A friend of mine is looking after a few horses on one of the farms in Noordhoek, and I popped over to get a few shots. While I am not really a horse person, they are beautiful animals, and make for some great shooting. And there is something nostalgic about being around horses. Here is a small example, the rest of the shoot is here.
They are all ex racehorses, and despite their frisky reputation, they were very friendly, and relaxed (probably as a result of the laid-back Noordhoek lifestyle), but they were very happy for me to wonder around them.
This horse should be renamed “Mr Sneezy”, he stuck his nose right into my camera lens, and he left it rather smeared and wet afterwards, not something that I usually have to deal with. I love the bent ear :-)
This is the only shot I managed to get of the horses trotting, they we just so chilled, being far too lazy to use any energy.
Just a big boy looking out and seeing what I was up to (and probably hoping for a carrot or two). If I was a cowboy, this would be my horse.
By the way, there are many farms in Noordhoek that offer out-rides on the beach, just Google “noordhoek horse riding” and you will see tons of stables offing riding to the public.
Superb images!!
Thanks very much, I was just looking at the goose on your website, also very good. I will be doing some more horse shooting on Saturday, so watch this space.
That is a long time of photo blogging. Nice work on the horses here.
Thanks Steffe. It has been a long journey, but a great archive for me of my last 8 years.
Congrats Craig… that’s phenomenal 901! Love that nose shot… lol!
Thanks Madge, that is one of my favourites as well.
Horses, all animals, I think, move ears individually. The one you mention is listening for a sound that he heard coming from behind him. The other ear is concentrating on you and the noises you make.
I think dogs are best friends for me but I also pick horses as number two. They are really amazing animals that have been so mistreated and worst of all are slaughtered annually and made into pet and human food. The wild mustangs are no longer free for life. They are only free as long as they are not caught. There should be a law.
Thanks for the info, the good news is that the farm where I took these pictures is actively involved in rescuing horses, so once here they get a very good home. Interesting info about the ears, makes sense (but is still very cute)
I really am all for horses and dogs and cats and other human companions and am especially thankful for those who go out of their way to do something good for wildlife and pets. Horses are high up on my list as are dogs. I love them both.