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In this interview, Megan shares her photography career journey so far…

When did you first acknowledge your passion and skill for photography?

“I can’t remember the exact age I started to take pictures but I do have fond memories of using my brother’s Nikon camera when I was younger. I guess he acted as a spur to my progression in the photography world. I have grown up with horses and enjoyed taking photos of my friends with their horses. I developed my practice when working at events for Martha Lily Photography. Since then, I have been determined to explore new projects and broaden my skills specifically as an equestrian photographer.”

What advice would you give to anyone wanting to pursue equestrian photography as a career? 

“It has taken me a few years to find my niche as well as my confidence. It’s a hard industry to be recognised in and you need to be resilient, passionate and hardworking if you are to succeed. It’s not only how you represent your style to the public- but also you need to be media aware as well as technology savvy in order to successfully launch a business. Marketing on social media, although free, is time consuming. I’m still getting used to that! The industry is flooded and competitive – there are lots of quality photographers competing for business or recognition; therefore, it is imperative to represent your unique style in every picture you shoot and share.

I photograph with a Nikon D700 camera. I have 2 lenses (a Nikon 70-200 and also a 50mm). I tend to use my 50mm for dark room images. Equipment is expensive to purchase but you have to see it as an investment. The same applies for editing software. My motto is, ‘Invest to progress’; however, I still have days where I cringe at my bank statements!”

Have you any special photography memories that you could share? Have you ever worked with any famous brands, iconic horses or professional riders?

“I have been employed by Synovium UK to photograph content for their marketing campaigns, labels and advertisements. Founder, Vicky Hipkins, invited me to experiment when taking photos of her sponsored riders. I get a real buzz and feel inspired when working with clients who are on the same wavelength as me. Most recently, I traveled to North Yorkshire to photograph Synovium’s full range of products. Sponsored rider, Samantha Osborne, brought Synovium Star, Kornetto, and her showjumping gelding, Hubert 2nd. We had such fun using the fantastic facilities, including a water jump. I am currently editing the images for the brand to use in future. I get excited when I can see an image like that in a photo. I can get carried away for hours perfecting it.”

What are your aims for the future? Have you got any interesting pre-planned appointments scheduled on your photography calendar?

“I am in the middle of building a website and creating a business logo to reflect my equestrian and business values and ethos.

I would love to break further into the editorial side of the industry and create special images with a whole lot of soul and quirk! 

I really enjoy working with equestrian brands and one to one with horse lovers for personalised photography packages. I am keen to grow my client list throughout the remainder of 2022. My diary is open for 2023 bookings.” 

What are the key ingredients of a special photo and what do you believe makes your style unique from other equestrian photographers?

“I like to capture the raw and natural emotion that is there in front of me. The quirky moments are rarely captured without what I call the “empath eye”. Photos are memories, and with those memories comes emotion. I believe each photo should capture that specific feeling and hold it there forever. Photography isn’t just clicking a camera button; it’s freezing that memory and that emotion within the captured image. When editing a photo, photographers have the chance to enhance this further. 

I believe that horses are a mirror image of their humans. If you can capture that bond and that love, it’s simply magical! I get giddy when I can feel it with them! You’ll see that on social media I link my photos with quotes, often from my favourite poems. I feel privileged to share my passion and celebrate the arts, like literature, when releasing my work to the public.”

Which photographers inspire you?

“I am a huge fan of ‘Something from the Hart’. Her creativity astounds me! Her work captures deep emotions and feelings.

Secondly, I like to follow PB Artworks. (Phil) is a phenomenal wedding photographer. He produces edgy images that just burst with emotion, which in my opinion is exactly what you want to see in wedding photography. My equestrian work is influenced by the darker and edgier images that Phil creates. 

Finally, Equuis Photography, quite often seen at Newmarket, boasts very special images. Both the movement and timing of the photos are impressive – especially when the sunset is captured, or dark room imagery is applied. They are simply stunning photos!”

