Icelandic Horse 1In need of a haircut. Icelandic Horse. Canon EOS 5DSR, 300mm, f2.8 @ 1/500 second, ISO 100.

Icelandic horses are really only the size of a pony, but I'm told they are horses, despite their diminutive stature. Mind you, I know just as much about horses as I do about haircuts. My hairdresser doesn't charge me for a trim, but there is a hefty search fee instead.

On my recent trip to Iceland, we saw many great horses by the side of the road, but the trick was in finding a location that was interesting. A normal looking field was not what we wanted, nor did we want them standing next to a fence. Rather we wanted a location which included the grandeur of the landscape behind - and there's plenty of that in Iceland. All we needed was patience.

It didn't take too long once we set our minds to it. When our shoot began, the horses were relatively distant and so I pulled out my 300mm lens, but horses are inquisitive and it didn't take them too long to trot over and inspect a surrounding throng of photographers. My landscape lens became a close-up lens.

What I found appealing with this specimen is his (or her) mane and the way it neatly curves around the head. Think of a human head and how a shawl or a cape can frame a face to give it more impact. So the head is in a frame within the photo frame, so to speak. It seems to work with horses as well!

What I'd like is to be able to see the eye more clearly. It is in there on the full size file, but it's very hard to see. On the other hand, the fact that there is no eye is growing on me - is it really necessary?

In need of a haircut. Icelandic Horse.
Canon EOS 5DSR, 300mm, f2.8 @ 1/500 second, ISO 100.

Icelandic horses are really only the size of a pony, but I'm told they are horses, despite their diminutive stature. Mind you, I know just as much about horses as I do about haircuts. My hairdresser doesn't charge me for a trim, but there is a hefty search fee instead.

On my recent trip to Iceland, we saw many great horses by the side of the road, but the trick was in finding a location that was interesting. A normal looking field was not what we wanted, nor did we want them standing next to a fence. Rather we wanted a location which included the grandeur of the landscape behind - and there's plenty of that in Iceland. All we needed was patience.

It didn't take too long once we set our minds to it. When our shoot began, the horses were relatively distant and so I pulled out my 300mm lens, but horses are inquisitive and it didn't take them too long to trot over and inspect a surrounding throng of photographers. My landscape lens became a close-up lens.

What I found appealing with this specimen is his (or her) mane and the way it neatly curves around the head. Think of a human head and how a shawl or a cape can frame a face to give it more impact. So the head is in a frame within the photo frame, so to speak. It seems to work with horses as well!

What I'd like is to be able to see the eye more clearly. It is in there on the full size file, but it's very hard to see. On the other hand, the fact that there is no eye is growing on me - is it really necessary?