photographing Breyer horses in their natural habitat
Don't let your collection sit on a shelf, play with your toys! Honor the beauty of these sculptures with their own adventures in the wild. Release your inner child! You'll also see a familiar place in a new way. Bring a camera, tripod, beanbag (to sit the camera on) for low angle shots. A table with sand and reindeer moss helps to shoot smaller models. A friend to fling water or dirt to add that bit of realism helps too.
on the edge of Lake Marburg
Lake Marburg lies at the bottom edge of Pennsylvania, near the Maryland border. It is, like most other PA lakes, manmade, and fairly new. The lake hosts eagles (with their own webcam), osprey, various herons and egrets, macroinvetebrates under every rock, kayakers and sailboats. The water is clear enough to make you start looking for manatees and dolphins.
I set out one October afternoon to do some model horse photography, inspired by this: http://yamnuska-studios.deviantart.com/ and other work like this... http://coldruru.deviantart.com/art/Col-Bas-XXXI-394919383_
That splashing water thing is harder than it looks. I tried a water bottle (too fine a mist), throwing pebbles, throwing larger pebbles, and finally taking a travelling doggie water bowl and flinging water at the herd. Kept the Nikon Coolpix L100 on sport continuous mode and wiped the lens a lot (splashing water!). Keeping the camera low (sitting it on a beanbag, or, in my case, a dive weight that is filled with lead pellets) helps. Only one of these is photoshopped water, the rest are practical (live) special effects.
These are Traditional models, 1:9 scale.
I set out one October afternoon to do some model horse photography, inspired by this: http://yamnuska-studios.deviantart.com/ and other work like this... http://coldruru.deviantart.com/art/Col-Bas-XXXI-394919383_
That splashing water thing is harder than it looks. I tried a water bottle (too fine a mist), throwing pebbles, throwing larger pebbles, and finally taking a travelling doggie water bowl and flinging water at the herd. Kept the Nikon Coolpix L100 on sport continuous mode and wiped the lens a lot (splashing water!). Keeping the camera low (sitting it on a beanbag, or, in my case, a dive weight that is filled with lead pellets) helps. Only one of these is photoshopped water, the rest are practical (live) special effects.
These are Traditional models, 1:9 scale.
on the edge of the yard
These are Classic series models (1:12 scale). The brindle was painted by me over a dun factory color. Horses come in brindle, but it's fairly rare. Look up Dunbar's Gold. He does not throw brindle foals because his color comes from him being a chimera: an individual with two sets of DNA.
conga conga
Buy one in every color!
Among model horse collectors, a conga is a photo of a set of models in the same mold (usually different colors)... when lined up they look like they're dancing the conga. Some more than others, like my rearing Classic mustangs here...
These are Classic (1:12 scale) and Stablemates (1:32) scale, set on a table.
Among model horse collectors, a conga is a photo of a set of models in the same mold (usually different colors)... when lined up they look like they're dancing the conga. Some more than others, like my rearing Classic mustangs here...
These are Classic (1:12 scale) and Stablemates (1:32) scale, set on a table.
Extra points to whoever noticed that the bay Appaloosa... or is that actually a lace or "giraffe" pattern? has a right rear foot in a different pose... all three are the same model except for that slight difference. Breyer often reissues models with small changes. I have had these for years and never noticed till I lined them up for this shot.
Hanover Junction
Went to Tractor Supply for dog food... came out with horses. Yeah. It's like that. I was just looking. And there they were, tucked behind the Appaloosa set (very nice). Breyer lists this Classic (1:12 scale) set as Morgans. They happen to closely resemble my mustang mare Lor and her filly Svaha.
http://www.swordwhale.com/even-more-horses.html http://www.swordwhale.com/between-thunder-and-lightning.html
I used closeup mode, regular mode, and landscape. In all modes I often got fuzzy horses and sharp landscapes. It depended also on whether the horses were flat side to the camera (easier to focus usually... but not always) or at an angle (which the camera seems to not see at all). I have used paper, brochures, leaves and rocks as a thing for the camera to focus on. It helps if your thing is either about 30% grey or the shade of the thing you're shooting (to get the correct exposure). I look at each pic on the camera's screen (blowing it up to see it clearer) to be sure I got a sharp shot.
http://www.swordwhale.com/even-more-horses.html http://www.swordwhale.com/between-thunder-and-lightning.html
I used closeup mode, regular mode, and landscape. In all modes I often got fuzzy horses and sharp landscapes. It depended also on whether the horses were flat side to the camera (easier to focus usually... but not always) or at an angle (which the camera seems to not see at all). I have used paper, brochures, leaves and rocks as a thing for the camera to focus on. It helps if your thing is either about 30% grey or the shade of the thing you're shooting (to get the correct exposure). I look at each pic on the camera's screen (blowing it up to see it clearer) to be sure I got a sharp shot.
