This time next week, I was supposed to be attending Badminton Horse Trials. It has to be my favourite equestrian event of the year, with Burghley closely following (which is sadly also looking unlikely to go ahead with the current situation). So next week, I will be getting myself a big bowl of popcorn, maybe doing a touch of online equestrian shopping, and watching last year's XC day at Badminton! I am really looking forward to it, as I usually spend the whole of XC day out on course, which is fantastic, but it does mean I only ever get to see a couple of jumps for each person's round, whereas this way I will see the whole course (don't get me wrong I would still rather be there, but this is the next best thing).
I will also be running a little fun quiz over on my Instagram account (@somethingfromthehart) so do go and check that out, as I will release more details Next Wednesday (6th May)
So back to this blog, where I am going to share with you some of my favourite Badminton Horse Trials Photos, starting with this one from 2017. Taken with Badminton House as a backdrop and capturing the crowds of people watching on the other side of the fence I loved this image. I also love that the horse was on the home stretch, with his ears still pricked and lots of energy left. The perfect example of brilliant Horsemanship!
Secondly we are going to look at another black and white image taken on dressage day 2 last year. A beautiful square halt at the end of a stunning dressage test. Again, I love seeing the crowds of people in the background watching, many with blankets (as you can see on the bottom right row) as it was quite a cold day for dressage last year. I think that is one of the wonderful things about Badminton, seeing everyone happy and smiling, no matter what the weather has to trow at us, people still have huge amounts of fun!
One of my favourite places to photograph at Badminton is, in fact, the trot up. I suppose it is most like a photo shoot, as the horses are all in-hand, with the riders in country clothing. There is also the opportunity to get close up images, capturing the intimate connection between horse and rider, not to mention the STUNNING backdrop that is Badminton house. The beautiful sandstone is a wonderful colour. On this occasion, 2018, I was lucky enough to stand at the gate, where I was able to photograph the horses walking through the archway and capture their first reaction to the crowd in front of them.
The next two images were also taken during the trot up, but in 2019 I was positioned directly in front of the house, where I captured the trot up itself. I couldn't decide on just one image to show you here, as they both have such different feelings, but I love the atmospheric sky (as I said, the Trot Up and Dressage days didn't have the best weather last year, but it gives such an amazing feeling to these images, which wouldn't have been possible on a sunny day).
Both images are of Gemma Tattersall, who I photographed for Timothy Foxx, as she was wearing one of their beautiful tweed jackets.
Back out on XC day 2018 and I loved the green tones in this. Such a wonderful summer feeling, the Saturday has been filled with Sunshine for the past 3 years.
The onlooking crowds in the background, all smiling and taking photos is the true essence of this brilliant event.
I had to include a water splash didn't I! such wonderful colour tones at the second water complex last year. I love how the sun captures the beautiful shine on these horse's coats in the sun.
A little shot here looking down from the water complex at the lovely Badminton House, just had to add it as I t is wonderful to think of how many horses have competed on this ground over the many years of this incredible event.
And to finish my Badminton Blog, here is a photo from the showjumping. A fantastic moment here from Lissa Green in 2018, wonderful scope!
Do let me know what you thought of this blog on social media, share with your friends and comment on facebook with your Badminton Horse Trials photographs! Don't forget to keep your eyes peeled on my instagram for the fun Badminton quiz next week!
British Summer Time Has Begun! Oh it feels good to say that. The past few weeks have undoubtedly been strange and surreal for everyone, but I must say, the suggestion of summer does add a silver lining to what is currently a very dark cloud.
With the inevitable lockdown having taken hold this week, we can only leave home once a day for exercise. For me, that exercise has been walking. Being unable to photograph horses (other than my own) but feeling the urge to continue photographing, I have become rather taken with capturing moments on my daily walks. From landscapes, to budding plants, to buildings I am finding myself notice each and every moment more distinctly and I must confess, I rather like that.
