Western Horse Photography

Katy, Whiskey, & Mom

I am an English rider, but I have dabbled a little bit into western disciplines. One of my favorite things about western horse photography is the laid-back attitude that the horses have. They are used to standing at shows and waiting their turn or being in halter classes. Standing still for a photoshoot is often no problem for them! They are also stunning. Do not get me wrong, I love a gorgeous Warmblood and ya’ll know I am obsessed with spotted ponies. However, western horses have the most muscling. They are often a little shorter and super wide, so all of that muscle is packed into a smaller horse. All of this makes them so photogenic! Katy’s two western horses were no exception. They were both stunning, and “Mom” had the prettiest dapples on her bay coat. It is hard to take a bad photo of such pretty horses!

Katy is a recent graduate from the University of Florida. She now has a masters degree! I have known her for several years from my time at UF in the equine science department. She has been working with the equine science department for years and still works at the Research Center in Ocala. I think she has one of the best jobs! She gets to see all the mares’ foal and play with the babies whenever she wants. Seems like a pretty good job to me! Mom and Whiskey are actually siblings and both of them were purchased from UF. I think Katy has a thing for this bloodline, she is already eyeing a yearling from the same bloodline! It was a joy to get to photograph her with her two bay ponies and celebrate her graduation. We had a blast (despite the wind) waiting for the sunset in Ocala.