What does a typical day in the life of a photographer look like? Can you share what goes on behind the scenes?

“On a typical day, if I get time, I usually research the shoot location. Most of the time I trust my eye and go with the flow at the venue. Upon arrival, I prioritise communicating with my client. We tend to have a good laugh and share pony stories before getting underway with the photography. This helps relax both parties, which is essential for natural images. I’m less keen on forced and artificial looking images. I think it is crucial to listen and understand what the client wants, and what they envisage. It is my responsibility to try to fulfil this within my work. I wish for every experience behind the lens to be a positive one- whether it be the outcome of the photograph or continuing to learn. I prefer to take a lot of images because I like variety and to open my options when editing or selecting the most successful images. I tend to send a couple of photos to a client within the first few days of taking them. This allows me to assess which images they are attracted to but also bridges the suspense gap as they wait for the final collection to arrive. This can take me up to 2-3 weeks to complete.”

To book Meg for a personal or a commercial project, contact:

megan.higginson@yahoo.co.uk

07487633087

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By Ruth Buchanan

Have you ever wanted to try drawing a horse?

I am often told that I am lucky to have such an artistic gift or talent, but I can assure you that while I had the spark of creativity from an early age, the talent and gift is the will to pursue and nurture that. I firmly believe that anyone can draw if they have the will to try and then stick with it, and that the act of drawing is beneficial in many more ways than just producing a pretty picture. Drawing is good for manual dexterity, spacial awareness, is a memory enhancer, and a tool for seeing and understanding the world. In short, a contributory skill to almost any human endeavour and a vital part of our learning.

So what drawing skills and resources do you already have?

The skill of ‘Learning to Look’ is a key factor in drawing. As horse owners, riders and trainers we are used to looking and assessing horses for conformation and lameness. Drawing draws on those skills (no pun intended), but also helps to develop them. Putting lines and marks down on paper is obviously what most people think of when they consider drawing, and we all have those skills and practice them daily when we write letters and numbers, or even when we just doodle. Prevarication is easy: “I don’t have the right materials”; “I don’t have time”. Well we all have more time at the moment and it is an opportunity to explore another skill, just to have fun with drawing or as a very early form of ‘mindfulness’. Getting lost in a drawing is akin to the ‘zone’ I escape to when schooling my horse. You may think you need a photograph to work from, but you can do this type of drawing without reference materials. Once you get the hang of it you can use the techniques to help you work from a photograph, or for sketching horses in the field or stable, with more confidence.

A note of caution: a camera does not see in the same way as our eyes, and the angle from which you take the photo and the type of lens can distort the image. The chief culprits for distortion are smartphone cameras as they have slightly wide-angle lenses. That is why when you take a photo of a horse facing you, the head often looks too big and the back legs look tiny. Learning the basics can help you see and avoid replicating those distortions. For materials, any pencil or pen will do (try not to resort to using an eraser until the very end) and if you don’t have a sketchbook, then a sheet of printer paper or a piece of cardboard packaging will do. It might even be better, as you won’t be thinking of ruining an expensive or ‘proper’ substrate (that’s a fancy art-word for the surface you are working on). I draw on brown postage paper, the back of wallpaper roll ends, old receipts, opened out cigarette packets and even beer mats. My farrier and I have had competitions as to who could draw a horse’s hoof the quickest, using chalk on the concrete floor of the forge! I mourn the loss of paper feed bags as they were great (and free) drawing materials.

The most important resource you have is the attitude of ‘just having a go’, even if the idea is as scary as jumping that log that you keep seeing when out hacking. Fear of failure is what stops us, but focusing on the process rather than the product is what is important here. It is more about getting engrossed in drawing, and how it makes you feel, rather than achieving perfection from the first attempt. Like jumping, the confidence will come with practise.

There are many ways of drawing, but I will demonstrate a simple method to get you started, and you don’t even need a photo to copy. This demonstration is about using skills you already have and using those to gain the confidence to make marks and lines.

