I had the absolute pleasure of photographing Emily Bradshaw and her very handsome (not to mention talented) steed Alfie last month. It was just days before they both jetted off to Holland where they will be for the time being training and working hard. The Portrait shoot took place on their yard ‘Backwood Farm’ on the Wirral on if I’m being honest here not the warmest day in February!  In fact there was quite a lot of snow to be seen capping the hills in North Wales in the distance!

Alfie it has to be said is quite the diva! He’s an utterly gorgeous horse and boy does he know it! He was loving the fuss before the shoot started and apparently is pretty happy whenever the attention is turned on him. He made for a stunning Equine model if a little highly spirited at times…. It is Spring though after all and there were a few horses galloping about trying to convince him to join them which we obviously didn’t want! He managed to contain his excitement though and with a couple of tea/haynet breaks in-between outfit changes we managed to keep us warm and Alfie chilled!

I knew Emily’s Mum and dressage trainer Sue was very keen to get some studio type shots of the pair and so towards the end of the shoot we got Emily & Alfie all set up in a pretty perfect stable yard entrance which provided the perfect lighting conditions to replicate the effect of being lit by studio lights. These are shots that I absolutely love to do at the end of a session and even if the odd client seems to think I’m crazy when shooting in a stable or barn doorway they are yet to be un-amazed by the results this simple technique produces! We even managed to get Sue in on a few of the photos which finished off a pretty special Portrait shoot with some images of the three of them which hopefully Sue will be able to treasure in Emily’s absence.

It was a joy to photograph Emily, her passion, determination and dedication towards her Dressage career is incredible and the bond she has with Alfie is very special indeed. All of that combined with the support she has from Sue and everyone around her is certainly standing her in good stead for a bright future ahead.

The good news is that it has warmed up quite considerably since the end of February and so having a Portrait shoot done now doesn’t mean you have to risk hypothermia if you decide you would like some gorgeous photos in your favourite glamorous dress…. If you would like to book a Portrait shoot in please get in touch or you can see more examples of my work in my galleries or information about it all here.

You can also follow Emily and Aflie’s adventures at www.facebook.com/Emily-Bradshaw-Dressage.

Until next time,

Ciara x