley and her family have been friends of ours for many years, so it only seemed right that we’d make some portraits of her with Moonbeam. We also included her other horse, Sunny, in these shots.

I didn’t go into our session with a shot list or any specific ideas. I knew I wanted them to be beautiful but beyond that, I just wanted to keep it simple, which is generally how I like to approach portraits.

I’ve been spending a lot of time around horses lately, and something I’ve learned: horses definitely have their own personalities, and moods. So for this session, I gave a little direction at times, and other times I just observed the interaction and the images just kind of appeared in front of me.  At least that’s what it feels like when things are going right.  And that’s probably why these portraits just feel so personal and authentic.

The Perfect Golden Hour Lighting?

We’d planned on doing the photos later in the day to take advantage of that beautiful Golden Hour light everyone loves.  That time when the sun is going to be dropping into the horizon and the warm light just works like magic.

But the clouds had other ideas.  So we worked with what we had.

That’s another thing I like about this kind of photography. There are some things you can control, but there are plenty of things you can’t. The light changes. The horse moves. A moment happens that you weren’t expecting.  But fight it?  Nope.  This is when you use what you have and forget about chasing perfection.  It’s the feel of the images that’s most important.

There’s a feeling of freedom when there’s no pressure to make every frame amazing. We had time to work, try some things, move around, and see what looked good. Experience guides me, and staying open to the opportunities that show up generally results in good portraits.

What I enjoy most about photographing someone with their horse is that you’re not just photographing a person. You’re photographing something that’s important to that person. Their horse isn’t just a prop, it’s part of their story.

To me, the goal is to make photographs that capture that connection. This could be a more deliberate, well-executed portrait, or a simple moment between the horse and their owner. Nothing wrong with having both.

The Approach That Works

I’m not really interested in putting everyone through the same posing formula and making photographs that all look alike from session to session. I like working with the person in front of me to let their personality come through in the photographs.

Depending on what we’re trying to convey, that might mean dramatic portraiture with carefully controlled lighting, or simply using available light to capture an authentic connection. Either way, it’s about being open to the possibilities, and ready when those special moments appear.