I am in awe of the scores of other equestrian bloggers I follow who continually have fantabulous pictures of themselves and their handsome steeds in action. I’ve been feeling like a bit of a slacker by comparison. I stopped to ponder what’s holding me back from doing the same. Time for a little self-disclosure.
1. It’s hard to take my own picture while riding. (Shocking, right?) I have to recruit a “helper” to catch the motion. This means coordinating schedules. Not impossible, but not simple.
2. It gets dark so early and I usually ride Knight at night. Not conducive to photography.
3. Pure vanity. If you look closely at this image. I am totally grimacing. Not attractive. This was taken the day Knight decided to tap into his racehorse roots. He was thinking, “Go!” while I was thinking, “Whoa!!” #embarrassingfacialexpression (I’m trying to be less vain by sharing this with you all).
4. When I see a picture of myself riding, my inner critic kicks in. “My outside rein is too loopy. My leg looks unsteady. Why am I so far forward?” I think I’m my own worst equitation enemy. Vanity strikes again. I don’t want THE WORLD (a.k.a. Saddle Seeks Horse subscribers) to see my riding–warts and all. I forget you’re not all incarnations of George Morris.
5. I don’t think we’re doing anything super remarkable/photo-worthy at this stage of our “career.” I’m getting my sea legs back. Knight’s learning balance. We’re both just kind of starting out again.
But now as I review this post and I see the cute blaze and the perky ears, I’m thinking I need to push through my hangups and just click and post. Each image is a snapshot in time of how we were doing at a particular moment. We are more than the sum of these amateur photographs.
What tips do you have for getting decent riding photographs? Are there any pictures you are reluctant to share with the blogosphere?
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I'm Susan and this is my horse Knight. We have been a blogging team since 2015 and we're glad you're here. Tally ho!
When I take pictures or videos of my girls riding they are very critical of their position or what they look like. I’m always looking at what the horse looks like. Haha! Now, I hide and take pictures of them when they are not looking and I never show them my pictures:)
You are so sneaky and funny. I like it. I think overall I am just self conscious. I dance with my husband pretty regularly and he loves to do flashy moves and dance near the really good people at our dance studio. I prefer to dance somewhere in the corner where people can’t see me. But the reality is I’m sure no one there is even paying attention to me except for my partner. Same with riding.
but those pics are great! i’m probably not the best to answer, since all my photos are blurry video stills (it can be easier to ask ppl to snap quick videos, then go back and grab stills later)… and i’ve already posted enough embarrassing shots of myself to quell any concerns of GM paying me any attention 🙂
but i really like posting pics bc they help me track progress (a main objective of my blog) – regardless of where we are in our training. plus, photos spark memories better than anything else – just like you note in your first photo up there!
Thanks, Emma. BTW, I love your blog name. I like your idea about doing video and then going in to get that still. Is there a certain app you use to get the still, or do you do a screenshot on your phone?
thanks! and yea – i just take a screenshot with the phone. i’m sure there are fancier apps out there… but so far it’s working well enough for me!
I have a hard time coordinating a photographer and I also over criticize myself. But you’re right, they are just snapshots in time and they help us see how far we have come. Plus your horse is a cutey, so any pics with him in it are good pics!
Aw. . . You know how to say all the right things! Thanks, Carey. I’ll be your photographer some time. My stepson goes to school in San Diego. I could fondly meet Cosmo!
Yeah let’s do it! Photographer duty share.
I meant finally.
Yeah let’s do it! Photographer duty share.
I’m down with that. Too bad I’m away during winter break. Hmmm. . . We’ll have top nail down a date early 2015. 🙂
my best advice is to find a riding buddy who also loves pictures and take turns!
Thanks, Lauren. I should totally do that. I get there late, and there are people riding. . . in the “Western” arena at the front of the property. However, now that I’m thinking about it. There are a number of retirees who are at the barn every night. I don’t see them ride, more putzing with their horses. But they’re super nice. I bet they would be game to take a pic or two every now and then. Yay. Good suggestion.
