Home on the Range

I have had a lot of sessions where clients will bring their dogs, but this shoot was a first for me. It's not everyday someone brings their pet horse along. Waylon was a champ for his first photo shoot and Mike and Becky weren't so bad themselves ;)

And we can't forget Guiness, Mike's dog. He was great too!

Mike and Becky have a June wedding planned, but I don't think Waylon or Guiness will be there.

I had such a good time out in Hampshire and really enjoyed seeing where Becky competes with Waylon doing Barrel Racing.

Love, love, love this shot. Mike, are you actually smiling? I think you were having fun.

I can tease Mike all I want...he is my cousin ;)

Luckily I had my new assistant on hand with me to grab some candid shots.

I am not sure she got Waylon's best side.

Becky started competing in Barrel racing when she was just 10 years old. According to Wikipedia, Barrel racing is a rodeo event in which a horse and rider attempt to complete a clover-leaf pattern around preset barrels in the fastest time. Though both boys and girls compete at the youth level and men compete in some amateur venues, in collegiate and professional ranks, it is primarily a rodeo event for women. It combines the horse's athletic ability and the horsemanship skills of a rider in order to safely and successfully maneuver a horse through a clover leaf pattern around three barrels (typically three fifty-five gallon metal or plastic drums) placed in a triangle in the center of an arena.

In timed rodeo events, the purpose is to make a run as fast as possible, while the time is being clocked either by an electronic eye, (a device using a laser system to record times), or by an arena attendant or judge who manually takes the time using a keen eye and a flag to let a clocker know when to hit the timer stop; though this last method is more commonly seen in local and non-professional events.

The timer begins when horse and rider cross the start line, and ends when the barrel pattern has been successfully executed and horse and rider cross the finish line. The rider's time depends on several factors, most commonly the horse's physical and mental condition, the rider's horsemanship abilities, and the type of ground or footing (the quality, depth, content, etc. of the sand or dirt in the arena).

A sports photographer, I am not, but I had fun trying to keep up with her. She was so fast!

Mike & Becky, thanks so much for having us out to see where you spend a lot of your time. We all truly enjoyed it and Brynn is talking about taking horseback riding lessons now. Hopefully that will go better and last longer than the gymnastics phase ;)

Best of luck with the wedding planning! Thanks again!