We start this collection with a log pile (very simple, but as I have found when using logs as a backdrop for my equine photo shoots, very beautiful. Honestly, I didn't have to go far to capture this image, this was taken in my porch, but I thought I would add it to my collection
The first thing I am sure you will notice about this next collection of pictures is that I have taken them looking up. At this time of year there are so many beautiful textures and I find one of the best ways to capture nature's designs is by taking images against the sky.
Trees currently are at this amazing stage. They are bear of leaves (as they are all winter) but when you look closely you can see the buds beginning to show through. I do love a moody sky behind trees when I photograph them like this, which was something I was very lucky to have this evening.
Not looking like summer though? no, not quite. But these next couple will show summer is most definitely on its way.
This beautiful magnolia is coming in to flower and is a sure sign that spring is here.
New leaves on a hedgerow
Blossom on a blackthorn
And how cute are these guys (spring is definitely here and easter is on the way)
The next collection of images show some earthy manmade creations I saw while on my walk.
A manmade hedgerow
This beautiful derelict building is intertwined with nature, being surrounded by a blossom tree.
beautiful tracks and fencelines
If you are a business owner, blogger or influencer and in need of photos for social media, these images and more can be purchased here:
Okay, so this isn't really photography related... actually it isn't photography related at all, but with the current global situation (of which I shall not mention) I thought a lighthearted read about a very cute little horse would be enough to blow any blues away.
So, who is the little horse? Well, in January 2019, I bought a very fluffy 6 month old horse from the lovely Lily at Crofts Miniature Gypsy Cobs only this miniature was not a Cob... he was a Falabella! I think the saying "what they don't have in size, they make up for in personality" Suits this young man (Mr Pickles) perfectly, as he has got the biggest, craziest character.
When it comes to owning a Falabella, the question I get asked most is; why? Why do you have a little horse? What do you do with “it”? Well, let me tell you.
- I have always wanted a dog, but for various reasons I have never been able to have one. So for my first answer, he is a great replacement for a dog!
- My horse has always been terrified of Shetland ponies (to the point where he once bolted down a road because he saw one on the other side of the hedge) since Mr Pickles however, that fear is a thing of the past. He now loves Falabellas, Shetland and Sheep!
- Oh yes, the list goes on (lots of reasons Falabellas are brilliant)... he is a companion for my companion pony when I take my horse out...
- My younger cousin can do showing with him (extra points awarded for cuteness)
- He is an excellent lawnmower! He grazes in my garden in the summer and eats down an area for a grass arena in the summer (his feet are so little that he causes no damage to the ground)
- And last but by no means least, who doesn’t want to look out of their window and see this little dot galloping and bucking round his field?
Another question I am asked a lot is “will he get much bigger”... nope, that’s about it now! When I got him, he was about 55cm tall and wearing Labrador rugs and now at 62cm in golden retriever rugs. Anyone with a Falabella (or a larger horse for that matter) I can highly recommend Rachael Kelly’s range of dog and horse rugs (one of which is featured in the image below)
As we got pickle as a 6 month old, he was a colt. All very cute and sweet, but as the testosterone kicked in, he began to develop quite an attitude. Very cheeky Chappy.
This is when the nicknames began to develop (as I am sure they always do with pets) I mean, it's not just me right? Right? Anyway Mr pickles became "Pickle Puff" due to the huge amount of hair he gets in the winter. As the attitude set in, his name then developed in to "Puff The Magic Dragon", does anyone else ever find that these nickname actually end up being longer than their real name? Anyway, this photo below always makes me laugh as it was just after he had developed this new nickname and he has what looks like dragon breath.
Mr Pickles stays in a field separately to the other horses, incase he accidentally gets injured while playing, as he is so much smaller. However, while having one of his tantrums, he managed to get in with the other horses. There was no way he wanted to be caught, so as my camera was to hand, I took it as an opportunity to get some photos of them all together.