Where to start?  

The hardest thing is the first mark, so let’s start at the very beginning with drawing by numbers. I remember an aunt showing me how to draw a duck or swan when I was a child. She drew the number 2, then made it into a bird. You can do the same sort of thing by drawing an angled 0 or an egg shape as a start for the body, and then you have an answer for the question ‘which came first the chicken or the egg?’

The horse is a more complex shape, but I have come up with a way of drawing a stylised horse starting with a combination of the numbers 2,4,6,8 and 0. Let me demonstrate.

Drawing By Numbers

Stage One

Let’s start by drawing a 2. Your first attempt may not be very expressive (my first 2 is shown in the box at the top of the sheet). So, try again making the foot of the 2 longer and more flowing. Kick-on and see how expressive you can be. Think of the flow and rhythm of a beautiful extended trot, or a perfect jumping bascule and fill your sheet with numbers. Draw BIGGER. This is a good warm up. We warm up our horse before a schooling session, so why not warm up our arm (and mind) before drawing?

Stage Two

Now you have a choice of 2s to work from, or you can draw another, bigger version. Let’s make the stem and foot of the 2 into a 4, and extend the head of the 2 into a 6. I chose the 2 in the middle of the sheet and have enlarged my choice to make it easier for you to see. Stick with me – it will make sense in the end!

Stage Three

Now turn your drawing ninety degrees clockwise and draw an elongated 8 around the foot of the 2/4. If you find it difficult to elongate the 8 your horse might look a bit short-coupled, so turn your picture back to straight and add a 0 behind the 8. This can overlap the bottom of the 8 or sit completely behind it – experiment and find what works for you.

Stage Four

We have now gotten rid of the scary blank sheet of paper, and have the basis for a horse’s body. All we then have to do is sketch our horse using the 6 as the base for the horse’s cheek and the crossbar of the 4 as the angle for the shoulder.

Stage Five

We can use more numbers to add the legs. I used 7s for the hind legs and 9s for the knees and lower front legs. You can also use backward 7s for the front legs. I find it useful when drawing the hind legs to add another 7 for the angles of the pelvis and thigh bone (femur) ending at the stifle before drawing another 7 to the hock and then the fetlock. Just then connect these other numbers to the body. I also tidied up some of the other drawing – the numbers are just a framework to make a start, so we can change them as much as we want as the drawing progresses.

Now we can start to play! 

When you get more confident, you can start to change the angles of the starting 2 to draw horses in different positions or movements. This is a couple of pages from an A5 notebook. I did rough versions in pencil, then used Sharpie pens in different colours to show the numbers that make up the frame. I have also shown the angle of the starting 2 above the sketches in each drawing.

Tip:

Learn the sequence of footfalls in the gaits. I have seen beautifully rendered drawings and paintings of horses, but the sequence is wrong so the legs are in the wrong position. This gives a ‘something is off’ feel to the artwork. In the top right of my notebook the horse is in trot, as the legs are moving in diagonal pairs. Bottom left, the draught horse is walking – left hind; left fore; right hind; right fore. Bottom right, the horse is galloping, which has the same sequence as walk. These diagrams may help you remember the sequences. Each sequence starts with the left hind, so if your horse is starting with the right hind, then you have to swap sides. Note: These are the sequences for dressage-based gaits. Some gaited horses have different sequences.

Know the gaits

How to continue your drawing

A lot of people will give up at this stage, and that is why they never achieve (what they think is) a good drawing. To just use line to make a convincing drawing takes a lot of skill and experience. Shading will help the drawing to make more sense, and cover some of the construction lines. This can also be simplified into three stages, which is quicker than working on a small area at a time. Working over the whole area also gives more control of the tonal balances over the whole piece.

