I was thrilled to recently be commissioned to photograph the Blue Gum Stallions in a unique fashion, firstly, in a “Studio” Style setting, complete with backdrops and lighting equipment.
Blue Gum Farm were keen to recreate a shoot they had done many years prior with their stallions and wanted their current Stallions to have the same “Fine Art” style photographs.
The type of photographs that could be proudly displayed in an office, in an “Art Gallery’ style setting, rather than just standard portraiture.
The staff busily constructed backdrops in the stallion barn, and I tested my lighting on the “Human Models” to ascertain the right distances, correct power outage and correct lens to use for this shoot. Once all testing was complete, it was time to bring in our Equine Models.
I was also keen to showcase a point of difference with each stallion, showcasing their natural beauty but uniqueness at the same time.
Glass Harmonium loves showing off for the camera with his favourite position being to rear up for the cameras (more on that in Part 2 of this shoot) but in the Studio setting, he was a perfect model.
Our next model was Turffontein, a rich liver chestnut colour, with generous forelock and an absolutely beautiful eye. I wanted to showcase his colouring, but in a subtle way and focus in on his unique colouring and his natural beauty.
The challenge with our next model, Manhattan Rain was to ensure we showcased his white marking on his face, without the need to move his forelock too much, but to have an image that distinguished him.
War looked amazing from so many angles, but his real beauty comes in his strength, through the neck and chest. He also has a beautiful eye, and I had to ensure we had him on just the right angle to showcase these qualities.
For Part 2 of this Photo Shoot – Stay Tuned!
