Judging Photo Shows Pt. 2

(If you're just joining, I am doing a series on judging photo shows. You can click the "Judging Photo Shows Series" label at the bottom of the post to see other posts in the series.)

SDS Golden Zephyr, ASB, Palomino Stallion, who will be my example today for photo anatomy.

Hello all! Today we will tackle first impressions (good and bad) and photo anatomy.

First impressions really matter. When I look at a photo, I instantaneously form an opinion. It's the owner's job to make sure that opinion is a good one. Below is a list of somethings that I look for when forming my opinion, in roughly the right order.

1. Do I see and DQ factors? Show DQ factors vary, but in my shows there's a strict no tack rule. I will immediately DQ any horses with tack. I don't want to waste my time judging a horse who can't win anyway.
2. Is the horse accurate for the breed? It shouldn't be an OBVIOUSLY wrong color or be a MFT doing a Mangalarga Marchador's gait. I'm not too worried about conformation rn, but the biggies should be right.
3. Is the image clear? The horse should be in focus - no grainy images either.
4. Is the image well lit? I can't judge a horse I can't see. That means too bright lights too.
5. What condition is the horse in? Rubs, scratches, and breaks do not make me happy.
6. Is the horse properly angled? I don't want to see a horse looking head-on into the camera or at a 3/4 turn (although a 3/4 turn is the correct angle for some exceptional model's cases).
7. Does the photo "read" nicely? This question deals mainly with photo anatomy, which is discussed in the next section below the list.
8. Is the background messy? Is the color overwhelming? Does the horse get lost in it's backdrop? This sort of stuff rarely will affect the placement, but it can be a tie-breaker. Especially with metallic horses (like Akhal Tekes) that reflect the surrounding colors.

Moving on to photo anatomy. Photo anatomy sounds a lot fancier and harder than it is. Most people catch it right off when they are editing photos, but others struggle with it. Model horse photo anatomy is a little different than standard photography, so it can be a challenging transition for some people.

When you take your halter/breed show photo, you want it focusing level on a point between the horse's shoulder and barrel (usually on the shoulder), a little higher than halfway up. The focus point is where your eyes should land first when looking at the image.

Let's use SDS Golden Zephyr (AKA Zephyr) for our example.

(Keep in mind that there would be no watermark [or purple dot!] in a real photo show)

The purple dot marks the focal point of the image (roughly). From the dot, your eyes make a quick trip up the neck, onto the head, and down the mane. From there, your gaze runs along the back and down the tail. Then your eyes sweep across the legs, before slowing down to focus on stand-alone elements, like the eyeball, the hair ribbon, the dapples, etc. The exact path will vary for every horse. The path described would work for any Hamilton model, but it may not work with other molds.

This whole action should move very gracefully. You shouldn't have to start and stop and realign to "read" a photo. Everything should lead smoothly to something else.

Photo anatomy also deals with backgrounds. Here I will only discuss non-realistic backdrops, as realistic ones are a topic in and of themselves. When you are presenting your horse, think a lot about the background. Too many people think that the horse is all that matters. In a way they are right, but, when your background starts distracting from the the horse, or worse, eating the horse, it's time to switch it out. One backdrop usually doesn't fit all (there are exceptions). A backdrop eats the horse when it makes the horse blend in and play chameleon (that means socks too!!).

Please keep in mind that there is a lot more to photo anatomy, but this is just an overview.

ACTIVITY:

The best way to learn is to practice. I'm going to ask you to take a piece of paper and number it 1-5. Then I want you to write "DNP" below that. Leave a fairly large space beneath this label. Then jot down "DQ". You can also view/print a digital template here.

Now that you have your "template", review the photos of the entries here. Choose your placements based on JUST THE FIRST IMPRESSION LIST. Do NOT think about conformation, breed standard, or anything else. JUST THE FIRST IMPRESSION. You will do a few more lists like this in the next posts, and at the end you will compare your placements.

Don't lose your list! You will benefit from comparing them at the end. Oh, and FYI, you will not use all the slots on the template. I gave 4 DNP slots and 4 DQ slots so you could have free rein over where you place horses.

Thank you for reading! The next post is coming soon, and it will be on breed standard. I will be working directly with the horses in the class. I will also show my list on how I ranked the horse based on first impression. :)