How To: Introduction to Breyer Horse Photography

Breyer horse photography can be an art all itself, there are shows devoted entirely to judging photos of model horses, or you may just enjoy taking beautiful photos of your horses. Either way, photographing your models is a fun way to showcase your beautiful Breyer Horses and following a few easy steps, you too can take beautiful pictures to show your horses for all the beauty they have!

Time of day is one of the most important factors to remember when photographing your model. I always suggest photographing outside, and photographing when the sun is shining in the wrong direction can cause problems for your photo. Try to keep the sun over your model, not at sun up or sundown, or try to photograph when the sun is slightly hidden by the clouds. If the sun is shining into your camera you will get bright glares on your model and also in your photograph. Its also not a good idea to photograph your model when it is being covered by a shadow, you want your horse to be lit by a constant light.

Once you have chosen a good time to photograph your model, you want to find a good place use that is free of debris. Grass is not a good place to photograph. Grass is never going to be in correct scale with your model and it will look like your horse is up to its knees in overgrown grass! Try to pick a surface that is flat and that is natural looking. My favorite place to use is my back deck.

As you can see, my deck is very small, and there are things all over that could get in my picture. This is where you have to get a little creative when taking photos. The first is to get down on the level with the horse.

Once you are down on the level with the horse, you want to choose a good angle, pay a lot of attention to the angle that you are taking your photo at, the photo above shows a poorly angled photograph, the horse isn’t in the middle and the main focus of the photo isn’t the horse, its of all the “stuff” around it.

Now we are at a better angle, by laying on the floor and looking up slightly at the model, but unfortunately we have a car in the picture, so we’ll need to change the angle a bit.

This angle is much better, now you can clearly see the horse and the background isn’t a distraction, the horse is clearly lit, it is a little bright on the horse’s back, but you can clearly see the horse, and the focus is clearly on the horse and not the background.

You might decide at some times to get a little creative with your photographs, try taking photos from different angles, always remembering to focus on your model and to keep your background plain and clean. Taking photos of your horse from different angles can create interesting and beautiful photos.

Photographing your horse can be so much fun, and taking the time to photograph your horse can produce great results. It’s a great aspect of the Breyer hobby that is fun for all ages and all collectors! So grab your camera, your favorite horse and head outside on the next nice day to shoot some photos, experiment and remember these simple tips and you’ll have beautiful photos in no time!

Stay tuned next week for live coverage from Breyerfest! Its only a week away!

~Stacy