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Black Horses, White snow!

Yes, it is STILL winter here in Ontario. Today, the last day of February, may be the turning point as temps here will range from -20c this morning to -3c by this afternoon...crazy!

...and that's the weather for today...now back to our regular programming...HORSES!!!

I haven't had much of a chance to do winter equestrian photography, not that there isn't enough winter. It's just that I am a bit of a wimp at the thoughts of standing in the middle of a cold wind-swept field, fumbling with frozen fingers on the camera buttons, camera fogging up, battery draining.... So I was surprised how excited I was, despite my dislike for frostbite, at being able to go back to Stonegate Farm, where Wilby and Henk were awaiting their winter modelling debut. Oh what a day, clear blue sky, fluffy white snow, and shiny black horses (even with their hint of winter coats). I never dreamed my passion for the Paso Fino breed of horse could be challenged...but alas, I have found their equal in beauty in the Friesian Horse.

Winter Horses

While visiting Glen Oro last week I braved the wind and snow to capture some of the horses that were enjoying the cold weather and flying snowfakes.

Happy (belated) New Year!

Wow have I been delinquent in my blogging! I really do appreciate the lovely comments I've gotten and thanks to those that read and link to my blog...HUG!!! (that's for JT ;oP)

I should let you know that some photos of the horses of Ravenseyrie (see previous post) were published in this month's Equine Wellness Magazine, accompanying a fantastic article written by the horses' owner, Lynne Gerard. I hope you can pick up a copy for yourself!

I got to photograph some wonderful horses in 2007 and got to know some of the owners, which is a bonus of course. I always enjoy meeting new horsey people as they are fairly scarce in my suburban neighbourhood ;o)

One of my favourite locations I discovered practically under my nose was Stonegate Farm. You know destiny is at work when 2 people in the same week tell you about a pair of beautiful Friesians that..." I bet you would love to photograph!!"

Faster than you can say "Where the hell is my 4GB card??!!", I appeared on Lillian's doorstep to photograph the critters of Stonegate Farm.

Ok if you're an avid photographer, you know what it's like to miss a shot, especially of an animal...it's kinda hard to get them to do-over. So I had barely set one foot outside the car in front of Lillian's barn when I heard a chorus of barking that sounded like a dozen dogs behind the half door. Then I saw a handsome pointer head peaking over it...and then it was gone. Lillian was about to open it when I asked her if she could please "encourage" her dog to get up there again as it was such a beautiful photo that I was so mad at missing. Here is the result:

I love when you go to a farm to photograph horses, but you know there is always a very good chance you will get to capture many other images of animals and farmyard details. I soon got to meet all 3 dogs (all English Pointers, and just about some of the most lovable, Velcro dogs I've ever met). I did get to meet a fourth dog on a later visit, the BIGGEST Great Dane I've ever laid eyes on...seriously, like having a horse walk around in your house.

Ok back to our regular programming...horses. Stonegate not only has a wonderful selection of horses, including the 2 Friesians I have waited years to photograph, but such beautiful fields and backdrops of birch and maples, always greatly appreciated when you are photographing horses.

Anyway, I had a precious 15 minutes of sunlight to photograph those 2 shiny black Friesians before it was overcast and a storm threatened in the distance.

I hope to go back for some winter photos, I can safely say it is officially winter now! Thanks to Lillian and Stonegate Farm for the fun visits!

Ravenseyrie

It seems as if it was just yesterday that my sister and I started Horse of the Week back in 2005. We are not religious people, but we do believe in destiny when it involves horses. One day a few weeks ago, I wondered if we'd ever run out of horses for our Horse of the Week site. After a count of all these past equines, I realized, to my surprise, that we were fast approaching our 100th horse! Janet and I agreed that this was indeed an important occasion and the horse we chose for that week would have to be very special. As destiny would prevail, my sister and her husband happened to be on a short holiday on Manitoulin Island, in Lake Huron, Ontario.

