Samantha_Dawn
Samantha_Dawn
The Queen.

The Queen.



My friend Ashley is a professional model...she models with her Stallions who are trick trained to do numerous things. I had her stand on the other side of this ...
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My friend Ashley is a professional model...she models with her Stallions who are trick trained to do numerous things. I had her stand on the other side of this pond and get this shot of her and Thor rearing up. To date; probably one of my most favorite shots. Brings in a whole atmosphere of royalty, respect, and power. The reflection only mirrors that and enhances it....that's the great thing about art. Everyone interprets it differently. I was really worried about the remainder of this shoot because the sun had JUST set behind the mountains...so I was quickly running out of light but wanted to get this shot so badly!
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cameraCanon EOS 7D Mark II

settings Aperture f/4 ISO 640 Shutter 1/500 Focal Length 73/1 

upload_dateOct, 2017

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Awards

Legendary Award
Contest Finalist in Inspiring Landscapes Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Creative Reality Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Covers Photo Contest Vol 43
Contest Finalist in Covers Photo Contest Vol 42
Contest Finalist in Image Of The Month Photo Contest Vol 27
Peer Choice Award
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Peer Award
Wimheesakkers coreenkuhn GMacWP ralphwakeman Jimhellier amritab240 cyndzvanzummeren +273
Absolute Masterpiece
ToadsInTheHole Devanpayne mariadel montelowe James-Evans pattybrennan gman176 +110
Superb Composition
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Outstanding Creativity
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Magnificent Capture
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Impressed
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Top ClassTM

Inspired By The World Photo ContestTop 10 class
Inspired By The World Photo ContestTop 10 class week 1
Enchanting Landscapes Photo ContestTop 10 class
Enchanting Landscapes Photo ContestTop 10 class week 1
My Incredible Landscape Photo ContestTop 30 class week 1
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Looking At Faces Photo ContestTop 10 class
Looking At Faces Photo ContestTop 10 class week 1
Inspiring Landscapes Photo ContestTop 10 class
All About Water Photo ContestTop 10 class
Change Of Seasons Photo ContestTop 10 class
Change Of Seasons Photo ContestTop 10 class week 1
An Unforgettable Adventure Photo ContestTop 10 class
Water And Rocks Photo ContestTop 10 class
Water And Rocks Photo ContestTop 10 class week 2
Water And Rocks Photo ContestTop 10 class week 1
Unique Sceneries Photo ContestTop 10 class
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Unique Sceneries Photo ContestTop 10 class week 1
Playing With Water Photo ContestTop 10 class
Lakes And Reflections Photo ContestTop 10 class
Lakes And Reflections Photo ContestTop 10 class week 1
Creative Reality Photo ContestTop 10 class
Creative Reality Photo ContestTop 10 class week 1
Anything People Photo ContestTop 10 class
Anything People Photo ContestTop 10 class week 1
Unique Locations Photo ContestTop 10 class
Anything Water Photo ContestTop 10 class
Anything Water Photo ContestTop 10 class week 1
Everything Nature Photo ContestTop 10 class
Everything Nature Photo ContestTop 10 class week 1
The Talent AwardsTop 30 class
High Vantage Points Photo ContestTop 10 class
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Thank You Photo ContestTop 30 class
Thank You Photo ContestTop 20 class week 1
Our Natural Planet Photo ContestTop 20 class
Our Natural Planet Photo ContestTop 10 class week 1
ViewBug Photography AwardsTop 10 class
Covers Photo Contest Vol 43Top 20 class
ViewBug Photography AwardsTop 10 class week 1
Covers Photo Contest Vol 43Top 10 class week 1
Social Exposure Photo Contest Vol 12Top 10 class
Social Exposure Photo Contest Vol 12Top 10 class week 1
Once Upon A Time Photo ContestTop 10 class
Once Upon A Time Photo ContestTop 10 class week 1
Covers Photo Contest Vol 42Top 10 class
Image Of The Month Photo Contest Vol 27Top 10 class
Covers Photo Contest Vol 42Top 10 class week 1
Image Of The Month Photo Contest Vol 27Top 10 class week 2
Image Of The Month Photo Contest Vol 27Top 10 class week 1

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11 Comments | Report
KMallus
 
KMallus November 18, 2017
Really beautiful!
Samantha_Dawn
Samantha_Dawn November 20, 2017
Thank You, I appreciate that !!
kathyk_abq
 
kathyk_abq November 29, 2017
Beautiful! What I see is a loving relationship between this woman and her horse.
Samantha_Dawn
Samantha_Dawn November 30, 2017
Thank you so much !! You are correct, you have to have a great bond and trust to be able to achieve this stunt !!
oldladyf
 
oldladyf December 08, 2017
Beautiful!
Samantha_Dawn
Samantha_Dawn December 09, 2017
Thank you VERY much !!
MRueffer
 
