As previously mentioned the whole purpose of the trip was a 2 day horse shoot run by Janey Lazenby and the chance to photograph Lusitano (Portuguese) and Andalusian (Spanish) stallions with models/riders in a variety of costumes.
We woke quite early and I nipped over to Asda to get us something for breakfast and stock up with sandwiches for lunch. The yard is about 25mins drive from where we were staying, down progressively narrow roads, but we found it without much difficulty and were there about 30 mins early. The first person I saw after Janey was the ex president of the KCPA - small world.
Just to give a flavour of the day, a tiny selection of the shots taken; some are SOOC (Straight Out Of Camera) and others are clearly after a good deal of faffing around! (as post processing is commonly known).
First up were black background shots in the barn entrance with Yarrow with Tado (PRE (pre Raza Española) Andalucian stallion. Yarrow's slinky red dress was obviously not suitable for riding in. I think she used to work for Janine and has her own horse which is the offspring of one of the stallions.
A quick shot of Ozzy (Andalucian PRE stallion) before he got garlanded with flowers.
For this setup with Jess as a flower girl. Jess works at the yard.
We then had the lovely Ellie with Verso (Lusitano gelding) in
hand. Ellie is also a member of staff
and really keen to be involved but at the same time was very self conscious, so
didn't want to pose for headshots.
Keeping the same flower girl outfit on Jess then rode Tado in the field
After a quick break for lunch it was back to work.
Cai Cai das Arcas (cremello Lusitano stallion) who despite being a stallion has a wonderful kind and calm temperament. As a cremello he has the characteristic pink skin tone and blue eyes and, sadly, because of this he also has quite a few skin cancers.
And with Janine who owns him and the stud.
Next up was Marta who, as a professional actress, was excellent; good facial expressions and made eye contact with each photographer in turn. I'm not too sure what this set with Romeo (PRE stallion)was meant to be about though.
She then rode him in the small paddock on a lead rein and after Janine had got onboard (presumably to make sure he was safe, so maybe another new horse)
Yarrow then teamed up with Uivador Da Broa another Lusitano stallion who is a **** rated stud and a double gold medal world champion. Apparently Uiva is unique due to his impressive size and strong powerful build. He is unusually tall for a Veiga horse (17hh) but has retained all the characteristics of the Veiga type; spectacular movement, great extensions and a wonderful temperament. I've no idea just how much he is worth but soon after she bought him she was offered £100,000 and that was a few years ago. I'm hoping to find some more good shots out of this set but so, far I've only got this one.
Then we had Marta again, this time in chainmail which had been made especially for her and it was beautiful and apparently very heavy (11kg). She posed for some headshots first before riding Troy (Murghese gelding) for us in the field. A couple of creative edits this time.
And, finally, Ligon (PRE gelding) who is new to the yard having only arrived 10 days ago. An absolute delight to watch him at liberty. I haven't had time to do anything creative with him yet, but I have high hopes.
What a stunner!
Can't catch me Mum!
What a fantastic day and how lucky we've been with the weather. I'm absolutely exhausted and have to do it all again tomorrow - WOW!!!
Shoot Credits:
Organiser/Styling: Janey Lazenby EJ Lazenby Photography
Host: Janine Pendlebury-Lee Pen Llyn Lusitano Stud
Armour: Black Raven Armoury
Fairy Dress/Crown: Revivify