While visiting an art gallery in Gore Bay, Janet learned of the unique horses owned by artist, calligrapher and author Lynne Gerard and her husband Kevin. After hearing of my sister's wonderful visit to the island, and the intriguing horses of Ravenseyrie Farm, I was soon corresponding with Lynne by email.
It didn't take much convincing to get my husband on board as he had always wanted to visit Manitoulin Island. It is well known for it's beautiful landscapes, waterfronts, dark skies and abundant nature. We made plans to visit on Thanksgiving weekend. We arrived in Gore Bay on a Thursday night just as the sun was setting. We had booked into a waterfront lodge and were welcomed by a beautiful deer standing beside the entrance drive.

The night sky was breathtaking! The milky way was as clear as I've ever seen it, due to a welcome lack of light pollution on the island. We made it an early night as we were to be at Ravenseyrie by 7 am, to meet the horses at the first light of dawn.

Lynne and Kevin welcomed my husband and I as if we had always been good friends. The greetings continued as the "pack" of dogs was released (only 4 I soon realized), various cats, and 2 geese which weren't quite as welcoming as we had obviously disrupted their feeding time. At last, there at the fence ready to have their morning feed and social time with their people, were the 4 distinct Grulla coloured horses, including Altamiro, the Sorraia stallion I had journeyed from Orillia to see. To add to this magical morning in the fields surrounding us a surreal table of fog was rising, moving fluidly in waves like a huge silk scarf blowing in the wind.

I spent the better part of the morning following and photographing the herd, which also included 3 impressive draft mules, an Arabian and a thoroughbred, through their daily roamings across 260 plus acres of field and forest. It was a very special day and I thank Lynne and Kevin for allowing me to visit with and photograph these special horses.

Forest Gait Farm

Yesterday the girls had a day off school so my youngest and I packed our camera bags and headed to my sister's in Palgrave. From there we, in addition to my niece (a horse lover as well), made the drive through the beautiful Caledon countryside to Georgetown, home of Forest Gait Farm Paso Finos. This is where my sister's horse, Alberto la Manana, resides with many of his Paso Fino friends. My sister's dog, Niko, came along for the ride also. Niko has been lonely since the passing of the other family dog, Lucky, this past February, so he likes to come and visit the resident lab, Lucy. Not to be forgotten is the barn kitty, Spooky, who was my constant companion throughout the day.

The weather was gray, and for the most part the rain held off. Days like these can make for some lovely atmospheric photography.

After a lunch of the best tuna melt I ever had, the girls headed to the barn where they got a lesson in grooming the very patient Pachanga, the senior horse at Forest Gait. Then all tacked up, they each got to be led through the forest on a trail ride. What fun!!

I was in horse heaven, and shot a couple of hundred photos throughout the day of horses, kids, dogs and cats.

Other than Alberto of course, my next favourite equine of Forest Gait is the resident stallion, Postin de Petrolero. Postin is a stunning example of the Paso Fino breed, and has the coveted disposition of the Petrolero line. A gentleman and a sweetheart, I could have photographed this horse all day. I made a promise to Postin that I would get him on the cover of a horse magazine some day ;o)

After grooming Postin for a bit, he did the natural thing and rolled in the mud...what a character! Even dirty...he's still pretty!

I will be back at Forest Gait as there will be a new baby soon that I will HAVE to photograph. Postin's first at this farm. The Mom is Captiva, a striking black Paso Fino mare that has been Postin's common law wife since they made a baby ;o).

Thanks to Jeannie for having us to her farm for the day!

Grandview Combined Test

After my photo shoot at Glen Oro, JT and I wandered over to Grandview, conveniently right across the road. The weather was amazing, and I'm pretty sure I got a bit of a sunburn as I always seem to at the beginning of my photography season (sunscreen, sunscreen, sunscreen...next time...I promise!). Grandview was having a Combined Test, Dressage, and stadium jumping. While JT wanted to practice photographing the jumping, I was enjoying the view over at the Dressage ring. The warm up area is even more fun to photograph, many more possibilities to be creative; the riders, horses, trainers and spectators, and of course the ever present variety of canines. Here are some of my favourites from today.