C&C: g/f riding horses

[smalls]

Hit me with some knowledge.

[Deep Days]

Here's a bit: your girl's cute.

(And for a JONG's photo advice: I'm not sure I like how centered L-R she is in the picture. I'd think you might do well to place her more right in the frame, especially in the first one so that she would be riding into the frame. However, what the hell do I know?).

[Nohillsnearby]

Try to catch the picture when the horse is starting to jump. That's the more athletic time for the jump. Also, like Deep Days says, give them more "lead/look space" to the left of the horse.

Cute horse & gf, BTW.

[Yeti]

Smalls, I like these pics. Awesome clarity and sharpness of image.

[bklyn]

Some comments on the first picture:

- good time for light (I'm guessing early morning)
- good exposure, sharpness, choice of ISO or film
- definition of the light colored horses' musculature is very good
- excellent color in sky and trees

Some things to think about for next time:

- look at your shooting angle relative to the jump, maybe you could have chosen another place to stand, because the horses' hind legs do not appear that they will clear the jump.

- how about a shallower depth of field? The barn and buildings underneath the horse are distracting elements. This is another reason for you choosing a different place to shoot from. What was in the background behind you? Would you have benefited from standing with the barn behind you? This is a classic composition "error", I'd bet you didn't even see it while you were shooting. I would have wanted to choose an angle that would give ground/fences/trees/sky (like the second picture) and the barn either ahead of or behind the horse and rider, not under.

- have you seen many action photos of horseback riding? Nohills has a very good suggestion about what time during the action to take your shot.

- you used a wide angle for the second picture but maybe you want to crop it for rule of 3rds so that the horses left eye is on one of the intersects. Since the rider's feet are not in the photo, you can crop away most of that and the trees to the right, bringing the focus of the image more toward the faces of the horse and rider.

Show us more from this series. Why did you pick these two? Any others you liked?

[dipstik]

Perhaps introduce some motion into the first shot by shooting w/a slower shutter speed?

In the first photo, it looks like the horse could just be standing idle on its two front legs. A slower shutter speed would show that it is actually moving through the air.

[AstroPax]

Hit me with some knowledge.

FYI, it would be helpful if your posted images that included *all* of the exif data in the image file.

That way, it would be easier to determine the various camera settings.

As it stands, only a limited amount of exif data is being included in your pics, for example:



As you can see, no real shooting data is included...such as f/stop, shutter speed, white balance, etc.

I believe you can make PhotoShop include *all* of the exif data in your files.

[Squatch]

i think the pictures would turn out better if she was naked.

my 2 cents

[The Suit]

i think the pictures would turn out better if she was naked.

my 2 cents

It's amazing what you can do with Photoshop.

[Tippster]

- you used a wide angle for the second picture but maybe you want to crop it for rule of 3rds so that the horses left eye is on one of the intersects. Since the rider's feet are not in the photo, you can crop away most of that and the trees to the right, bringing the focus of the image more toward the faces of the horse and rider.

For Instance:



I actually think the Horse's nostril makes a good focal point.... but that may be just me.

[bklyn]

For Instance:



I actually think the Horse's nostril makes a good focal point.... but that may be just me.

Yes! Perfect example.

Sorry I was doing a marathon editing day, so I was a bit too burnt out to make an example for you. Still, it's even better that Tip did it for you. Because so much of my photography is people, I did not naturally think to use the nostril as a focal point.

What do you think about how that changes your image?
Do you see how that crop draws you into the subjects of the photo?

[smalls]

I was totally stoked when I saw that a photo forum had been made, and then I went and forgot about it for the last week or so. I'm an idiot.

Thanks all for your critique. As is quite obvious, I am a photoJONG and I had completely misinterpreted the rule of thirds (I was basing my composition off the actual spaces between the lines, not the intersects.) Thank you for the re-direction.

As for the EXIF data not being included, I have no idea why that is, but #1 was shot at f/3.5, 1/1000 sec and 100 iso. #2 was f/5.6, 1/250 sec and 100 iso.

As for other shots from this series...

I realize this image probably isn't cropped properly, but I just like the overall feel of how you can tell the rider and horse are at the end of a long day, on the way back to the barn. Tear it apart.


My first attempt at stitching a sequence. I realize I have some color issues here (ex. blown highlights on horse's chest). But my main goal here was to try and put together a sequence.


This image seems a little soft in some areas where it shouldn't, and I'm not sure I like the exposure. However, I'm throwing this up here just to see if this timing is better. (And yes, the horse and the rider have terrible form here. One reason I didn't post it before.)

I have since looked through a few horse magazines since shooting these and I think I have a better feel for the correct composition. We're going out to build some jumps in the woods and off in the fields next week, so I'll post up some shots after that is accomplished. Thanks again for the comments. They are much appreciated.

[waxman]

a trick some horse photo guys use when shooting jumpers is to get inside the turn a little so you are taking the picture of the horse and rider as they look to their next jump (this really helps because both athletes will look like they're looking at you)