KCDS Dressage Show - more learning

A couple of weeks ago I was exhibiting a horse at the Kansas City Dressage Society show at Longview Horse Park in Kansas City. While my schedule was quite hectic, and the weather was super chilly (meaning, I went home for the afternoon on Saturday between my morning and late day ride, because it was THAT COLD), I did find time to sit in the stands for a small handful of rides and practice.

Every time I've shot equines, I've worked very hard on getting my timing exact so that I frame the horse's stride exactly as I want - in other words, I don't like having to "ride the shutter" (depress the shutter so it is shooting several frames per second) to get the photo I want. I want total control over what I am trying to achieve, at all times, and not relying on the camera to do it for me.

For sure, I had some flubbed shots (the point of practice is to learn!), but I really was starting to get some good timing down. Here are a few of my shots from Sunday.

Stonewall Farms Schooling Show

Stonewall Farms in Kearney, Missouri hosted a dressage schooling show in late April. I was lucky to be able to shoot the show. It proved to be challenging, especially in the morning, as the sky outside was murky, dreary and drizzly and provided little ambient light inside the indoor arena. Since there were small children riding and some very young horses, I did not want to use flash. I learned a TON about low-light action shooting this day. And I'm very glad that Stonewall asked me back to shoot their show on June 21st!

Good Morning!

...from Longview Horse Park. It was a windy, cold, actually...no....FRIGID morning...but I snapped this sunrise before heading to ride. I was at my car getting some of my gear, and literally took my camera out of my bag in the trunk and snapped this and put it back away.

Fly-in season is here!

Jim and I attended our first fly-in of 2008 last weekend in Warrensburg, Missouri. While I'm working on sorting out the GREAT shots from my first official horse show of the year to post, I thought I'd throw up a photo from the fly-in. This is Jim Burr's Christen Eagle - which he built himself and finished last year. It was a textbook perfect day for flying - sunny and almost calm winds - and this photo really reflects the beauty of the day! (and of the airplane!)

It's been a long winter. :)