How to Take Gorgeous Photos of your Horse

Taking photos of horses (and all animals) takes patience & time. They all have their own personalities, and getting them to stand a certain way, etc, can be challenging.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Patience
• Digital Camera
• More Patience

1. 
    

   Move close to your main subject for your photo.
   
   In this case I cropped the photo, and added a cinema border to it for a more bold look.

2. 
    

   When taking a photo of the entire horse, you'll need to be careful when snapping the photo from a forward angle.
   
   The wrong forward angle can make the entire horse seem out of proportion.
   
   Try to snap your photos from the side and slightly behind your horse.

3. 
    

   If your taking a still photo of your horse, it's the most flattering for the horse to be standing with its feet square (Square is when both the front legs even with each other, and both the back legs even with each other)
   
   The horse's legs do not have to be exactly even with each other, just close.

4. 
    

   Get those ears up!
   
   If you snap a photo of your horse with his ears back or down it will look unflattering, no matter how gorgeous your horse is.
   
   You want the ears to be up & forward in your photos, unless you are specifically trying to capture the horse's emotions where his ears are back or down.

5. 
    

   The background of your photo should be as uncluttered as possible.
   
   Your horse should dominate the photograph, with little or nothing to distract the eye such as people or vehicles.
   
   If your background is distracting, move your horse to a nice back drop & change your angle if needed.

6. 
    

   Normally you'll want your horse to be centered in the picture. However, off-center framing can be perfect for some shots.

7. 
    

   If you see a good shot, take it and don't hesitate! Hesitating is a common reaction.....you feel that if you wait you will get that "perfect" shot. But that's not usually how it works out.
   
   If you are using a digital camera then hesitating should not be an issue because there is no concern about the cost of film development. You can take as many shots as you want without adding to your costs.
   
   You can then preview all of your photos and delete the ones you don't like.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep snapping if you are using a digital. I've snapped literally hundreds of photos in one day of my horse, and then pick & choose which ones I like & don't like.

[vallain]

on 1/5/2009 Thanks for the advice on photographing horses. I'll have my camera ready the next time I see one.

[painthorse42]

on 10/2/2008 Thanks Fuller1972! Nope, not professional. I just really enjoy taking pictures of my horse! :o) The one with a rider is me riding him, so that one pic I didn't take.

[Fuller1972]

on 10/2/2008 Awesome photos Are you a professional pet photographer? 5