Shading in three stage

Three stage shading works by first lightly shading over all the areas that are not light. To help me decide this I have identified the light source with a little symbol, top left. We can correct our drawings at any stage. In stage one, you can see that I changed the hind legs – while the flowing angles worked in the sketch, the more realistic angles work better in the shaded drawing. In the second stage, we identify the darkest parts of the drawing and put those in by either cross hatching (lines crossing at right angles to the original lines), or by pencil pressure. I edited, by making the belly lower and added a rough line under the horse’s hooves called an establishing shadow. This places the horse on the ground rather than floating in the air. The third stage uses the pencil, a finger or an eraser to blend the transitions between light, mid and dark tones. We can also ‘lift’ some lighter areas with an eraser. You can see that most of the construction lines are now covered or erased.

Stage One  | Stage Two  | Stage Three

Pencils come in different grades. The usual ones you buy are HB, but you can also get H pencils which are harder and grey in colour, or B pencils which are softer and darker. I mostly use a 2H, H, B, 3B and 6B in my sketchbook, but my drawing here uses an HB pencil on printer paper.

Tip:

Sharpen your pencil when you want it darker. You can also dip the lead in water to get it darker still, but once wet, it is harder to erase and, if too wet, it will make your paper wrinkle. The paper can also tear easily when wet, so I used the side of the lead rather than the point.

So there you have an easy way to draw a horse. Of course, it is not the only way of drawing, and in workshops I teach ten ways to work and at least four ways of shading. Given time I could teach 50 ways to draw! Hopefully this method will give you a start and some confidence to explore by yourself to find the way of drawing that suits you.

Happy sketching!

Author – Ruth Buchanan BA(hons), SEA, IEA

One of the earliest things that Ruth remembers drawing as a child was a horse. She also remembers sitting at the back of maths classes, drawing horses with her friends. That fascination remained with her throughout her previous careers both in graphic design and as a college lecturer, and she says, it was inevitable that she would be true to her childhood obsession, becoming a full-time artist in 2001 with a specialism in horses and people.

Ruth exhibits at International Horse Shows and Events, as well as in galleries, and has been selected five times as one of fourteen artists to represent British watercolour painting at the Annual International Festival of Watercolour, Fabriano in Aquarello, Italy. Ruth has won awards for her art and her sketchbooks and Ruth’s work features in the private collections of notable names from the spheres of The Arts and Equestrianism in the UK, Europe, America and the UAE.

Ruth’s painting is underpinned by strong drawing, and her appreciation of form, light and movement is based on her frequent study of drawing from life: horses, humans and other animals. She was promoted to Full Member of the Society of Equestrian Artists in 2016 and is a member of the Association of Animal Artists and has taught workshops for both organisations.  Ruth also writes demonstration articles for Art Magazines in the UK and the USA. Her book, Hoof, Hide and HeART: The Art of Drawing and Painting Animals was published in 2019. Ruth undertakes a limited number of commissioned paintings each year.

Contact details:

Artist website: www.ruthbuchanan.co.uk

(Ruth’s paintings, news and details about the artist)

Published work e-commerce site: www.horsedrawn.co.uk

(prints and greetings cards from Ruth’s work and her book)

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Horses are beautiful, there’s no doubt about that. With such graceful creatures it should be easy to get an amazing photograph…. So why do so many snaps fall short of expectations?

I have had the pleasure of working with many horses in my life as an equine photographer. They make stunning subjects for a photograph and a photo shoot with them can easily create stunning pieces of photographic art.

However taking photographs of horse presents many difficulties and so here I offer some of my top tips to help you get the best results. You don’t need a fancy camera to follow most of these tips. Nor do you need to spend hours learning how to edit photos. You just need a bit of time to practise and some patience.

Safety

Let’s get this first on the list. It may be your horse or someone else’s that you know well that you are taking pictures of. However, as well all know, they are unpredictable animals and you may well have lots of expensive equipment on you. Please don’t try to lead your horse when your hands are full with a camera. Also be aware that if you have a camera up to your face you will not be as aware of what is going on around you as you normally are. Be extra careful if you are in a field with more than one horse.

