Bareback, Pt. 3

 Link to all 60+ images: 

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B7MlCEoEDaftajJqVXVRS3JqV2s 

I had arranged to shoot with Jenna Leos at my friend’s horse ranch in Santa Barbara a few weeks ago, but the day before the shoot Jenna called to cancel due to childcare issues. Scrambling for someone to fill in, I got a hold of Chase Kennedy, who just happened to be on Spring Break and thankfully jumped at the offer. Since Chase lives half an hour north of me in San Luis Obispo, and the ranch is an hour south of me in Santa Barbara, I advised her to stop by my place in Santa Maria and I’d drive us the rest of the way. The ranch is situated on a mountain overlooking Santa Barbara, a tucked in and hard to reach or describe area. I’ve always been good with maps, locations, and directions and even I got lost the first time I went there years ago.

But no, Chase assured me that her GPS would get her there without incident. Though I tried repeatedly to tell her it wasn’t as easy as following GPS coordinates, she insisted that she would be fine and wanted her own car so she could meet up with friends in that area after the shoot. I reluctantly agreed, dreading the worst situation.

And of course, my fears were accurate. I left my horribly corporate office day job early and headed down south in order to make the hour drive and be there by 5pm, the time I had told Chase. About twenty minutes into the drive, I received a text from Chase saying she was just leaving San Luis, which meant she’d be at least an hour late, which made no sense to me. I seethed with a momentary bout of frustration but calmly texted back “ok, just try to hurry, but be safe.”

(PHOTOGRAPHERS: How often does this happen to you?)

When I finally arrived at the ranch, I met up with Caitlin, who had modeled for me for a few projects back in 2007 and has kept in contact ever since. She was just as fit as ever, having been working on the ranch and riding her whole life. She teaches riding lessons to kids and competes professionally in many tournaments, so I always know she easily can handle any model I bring by to hop on a horse. Informing her that the model would be late, and knowing that Caitlin loves having photos of herself, I told her to slip on one of the dresses I had brought for the shoot and we could take some shots while we were waiting. Not terribly shy, Caitlin changed quickly on the other side of the horse and hopped effortlessly onto the back of the mighty beast, bareback and free like the aficionado that she is.

We shot several pics of her riding and posing with two brown horses, don’t ask me to tell you the difference between them, I’m racist as hell when it comes to breeds, they all look alike to me. In between pics I was fielding calls and texts from Chase, who was of course lost, and had been led astray by her GPS. By the time she finally did arrive, the sun was setting over the mountains and we had lost any bit of direct sunlight I had hoped for. Still, it was bright enough to capture something, and at this point I have full confidence that I can work in almost any lighting situation.

Caitlin, having changed back into her regular work clothes, stood with me and listened to Chase casually complain about the road and the drivers and weird bicyclists who ride with impunity on the curvy roads leading to the ranch. Finally, I suggested Chase change, and within minutes she was in a lovely white dress and up on a horse. Hearing that Chase was 6’4”, Caitlin had gone out of her way to select the biggest, tallest horse available that still had an easy-going temperament. Even so, Chase’s legs still dangled quite low off the animal, it was almost amusing.

Thankfully, Chase had spent years riding horses, and though Caitlin led the horse to the areas I wanted to shoot at, standing only a few feet away, just out of camera range in case she was needed, Chase handled the reins of the horse very well.

It’s an old saying that you should “never work with children or animals” due to their unpredictability, but overall, the horse was pretty easy. I’m not the biggest animal lover in the world, but I am incredibly patient overall, so when the horse decided to just walk out of frame or ignore any and all direction, I just panned and kept directing Chase on how to adjust her body towards the angle I required. Chase never complained, and with Caitlin there to help both with the horse and with styling or background advice, the shoot itself went by fairly quickly and easily. 

Chase changed a few times into dresses she or I had brought, and having Caitlin led her to a few different areas around the ranch and practice area allowed for a variety of images. I eventually asked Chase if she could handle a few nudes, which I know she likes but is always nervous about, and she easily agreed as long as she had a pad to sit on to protect her “naughty bits” from the horses bare back, as she said laughing. Caitlin got her something to sit on and we ended up taking a few more, but we could all tell that the horse was losing patience both with us and with standing still.

Chase asked for a few last shots in a denim shirt she had brought, so I quickly shot her in it with a black skirt, but only a few shots ended up worth sharing. It had maybe been a half hour total, but I knew I had plenty of shots to sort through and finally called it a wrap. Chase hopped down and changed, chatting with Caitlin a bit more about her job and living off the grid in the mountains, then we all took a few selfies and started packing up.

Chase decided to follow me on our way back, since the friends she was going were about fifteen minutes north of where we currently were, and I tried very hard to not say “I told you so” as she hugged me and we parted ways. I like her a lot and we always work well together, but like most people under 25, they just don’t listen, haha.

Here's the link again below! I hope you’ve enjoyed this little essay, please let know what you think of the images! And thank you as always for your continued support!

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B7MlCEoEDaftajJqVXVRS3JqV2s