Last spring, Mr Pickles met kalusha, a toy horse I had as a child. This was one of the cutest moments as he was absolutely fascinated by his new friend. He did infact get rather attached and when kalusha was taken out of the field he got rather upset, so we have allowed this rather unusual relationship to blossom.
Unfortunately I can't take my camera with me everywhere, so some of Mr Pickle's most hilarious moments have to be captured on my phone. See blow a couple of my favourite moments (if only I had had my camera with me).
The sassy leg in this image (such a poser)
Just too cute! need I say more!
Mr Pickles and his actual horse friend
I think we can all agree that the start of 2020 has consisted of huge amounts of Rain, wind and extreme hail storms. I am sure I am not alone in saying that the longing for a warm summer's day is an ever growing desire... but I am going to take a step back for a moment, as although the relentless rain is disgusting, I have infant produced some of my most atmospheric images, while out in a storm.
First I am going to take us back to January 2018, when I captured these images of the South Shropshire hunt out in a very unexpected snow storm. With the forecast saying just rain, we were all taken by surprise when all of a sudden, almighty flakes started falling from the sky and giving the ground a beautiful frosting.
My next precipitation feature is from a slightly more recent event, which took place in the summer of 2019. Morville Fun Ride took place on a beautiful day. The sun shone as the first riders set off, right through until around 12:30... but then there was a torrential rain shower and the poor riders at that time got absolutely soaked. On a more positive note, the incredible atmosphere created by the rain was ideal for photographs. I have added a couple of the images taken on this day below.
Actually looking back on it, in 2019 we had a lot of rain too, as the next set of images were taken just a couple of weeks later, also during the "summer". While at SDRC Dressage competition, once again, we had some very heavy showers. While editing the photos after the event, I particularly liked them with a black and white finish, as it captured the droplets perfectly.
Later in August, I captured a selection of my favourite rain images, while photographing a polo match at Moor Farm. The game started with the clearest blue sky `and incredible sunshine. About an hour in to the game, the lighting changed completely, giving a stunning golden effect, as an almighty rain storm headed towards polo field. the rain hit suddenly in an extreme downpour, which you can see in the first two images. As rapidly as the rain began, it was gone and moments later, a rainbow fell directly in to the middle of the pitch. It was a moment with perfect timing, which created the most impressive and atmospheric backdrop.
My next featured image is from another Fun Ride which took place at the end of September last year. Larden grange Fun Ride is set in a beautiful location and despite the torrential forecast, it was brilliant to see so many people still having a great time, never letting the rain dampen their spirits.
My final image is this, from a recent project with Combermere abbey; I was asked to recreate a painting from 1905. In the original painting, the weather was very similar, so the rain, in this instance, worked perfectly in our favour. Had it been a sunny day, the images would not have had the same effect, due to the strong shadows and blue sky.
I hope you have had a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
I want to start off by saying a huge thank you to every single one of you who have supported Something From The Hart in the last year. Wether it be through purchasing event photos, booking a photo shoot, wedding or buying a fine art print, every single one of you have helped massively towards making my dream photography business a reality. I truly couldn't pursue this ambition without you all, so thank you.
