A partnership years in the making

I first met Taylah and Rocky at the Central Coast Dressage Association Championships, where I saw their wonderful partnership in person as the only pony in the FEI Small Tour Classes.

Taylah told me that she was making the difficult decision to sell him, and wanted some special images to capture their friendship.

Taylah had owned Rocky when he was just a yearling. She had trained him from his first groundwork right through to successfully competing at FEI dressage. Summing up fifteen years of love and capturing the favourite parts of someone’s childhood horse is no easy feat, but I think I pulled it off okay!

Where to have the session?

The COVID restrictions at the time meant that Taylah could come to the Hawkesbury, but I couldn’t meet her out in the regions. Fortunately I knew of the perfect venue – Scheyville National Park, at Maraylya. With horse trails, a beautiful clearing and no dogs allowed, it was the perfect choice.

The perfect evening

When I arrived at Scheyville, I found Taylah and Rocky already enjoying a canter bareback in the clearing. Such a testament to their connection, to get off the float in a new place and to go for a spin so soon!

After a quick look around to see where the best light was, we captured some simple but heart-warming memories of Taylah & Rocky on one of the trails. It was clear to see how close their connection was, with Rocky always looking to Taylah for guidance and comfort.

As the sun lowered and the light became softer, we trekked out to the big field for some ridden shots. Taylah was very confident in Rocky’s abilities, so we boosted her on bareback.

We were able to capture some absolutely stunning pictures of Rocky and Taylah cantering through the golden grass as the sun set. If there was ever a fairytale moment, this was it!

In the last of the evening’s light, we once more made the hike back up to the carpark. Taylah changed into a beautiful deep teal dress which set off Rocky’s lovely gold colour perfectly. Rocky also had an “outfit change” into the naked halter!

Despite the long evening, Rocky put on his best cute faces for the lure of a bit of licorice. We finished up with lots of pats and treats for Rocky for being such a gentleman about the whole thing.

Rocky has now crossed the pond and is living his best life in New Zealand, while Taylah has a sweet highlight album of her beautiful boy, and a suite of new memories.

Check out more memories below:

Here’s what Taylah had to say about her session:

You were very honest, trustworthy and easy to work with. I thought it was going to be awkward with Rocky and my height difference, but it was solved perfectly with the right poses and positioning. I loved the bareback work and how much effort the whole team put into getting the right photos. I had so much fun and Rocky loved his adventure. My session made me feel very special.

Want to know where to go for your own session?

Taylah and Rocky’s session is a great example of the sort of gorgeous backdrops you can get by having an off-property session. If you’re interested in other locations for your session, have a look at my blog post on the topic!

Blog post:

Location ideas for your equine photo session