You have officially scheduled black background portraits of your prized horse and now you are desperately searching for guidance on how to prepare. Don’t worry, while I will always go over all preparation once we schedule your portraits, it doesn’t hurt to have a place to refer back to leading up to the big day! Black background portraits make for an incredible artistic and unique portrait worthy of displaying within your home and/or office which means your horse should be treated as a professional model! Today I am going to talk about a few quick tips and tricks on how you can best prepare your horse for their professional background portraits!
Clean Your Tack
If you plan to have your horse wearing a favorite halter, bridle or saddle it is always suggested to do a little ‘spring cleaning’. Prior to the day of your portraits, I highly recommend grabbing the tack you plan to use and giving it a good cleaning. Leather cleaners and silver polish will help compliment both your horse and the overall portrait. Having a dirty browband will distract from the overall beauty the black background portraits will highlight on your horse.
Ground Manners
Ground manners is one of my highest recommended tips when it comes to scheduling professional background portraits. When we create these artistic portraits of your horse, they will be required to stand still for a duration of time as we adjust poses and get all of the unique details that make your horse who they are. Practicing having your horse stand in place within a barn alley or an arena doorway can prove challenging at first as your horse sees these doors as a location they pass through not stand in. Practicing a few days a week the week to two weeks leading up to your portraits will prove useful for the day of!
Grooming
When it comes to black background portraits, there is one thing I know for certain, the background will highlight any dirt or flyaways your horse may be sporting that day. Treating your portraits like a horse show will ensure that your horse is fully prepared to be photographed. Giving a solid bath the day/morning prior (if your horse will dry in time for your portraits) and doing any clipping you may have in mind one or two days prior will have the basics taken care of! If you prefer your horse to be banded or braided for their portraits make sure you leave time for touch ups if needed, if you prefer a natural look, combing through their mane and tail will ensure a seamless look. Taking your portraits to the next level of running a clear or dark polish on your horse’s hooves will hide any imperfections on their hooves! A last minute once over of shine spray and brushing right before your portraits will leave your horse looking their absolute best!
Feed Beforehand
My last suggestion in preparing your horse for their black background portraits is feeding your horse at least an hour before their portraits. This will give you a chance to do any clean up work and leave your horse happy for my arrival! If your horse has a habit of getting hangry, this step is definitely for you, running through a quick ground work exercise to help get their last minute jitters out of the way and leave them ready to go for their portraits!
So there you have it! Your black portraits are going to become custom artwork you will be proud to display within your home and these steps will help ensure we display your horse to their full potential! If you haven’t yet scheduled your professional portraits of your horse head on over here to begin your portrait journey!