Be ready for sudden moves. Don’t put yourself or your models (horse or human) in a position they are uncomfortable with that may scare them. Check the horse is happy with the noise the camera makes whilst they are tied up.  Alternatively ensure someone has a firm hold of them before you start snapping away. It is rare to find a horse that reacts to the click, but not unheard of. If you are going to use flash (and yes you can with horses – but I don’t have room here to cover flash techniques) again do the same and get the horse used to it. Most of them will settle fairly quickly.

Lighting

We can’t control the wonderful British weather. If only we could all take pictures of our horses in the sun they crave so much.

But, if you can, do think about the weather on the day. Slightly overcast but bright days are the best for getting an even picture with no harsh shadows. Horse’s ears are long and can create some interesting shadows across faces, as can rider’s hats. 

Rain is generally a no-go. If it is raining on the day of my shoots I postpone to another day as soggy horses do not make the best pictures. But if you’ve got no choice please put a plastic bag over your camera/phone leaving just the lens uncovered. Plus keep the lens free from raindrops and you can snap away. Wind can put the horses a bit on edge – but makes for some great movement in photos.

Cleanliness

If you are planning on taking shots of your horse or having a professional shoot done, make sure that the horse and all their tack are clean. This includes making sure any headcollars etc you might use are in good condition. It’s really easy to ruin that photograph of a lifetime – your horse cantering through the field – with a tatty-edged webbing headcollar.  Unless you are a photoshop genius you will never get rid of it. Plus, please think about eyes and ears – it’s easier to get rid of bogeys before you take the shot than afterwards.

Colour

Think about the colours your human models are wearing in relation to the horse and the colours the horse is going to wear too.

Red works well in almost all cases. In fact red is a photographer’s trick colour, it is often used to make photos ‘pop’ and look more appealing. Bright colours in general are a good idea. If possible avoid white – it is very easy to overexpose white on a photo and so can make getting the balance of brights versus darks very hard.

Assistant

If you can consider having an assistant with you, maintaining good social distancing of course.

If can help is someone holds the horse (whether they are in the photos or not) – this assistant must be comfortable and in control of the horse. Or maybe they can stand at a good distance behind you and shake a bucket, flap a towel, chuck a packet of crisps around – basically anything that will get those ears forward.

Technicals

Not everyone has an expensive camera, and you don’t need one to get nice photos if you follow most of these instructions. But if you do have a DSLR/Bridge Camera or even a phone that is v good for photography then read the below two paragraphs.

I could write a whole series of articles on what settings you need for your camera for what particular shots and light conditions – but it’d bore most of you and probably me as well. So here’s one simple rule for when you are first starting out… If you can, put your camera/phone into ‘sports’ mode – the one where you hold the button down and it takes lots of shots in quick succession. Then point the camera at the horse and whenever you think it’s a possible good shot, press the button and take three or four shots.

Now I know the camera purists out there will be tutting and talking about waiting for the right moment in the stride or until everyone is ears forward, eyes open and stood still, but with modern digital cameras you can afford to take a few hundred shots in a day and delete the ones that don’t work when you look through them. We aren’t all quick enough to get that perfect moment, so don’t be afraid to take more shots than you think you’ll need. Be very snap happy and you should have some shots where you’ve managed to get your horse without his tongue out shaking his head!

Do think about where the sun is in relation to your subject and use it to your advantage. To light a horse up make sun it is behind you and not the horse. However don’t be afraid to experiment with the sun. Take some shots with the sun behind the subject as well – you can get some lovely effects.

Composition

This is perhaps the hardest to explain, but really does make all the difference between a ‘snapshot’ and a stunning picture.