MRueffer December 08, 2017
This is gorgeous! I love it!!
Samantha_Dawn
Samantha_Dawn December 09, 2017
Thank you !!!!
Jaybo-pics
 
Jaybo-pics January 17, 2018
Just WOW!
Samantha_Dawn
Samantha_Dawn January 17, 2018
Thank you! Means a lot!
BaltimoreAnn
 
BaltimoreAnn January 22, 2018
Amazing shot! Love it!
lonniemagistad PRO
 
lonniemagistad January 26, 2018
Amazing!!!
Expedition4Life PRO+
 
Expedition4Life April 24, 2018
Amazing shot!
diabolomenthe
 
diabolomenthe June 23, 2018
I really love this shot, it's awsome
ikolbi
 
ikolbi August 23, 2018
Beautiful shot, Samantha!
billgideon PRO+
 
billgideon September 19, 2020
Great shot

Submitted to Photo Contests

Tags

#equine #stallion #andalusian #rear #rare #model #mountains #pond #water #love #wow #reflection

Behind The Lens

Location
This photo was taken at Washoe Lake State Park...right outside of Reno, Nevada. Went to Nevada for a huge model/equine photoshoot! Kind of a once in a lifetime shoot that turned into a great friendship!
Time
This image was taken Sunday Oct 15th, 2017 at 6:57PM PST. I was SO nervous that this shot wasn't going to turn out as good as I saw it in my head. The sun had JUST set behind the mountains, thankfully there was still enough light where I could tell her to have her stallion rear across the pond and still capture it without losing detail from the raised ISO. Not to mention...when the sun goes down in Reno...it gets COLD! So I may or may not have been shivering too!
Lighting
The lighting actually scared me. Similar to how I mentioned above...I was so scared my light was going to run out after the sun set behind the mountains... I knew what I wanted the image to look like in my head. There was just enough light that I only had to bump my ISO to 640...and thankfully it didn't lose the detail of the image. The sun setting behind the mountains gave it a very dreamy, eerie, and royal look...it couldn't have turned out better!
Equipment
This image was shot with a Canon 7D MKII, a 70-200 2.8MM IS.
Inspiration
My friend Ashley (model pictured) trained her stallions to rear and do tricks for shoots! I noticed in the field below the mountains in Nevada that we were shooting at had a small/medium sized pond. (By Small/Medium sized, I mean you probably could have easily swam across this little thing!) I instantly had a PERFECT idea in my head, but once again I was RUSHING because the sun was slipping behind the tops of the mountains behind her. I told her I was going to run to the other side of this "pond" and asked if she could cue her stallion to rear when I got to the other side. I positioned her and myself in a way that would allow me to capture not only her, her reflection, and the landscape in the background. I was so excited after this series of photos, I looked at my camera and just was so ecstatic about the fact I caught it and it was just how I pictured it in my head. Before I came to this shoot...I was ready to sell my gear and quit the one thing that gives me the most joy. Ashley gave me a fireball to push on with my dreams and I owe everything to her for boosting my work to the level it is at now.
Editing
Sometimes in Equine Photography a decent amount of post-processing is needed. Sometimes you remove halters, lead lines, scars, flies, backgrounds, objects you don't want in the background....etc. I knew this shot was going to be difficult with the fading light...but using "manual" setting and trusting my experience with shooting horses allowed me to make the necessary settings to make sure I would capture the image how I needed. Thankfully, there wasn't MUCH post-processing editing here. I did bring up the exposure because it was a hair darker than I liked it, I added a little bit more color pop to it.
In my camera bag
First thing I will always carry is my lens... My faithful Canon 70-200 2.8MM IS. I carry two cameras: Canon 7D MKII and a Canon 60D. I also carry a 55-250MM, 18-55MM,and a 50mm prime 1.8. Not that my 70-200 ever comes off my camera, BUT on occasion I do senior pictures with horses and it's nice to have shorter lenses at times.
Feedback
If you're looking to capture something very similar to this...it would be easier if you were able to be in an area that had mountains or large hills. You would need to find a pond/lake next to the mountains and/or hills. Personally, I would have loved to see what this image would have looked like back lit from the sun almost setting behind the mountains...so I think that should be a goal for someone if they wanted to try something similar to this !!

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