2019
2019 has been a year of new ventures, with photo shoot days in new, stunning locations, new products and exiting projects. In January, the first photo shoot day of the year was the "let it snow shoot" in Nesscliffe. With guaranteed snow, through photography magic, lots of wintery images were created. Unfortunately 2019 was not the year for real snow, which meant only 3 snow photo shoots were possible (fingers crossed for some more snow in 2020)
In February, I took a trip to North wales to photograph the beautiful Dolbadarn Film Horses in action. We got creative with an Edwardian theme and quarry backdrop, Indian style wedding, Victorian attire by an eerie lake, with twisted trees and to finish this fantastic shoot, a unique performance creation, with a ballerina and Beauty (a Friesian liberty horse) outside a Church. Unfortunately, shortly after this visit, lots of events and photo shoots had to be canceled, due to the Equine Influenza outbreak. It was at this time that I began to develop "Seren Hart", a sister page to Something From The Hart, which contains lots of unique fine art images (one of which has since won the Equine Photography Competition 2019) If this Fine Art collection is of interest to you, you can find the images at serenhart.com
At the beginning of May, the no1 event in many equestrian diaries is Badminton. I spent the Wednesday photographing the lovely Megan Elphick (@elphick.event.ponies on Instagram) in an event photo shoot, as she competed in the Grassroots phase, with her lovely horse Bear. Following this, I was privileged to photograph Izzy Taylor (@izzytayloreventing) and Emily Philp (@emilyphilpeventing) in the CCI5* as well as photographing several riders for Timothy Foxx (@timothyfoxx) who's beautiful tweed clothing was used during the trot up.
Also in May, Fun Ride season began and with lots of fun rides lined up, commencing with Eaton Mascott Fun Ride, it was set to be a great year. Unfortunately, due to the weather, several Fun Rides had to be postponed, as June and July was so wet. Thankfully most of them were able to be rescheduled and so the fun was saved for warmer days.
In July, another brand new photo shoot location was revealed, the Confetti fields. Two photo shoot days were organised in this gorgeous location, one at the end of July and the other in Mid August. with colours reaching as far as the eye can see, it is a location unlike any other and is particularly perfect for the fairytale style shoot. If you like the look of the photos taken in this gorgeous location, then keep your eyes pealed, as we will definitely be organising a photo shoot there again in 2020!
Another new location in August was the lavender fields. Bringing a sense of Provence to the British countryside, this beautiful location not only looked incredible, but also smelt divine. The weather was also on our side and was absolutely perfect to capture the slice of French countryside.
At the end of August, I was very lucky to be asked to be the official photographer for the Nations Cup, which this year was held in the UK, organised by @gbstudentriders. The talent of the riders competing was absolutely outstanding, with the ability to ride a Grand Prix dressage test or jump a 1m25 course on a horse they have never met, let alone ridden is remarkable.
At the beginning of September, my mum and I took a trip to Burghley Horse Trials, where I was honoured to be photographing Emily Philp and Izzy Taylor again. It was my first time at Burghley since I was about 10 and very different to how I remember it. The XC in particular was extremely technical and optimum time was very quick, making the competition extremely tight. I absolutely loved photographing these two amazing riders and with it being Emily's debut Burghley experience, was so happy to be part of the journey.
In October, the Autumn photo shoots began. The first shoot took place at the beautiful Isle estate, which was a gorgeous location for the autumnal style images as well as the Dark Room ones produced in the indoor arena. The following day was the first of the autumn shoots in Nesscliffe, one of my favourite locations, which I use frequently throughout the year. Following these shoots, several more took place from people's yards, homes and another mini shoot day at Manor Lodge. As I said in my earlier Autumn blog post, it was amazing, from shoot to shoot, seeing the changes in colours as the light catches the ever changing leaves, making the images from every single photo session completely different and unique.
December was filled with festive preparations. I photographed several Christmas events, which were given a special festive twist when edited, by adding snow, similarly to how the "let it snow" photo shoot had been created at the start of the year. As well as this, I loved creating the festive packaging for the Christmas gift orders going out and above all, receiving messages from people who opened and loved them.
To top off this fantastic year, I was awarded equine photographer if the year 2019, which truly made my year and was the most amazing way to complete the year and decade!
Although I have tried to keep this blog reasonably brief, I seem to have not succeeded and there are still areas I haven't written about, including several lovely weddings throughout the year, the rhododendron and beach shoots, my Falabella foal (who will probably have a blog post of his own, as he seems to have become the face of Something From The Hart, particularly on instagram)
I have also had the privilege of working with some amazing brands this year, including Timothy Foxx, Kentucky Horseware, Rachael Kelly Equestrian, Just Equine LTD, Torq, Voltora and Liveryman.
