Capturing a Better Shot
Tips and Tricks for Taking Conformation Photos
There is a cliché saying regarding photographs – one is worth a thousand words. When taking pictures of horses, however, a single picture could be worth a thousand dollars. Good conformation photos in sale or stud ads can make a tremendous difference when trying to advertise a horse. Nice images also do wonders to promote rare breeds like the Sugarbush Draft. Whether the picture is for a sale ad, registration papers, or even just to show off how wonderful SDHR horses are, taking a quality photograph is important.
To start, here are some common mistakes people make when taking pictures of their horses. I'm going to offer up my gelding as the example. Like every other enthusiastic horse owner, I too am guilty of snapping lots of sub-par photographs. So, let me introduce you to Vance. He is a Belgian-Paint cross (non-SDHR) and a product of the Permarin industry. He is a pretty typical, generic draft cross. Take a look at the following image.
Does this give anyone an idea of what this horse is really like? Is there any indication that he has had training? Not to me. I see a horse in good health standing in a pasture. He is not standing square to give the viewer a real indication of how well – or not – he is put together. The ground is uneven too, which only makes trying to get any idea of his conformation even harder. While he is relatively clean, there certainly wasn't time put into preparing for this picture. The image also fails to show the entire horse. He could have a club foot on that hind leg and no one could tell. And, while this picture does not have debris to draw attention away from the horse,there is a barbed wire fence in the way.
Now, imagine seeing this image in a for sale ad with a $2,000 price tag. A lot of people would move on to the next ad without a second thought. I did not put any effort in to presenting my horse to the best of my ability. I certainly did not display any of his many great qualities to appeal to a potential buyer. How could I expect anyone to take me or my horse seriously if this is the image I present to advertise him?
This is just one example image of what not to do when taking photographs of a horse. The goal is to do the horse justice and to move far away from the “backyard breeder” label. Some may read this and think, "I don’t have time for that." But, consider why a
10 Hitching Post/February, 2014