Critique Style Requested: Standard
The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
Dense forests landscapes, like this mesquite forest along the Salt River in Arizona, are always a challenge for me. Add the sudden appearance of a band of wild horses and the chaos increases to a new level. Part of this challenge was try to capture their behaviors and keep a safe distance.
We all have seen amazing images of wild horses fighting in open spaces. However the space in this forest including the branches overhead did not keep these horses from scuffling.
Specific Feedback
Anything!
Technical Details
Cropping and editing in LRC.
Hello Marlin, Your image really caught my eye. I’ve actually never seen horses fighting, even though my roots are in ranching country. Fascinating.
I like the way the horses are encircled by the branches. It’s a great frame. The composition works. And your exposure, specifically your shutter speed, caught the dust that they are kicking up. It’s very dramatic! I think the obvious comment is that I wish I could see their faces, specifically their eyes. That is in the “best of all worlds” kind of comment! I am amazed that you had the courage to stand there and photograph them. Nice job!
@Susanna_Euston , Thank you for looking over this image and for your comments. Sorry this took so long to respond. Other work wouldn’t wait.
You are right, capturing an eye or look from them would have added to the image. I have only 4 images of the scuffle, as it only lasted about 15 seconds, then they were gone. The first image captured the wide open eye of the horse on the left as it pulls away, before it rears, but not clearly.
I have been around horses a lot, used to own and ride in local show jumping, but you are right, these horses can be unpredictable. When they are active like this, I try to keep some distance and when they move in anyway, keep something big between me and them. That also makes getting a clear look harder, but getting “the shot” is less of a priority. I just hope to get lucky and stay safe. I think the stick frozen in the dust is the lucky part of this image.
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