2020
2020 is set to be an exiting year, with new creations, new ventures and more photo shoot options being introduced! A new year and a New decade for Something From The Hart. Let's see what it brings!
If you are reading this with a festive red background, Christmas is nearly upon us!
I have compiled this Christmas Gift Guide, so that you can get a clear idea of everything I have on offer this year. With products to fit all budgets, Something From The Hart has something to offer every equestrian lover. All of the products in this gift guide have been created with the customer in mind and are intended to provide a personal and unforgettable touch.
1) for a little stocking filler/mini gift, the 6x8" print is perfect. At just £10, it is perfect for either event or photo shoot images. - This can be purchased through all event and photo shoot albums on the shop.
MY TOP CHRISTMAS PICK
2) The 12 days of Christmas calendar is absolutely perfect and a favourite of mine. It is personal and continues to bring surprises and happiness for the 12 days following Christmas. for just £30, you receive 12 envelopes pegged on to a beautiful ribbon, each containing a 6x4" print. The envelopes are numbered and each day can be opened, revealing the print inside (additional messages can be added in to the envelopes too if you would like). This can be purchased through all event and photo shoot albums on the shop.
3) Box of prints - Although delivery in time for christmas with the luxury photo boxes is not possible, it is still possible to get box of fifteen 12x8" prints (usually £15 each) for £100)
4) The perfect gift for someone who loves having photos taken with their horse, why not buy a gift voucher? Vouchers are available in all packages (details of which can be found here) To buy your photo shoot voucher, please Contact me by completing the form, message me on Facebook or Instagram or email [email protected]
5) If I haven't taken photos of you/the person you are looking to buy a gift for in the past and you would still like to buy a gift from Something From The Hart, I have a range of Fine Art Prints on The Seren Hart Website. To purchase any of these Fine Art Images, please email [email protected]
Autumn has been absolutely beautiful and I have loved doing photo shoots with lots of lovely people and their horses.
This year, the autumn shoots officially started on the 18th of October and finished on the 12th of November.
In just less than a month, it was amazing to see the difference in colours from shoot to shoot, depending on the stage the trees were at and the lighting. We have had everything, from cloud, to sun, to even snow! It is rather unusual, seeing orange trees covered in snow, however as with everything at Something From The Hart, it was embraced.
Now, as we become ever closer to Christmas, winter is creeping upon us! Several of the winter shoots have already taken place, on beautiful frosty mornings and in freezing fog.
With more frosty mornings forecast, do send me a message on Facebook or instagram or alternatively contact me if you would like to be added to the frost or snow list list! By doing so, you will get first dibs on a frost or snow photo shoot. When your selected option is forecast, I will contact you immediately and get you booked in if you are available.
There have been so many amazing elements to this year, one of which being the record number of Fun Rides I have photographed.
So far (on the 13th of October) I have photographed 12 fantastic Fun Rides and I have another to look forward to at the start of December in the Wyre Forest, which is a Festive Fun Ride!
The links to the Fun Rides I have attended this year are below:
Nestled in the beautiful Shropshire Countryside is the hidden gem that is the confetti fields.
This summer, I have been so lucky to be able to organise not one, but two photo shoot days in this stunning location. Despite the awful weather we have had over the past couple of weeks, with June being a compete wash out due to the relentless rain, I felt so lucky that the sun decided to make an appearance on both of our photo shoot days here!
As well as the five lovely shoots I did - with three horses, one family shoot and a maternity shoot - I was also lucky enough to be able to have some images taken with my own horse in this stunning location. I must say, while riding along the rows and rows of delphiniums, I did feel as though I were in another country, it is unlike any other location I have ever visited.
Below is a slideshow, containing a couple of photos taken during the photo shoot sessions in this gorgeous location.
