Stephanie's Herd

When Stephanie first inquired with me I have to admit I was a bit nervous, 4 horses is a bit intimidating after all. Once I heard about each of her four horses, Allie, Pinot, Daisy and Rocky, and all of their different personalities, I was so excited for the challenge and opportunity to capture their beauty and uniqueness.

It was the most beautiful fall day when I arrived at their property, which was hidden behind the beautiful changing colours of the leaves. All four horses were lined up, groomed to perfection and ready for their close up. Stephanie, her husband and their adorable dog all couldn't have been nicer and I was excited to spend the afternoon capturing their horses.

We started first with Rocky, an Oldenburg who Stephanie had imported from overseas 2 years ago, every equestrians dream. He was a gleaming bay and so beautiful, although I don't have to tell you that, I'm sure you can determine that from just looking at his photos. He looked larger than life but was the kindest and sweetest horse to be around, and so easy to model. It took no time to get stunning images of him.

Next was Allie, who I was excited to capture because of the special place she held in Stephanie's heart, as her first horse. She was 22 and had been with Stephanie for 18 years, a true partnership. At 22 she was still so beautiful and stood with a regal stature. I could tell that there was a strong bond between her and Stephanie, the pair communicated easily and familiarly. It was a treasure to capture portraits of this most important mare in her golden years.

The two ponies were to follow, with Daisy first, who was so cute, my heart melted. She was stunning with her dapples and as Stephanie described, cute to look at but sassy underneath, as most ponies are. Stephanie had owned her for 12 years, a long time and the pair had shared many memorable moments on trail rides together. I could just imagine this little pony taking her rider on quite the adventure. She was a dream to photograph, I mean you can't really go wrong with a pony this cute!

Last, but certainly not least was the little black pony Pinot, although she acted more like a big puppy dog. This little mare liked to lick everything, and I had to be sure to keep my camera well away from her tongue. She was and absolutely adorable little thing and had no problem with modelling for the camera. It was so much fun to capture her quirky personality.

Stephanie's herd is certainly a diverse bunch of ponies and horses, each looking and behaving uniquely. Capturing each of their personalities separately was a joy, but even more so to capture them together against the background of the fall colours. I never get tired of watching horses gallop, graze, and just be horses.

Meeting Stephanie and her herd was a delight, it was a joyful and easy-going day and her horses are all so beautiful. It was truly an honour to preserve each of their memories in beautiful images for her to treasure forever. It was clear that Stephanie adores all four of her horses and their unique personalities and memories shared together. As someone who treasures my own relationship with my first horse, getting to see the relationship between her and Allie after 18 years together was remarkable and reminded me of the reason I love being an equine photographer. The bonds that we build with these animals are so exceptional, and yet our time with them is always limited, and to preserve the memories we share, and the beauty of our equine partners is so special and important. It was an honour to get to provide this treasure for Stephanie.