Hahaha! I can totally relate! I always think I’m looking pretty good until I see my picture!! Thank God George Morris isn’t around!
But you DO look good, Carrie! 😉
love all of your pictures. You and Knight make a great team. keep posting those pictures.. Shirley Burns
Thanks, Shirley. You’re very sweet. 🙂
I’ve fallen off in front of clients too often to be awfully vain about posting pictures. I try to pick the best ones, but this is me we’re talking about – sometimes they’re all pretty much the same level of mediocre. But posting pictures is always fun because you get to look back six months or two years later and see how much less mediocre you’ve become. And that’s a pretty epic feeling.
Oh, and I want to see more of Knight! He is a beauty!
Thanks! He is pretty cute methinks! “Same level of mediocre. . .” that’s pretty funny. You have a great point about seeing the progression. Awesome feedback. And I still want a guest post on the native South Africa horse breeds I had never heard of. Are you game? 🙂
Totally game! Just as soon as I have a computer again – hopefully next week!
Oooh, fun!
I also suffer from #1, 2 and 4!!
I’m so glad to know I’m not alone!
More pictures! I just take stills from video a lot of the time, too. And I take lots of pictures of my horse without me in the shot, because I’m taking the picture.
I am starting to think the stills from a video is the way to go. And I began taking pictures of Knight without me but then it seemed they all were the same: Knight on crossties in the washrack or Knight tied next to my tack locker. Maybe I need to dress him up in different halters or something. A Santa hat would be nice.
So I’m definitely not the best at having photo of me “in action” on my blog [especially in the winter] but I have ALL of the same challenges and insecurities. I just try to channel some of them into positives. Like when I see everything wrong with my equitation, instead of feeling like “omg I’m the worst rider ever” I try to remind myself that it’s good to KNOW what I need to work on.
You have a great point, Tracy. Thank you! 🙂
So one other thing, Tracy. *Going off topic here. . * Do you like your WP theme? I have been browsing around. I like Michael Hyatt’s Get Noticed Theme, but yours seems pretty clean and user-friendly too. I need to transition from WP.com to WP.org. Any advice for a gal who’s not a coder?
I rarely have my photo taken while riding, for many of the reasons you stated. But Bear and I are improving so you just never know. … It helps to have a photographer who knows what they’re doing.
I am always shocked (not usually pleasantly so) when I see photos of me riding. Years of not riding with mirrors has left me blissfully unaware of my faults. In my mind’s eye I am a much better rider. And thinner, too.
I want to be blissfully unaware too! I’m justifying some of my problem by noting that I don’t have a saddle that fits me right (or him right) yet. It’s on order. I’m using my trainer’s in the meantime. She’s super sweet to let me use it, but I’m quite a bit taller than she. I feel like I’m partially riding very defensively–worried about hitting the pommel.
I was thinking about this the other day in my round pen= wouldn’t it be cool to have a camera guy just film you? That’s out of the question for most of us, I guess. I did see this cool tripod head called a Soloshot that works in conjunction with a bracelet you wear and follows you around. Who knows if it actually works? But it would be neat to mess around with. Keep your heels down.
I will have to look up the Soloshot. That is a fantastic idea. I see you have some GoPro footage. That’s very cool. I may have to snag my stepson’s for a few hours when he’s not around. It would be interesting to wear it during a jumping lesson. Thanks for commenting and dropping by. 🙂
I can so relate to #3 and 4. Vanity, thy name is horsewoman! Worse is to see pix of myself taken at a show–I swear one photographer was just waiting for the worst faces and angles to take her shots. My favorite story about people looking at horse and rider pix: I showed my dad a win picture of me on my palomino gelding. He blurted out “what a great looking horse” and then got embarrassed that he hadn’t complimented his own child first. I told him he’d paid me an even greater compliment–the most important thing is how our horse looks. Knight looks adorable! ; ) Keep taking the pix and posting them.
Thanks, Ange! That’s a cute story about your dad. That horse show photographer you mentioned makes me think of the DMV.