I met Hayley during one of my daily walks by canal. She was taking care of Puff and we started to talk.

After few days I ended up taking photos of this amazing pair.

I never shoot horses this way before but I use to ride and knew somehow what’s they like. I took my youngest boy with me and we filled his bag pack with apples, this was a very good shot.

I think we still would be OK without them as the connection between girl and her horse was so real, strong and unbreakable they just acted natural all the time.

I am not an expert with animal photography but this is what I learned during my last photoshoot:

1. If possible, spend some time with the animal to know it better before you start to take the photos. Simply take your time with them.

2. Let them get use to to the noise of your camera. My Nikon D750 is not the most quiet one on the market. I had to take few dummy shots to check how Puff will react to it. He was careful on the beginning but did not bother later during the session.

3. Employ a faster shutter speed. Animals constantly moving and you need to take few quick shots to be able to catch the right moment. The faster the shutter speed the less likely you are to blur the movement.

4. Choose time of the day when theight is not to harsh. When you shoot during very bright time the shodows are going to be too dark. ‘Golden hour’ work as a diffuser and better angle light on your animal subject.

5. If you can include the owner into the photo it is always much easier job as their know they pets. When Puff started to be unpatience Hayley started to rub gis belly to calm him down.

6. Enjoy the moment. None of the photos you take are going to be the same. You can be very surprise with the outcome of the session. I definitely cannot wait for next time when I am going to catch this pair when jumping.

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