I wanted to come up with a project since I am a creative horse photographer in Florida. My goal was to photograph as many spotted breeds of horses as possible. I came across one spotted horse owner who told me about Boaz, a Spotted Draft. I was immediately intrigued and contacted his owner to photograph him. Little did I know what an opportunity that would create for me! Boaz is a special horse. Not only is he a horse of a different breed, but his job is incredibly unique. Caleb and Boaz perform at equine events and circuses all over the world in their vaulting act. They have performed across Florida, and down through South America together. Boaz has been more places than I have! If you have never seen a vaulting act, I highly suggest looking into Caleb and Boaz and their performances.
Once I met Caleb and Boaz, I was so interested in what they do. It’s not every day that you meet someone who performs while standing on the backs of horses. Caleb is able to do crazy things while vaulting, including flips, toe touches, roman riding, and more. He even plans skits with the horses to tell a story while he’s performing. After I photographed Boaz, Caleb asked me to photograph his other two drafts that he performs with. He also asked if I would like to learn to vault. I have never vaulted, nor did I think I was coordinated enough, but I figured why not? I would likely never get this opportunity again. Through out the course of a few lessons I was able to learn how to vault on all three of Caleb’s horses; Boaz, Cupola, and Loki. It is an experience that was terrifying, an adrenaline rush, and one that I will always remember. I was even able to roman ride on two horses, that’s not something most people can claim they have done!
Meeting Caleb, Boaz, Loki, and Cupola was the ultimate experience for me as a creative horse photographer in Florida. It reminded me of one of the reasons why I am a photographer. I am able to meet the most amazing people and horses. Without photography, I would not have crossed paths with this amazing group. I’m thankful for our time together and look forward to watching them all perform. They will be performing in Tampa early in 2021, you can find more information here.