Firstly think about what is in the background. You don’t need the rolling hills of Yorkshire (though I’m lucky enough to have them on my doorstep). Mostly all you need is a hedge or a wall. Just try to pick a spot where there are no old barrels, jump stands, tractors etc… in the background. Things that are brightly coloured, for example traffic cones, will be distracting to the eye – so move them, move the horse or be prepared to take them out of the photo in post -editing.

Use the rule of thirds. You might have heard this expression before and it is a useful one to think of in equine photography. The instinct when you take a photo is to put the subject right in the middle – and in some cases this is the best thing to do (formal showing shots for example). But don’t be afraid to place the subject a third of the way in from the side of the photograph. It gives the effect of allowing the subject ‘more room to move’.  Also think about which side to place them on – if possible have more room in front of the direction of movement than behind.

One final thing on composition is size. Try some shots with your subject far away, try some with them close up. Remember it is often easier to move the photographer than the horse. Also think about the size of the photo afterwards – do not be afraid to crop the photo and change the dimensions. There are loads of free online editing apps that you can do this with.  For example a letterbox shape can look great on a cantering action shot.

Perspective

Unless you want a comedy shot (and they do have their place) then you need to think about where you take the photo from, in relation to the horse.

If you take a picture sitting on the ground you will elongate the horse’s legs, if you take the picture looking up the horses nostrils they will have a big nose and small ears. Also if you take the shot from behind they will look to have a bigger bottom and if you take it head on they will have a big head. This is due to the size of a horse – it is a lot of animal to get into one lens.

If you have the luxury of a zoom lens the rough rule is that you will get a truer perspective if you take the picture stood further away and zoom in than if you stand close and zoom out. There’s a lot of complicated science behind that, which I don’t want to get into – but trust me it’s true.

A key consideration that most people don’t think about is height – and that means your height when taking the photo in relation to the horse’s height. To get the best perspective you want to be roughly level with the horse’s barrel, so if it’s a small pony or your champion foal you need to bend down. Incidentally if you have a dog – try this next time you take a picture of it – get down to their level (even laying on the floor if required) and you’ll get better shots.

If you want to ‘improve’ your horse‘s confirmation in a photo then perspective is key. Want a slightly bigger bottom? Take the picture side on and slightly from behind, or the horse walking away from you. Want to make sure the horse looks ‘up in the whither’? Cheat and stand it on a slight hill facing up the hill. Whatever you do try to avoid taking pics of a horse standing facing downhill, high back-ends and down in the whither shots don’t please anyone. Do think about perspective – but don’t be afraid to play around with it for fun.

Details

Think about the details… When I do photo shoots for customers I always zoom in and get shots of small details.

These photos can look great as part of a collage in a frame, photo book or a series of mini-canvases. So take your time and think about the little things, you don’t need to the get the whole horse in every shot. Take a picture of the horse’s eye, it’s muzzle, a fancy buckle or tassel on the bridle or a detail of the handler’s outfit. These more ‘arty’ shots are always popular at my photo shoot viewing sessions. But beware of reflections in horse’s eyes as you may find yourself with camera/phone looking back out of the photo.

I hope that you bear these factors in mind next time you are taking a picture. Please do try them out and see if you get better photos as a result.

I’m not promising you will be David Bailey straight away – but give it a go. Don’t forget to have fun with it and most importantly if all else fails do remember a professional photoshoot is always fun and once this is all over I can help you out with that.

Top 5 Tips

Sun – think about positioning the sun behind you to light up the horse

Thirds – place the horse or rider a third of the way into your shot

Details – use closer in shots to highlight what you like about your horse

Practice – take lots of shots and weed out the rubbish afterwards

Safety – be careful out there

Author

Katie Amos is a horse and dog photographer based in Todmorden, West Yorkshire. Her days are spent on private commission work for clients – taking photographs of them with their animals at home or on their yards. She also works for a number of equestrian brands creating images of their products for websites and brochures. Katie has her own dressage horse Otto and a rescue dog Holly. You can see Katie’s work at www.equineshoot.com

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