Meet Lottie and her 10 year old gelding, Danny. I met Lottie, her mum Kate and sister Lucy over at their beautiful yard just outside of Nettlebed. The shoot was for Lottie's 16th birthday next week, but it was bought forward to coincide with half term. We couldn't have asked for more perfect weather. The previous few days had been very grey and dull, but the sun made an appearance and was very much welcomed.
Lucy had a lesson on Danny in the morning, followed by everyone getting involved to give him a good bath and groom. The girls then headed home to pick out their clothes for the shoot whilst Danny dried off and enjoyed a haynet in his stable. It was perfect timing as Kate drove in to the yard just behind me - I was then introduced to the main man before being given a tour of the yard.
Located at a very pretty little yard, nestled beyond a little woodland and down a sweeping driveway, the atmosphere on the yard was so lovely. The yard, more of a little community: the families travelled together to shows and worked together to help out. Danny was looking very smart, and we were all good to go! The driveway was our first location. Kate and Lucy were on hand to get Danny "smiling" - although he took a rather quick disliking to the octopus, which was then banished back to my car.
Bred in Ireland, Danny has been part of the family for almost two years. He is their first pony and has become a very loved part of the family, with both girls taking it in turn to ride him. Lottie gets to compete him regularly, although, soon it will be Lucy's turn to have a go too! The natural relationship between the girls and their pony was very enjoyable to capture. Lottie was a bit nervous at the start and was hoping I would give her plenty of direction, which of course, I did. The whole shoot was very laid back and we all had a lovely morning in the sunshine!
It was time for a quick outfit change and a discussion about our next location. There was a fabulous spot just up the driveway, although it was tricky for us to get Danny there as we had to pass over a cattle grid. One of the ladies then had a brilliant solution that we boxed Danny up in the lorry and unloaded him just the other side of the grid - perfect! I'm so pleased that we made this all work out, the Autumn colours were so vivid in the leaves laying on the ground, such a beautiful little spot!
Danny was absolutely perfect for his shoot, we kept his attention by varying what we did, and moving on once we'd got the shot. He was enjoying all of the fuss and attention! The leaves were bursting in colour with the light dappling through the trees. The girls enjoyed taking it in turn to have their photos taken with Danny - who by now had got the hang of it all and stood looking very handsome, whilst the girls swapped in and out.
Before we knew it, we headed back to the yard - Danny loaded back up in the box and I followed behind. The shoot finished up with some black background shots in one of the stables. It brought much amusement to everyone else on the yard as they watched on, laughing as we tried to get Danny's ears forward once more.
There were brooms waving around everywhere, there were buckets and brushes being thrown and a variety of dance moves being shown, accompanied by some strange noises!
Thank you all so much for having me, it was an absolute pleasure to meet you all and of course Danny, the star of the show! I hope you have a lovely birthday Lottie!
