The Breed Project My Personal Project

What is the Breed Project?

Equines come in all shapes and sizes and I want to celebrate each and everyone of them. That is what has led to my person project, the  Breed Project. I want to take portrait photos of as many individual breeds as possible, with the possibility of combining them at some point in the future into a book. For this reason ALL owners must agree that images can be used in marketing and products including but not limited to prints, books and other products, including potentially those produced by third parties.

What better than a personal project but also a project that supports equines in return. I have decided to donate a £25 ‘session fee’ to the Devon Air Ambulance, a charity that needs no introduction that helps a lot of equestrians. In the first year of the project we have already raised £300 which went to the Brooke Charity.

I am looking for owners to volunteer their pure-breds to take part in the project. I am looking for one equine per breed and breed type (for example I will want a welsh sec A, a B a C and a D). All equines should be a good example of their breed and I will need a  copy of their breeding papers (digital is fine) to compile into the project. For that reason equines with unknown/uncertain breeding and the vast majority of part breds are not eligible to take part.

The sessions will cost £25 (an additional travel fee may be charged for locations outside a 15 mile travel radius of Starcross, Devon) and in exchange the owner will receive an equine only fine art mini session and one 12×8″ print. Further images, both digitals and prints can be purchased after the session but there is no obligation to purchase further images. The £25 session fee will be donated to the Devon Air Ambulance.  Check out how much has been raised so far, or even to make an extra donation.

The below button gives pricing of digitals and prints available after the session, beyond the one included 12×8″ print.

country horse autumnal portrait

What is required of my equine

equine fine art portrait wiltshire

Sessions will be of a fine art style with equines only, no humans will appear in the photos. Sessions may include the use of studio lighting or natural light photography depending on the equine and available surroundings. 

Equines should be 4yo or older, true to type and well mannered,

They should be clean and smartly presented according to their breed type for the session. I.e. natives should not have short plaited manes etc.

All will be expected to be photographed wearing a thin rope photo halter (which will be edited out of final photos) so should be halter broken. I may request some to be lunged whilst wearing said halter to simulate the equine being loose.

If the breed has associated traditional saddlery/tack that would be a bonus but is not essential.

Sessions will generally take approximately 30-60 minutes per equine. There will be set poses I will look to create, but if we have time to spare I may be able to include some owner requests but this can’t be guaranteed. All of the images on this page are examples of poses I may look to replicate from breeds I have already photographed.

What location options are required?

Ideally we will need access to a picturesque location. That can mean fields, woodland or otherwise. It can be surprising what I can make look picturesque as well with the assistance of photoshop! Most yards have a usable area for studio lights and most grazing land is suitable if not fenced with white electric tape. Other suitable areas include quiet country lanes, woodland and rights of way/bridle paths. In all instances the owner should ensure that permission to be on land is obtained in advance. (Permission is automatic for rights of way if all parties stay on the path).

equine portrait spring summer horse equestrian hampshire wiltshire
equine fine art portrait wiltshire

What breeds are included?

I want as many breeds as possible. This also includes ALL equines so including donkeys, mules and even the zebra if someone has one!

Equines must be pure-breds with available recognised breed papers going back at least three generations wherever possible and they should be true to type. Recognised cross breeds will be included aka anglo-arabs and mules, but one only!

Where a breed has more than one type (i.e. Welsh) then one of each type can be included.

In the case of warmbloods and thoroughbreds I will have one from each main stud book (i.e. Hanoverian, Selle Francais etc for WBs, and national stud books for TBs) but BOTH parents must also be registered/licensed/graded with the same stud book to be considered for the project. Parents can be dual graded/licensed but must be recognised by the offspring’s registered book.

For a rough list of horse and pony breeds please see this Wiki page. Note it lists some ‘types’ which are not applicable unless also a recognised breed, i.e. Cobs.

See below for a list of breeds that have already been photographed..

Which equines will be selected

As this is a personal project and I have specific vision and  requirements in mind, I therefore reserve the right to not offer a place in the project to the first equine that applies for the slot of a breed. I reserve the right to refuse a place to all applicants if they don’t meet my specific criteria. This could be for a number of reasons including location and availability and should not be taken personally.

Preference may be given to owners where more than one breed can be photographed at the same yard.

What images will I have access to?

As part of the session fee donation you will be able to choose one photo which you will receive as a 12×8″ fine art print worth £50.

Within approximately 2 weeks of the session you will be provided with a link to a proofing gallery which will contain at least 10-20 images. These will be edited images you can choose your print from and potentially any further images. The proofing gallery images will not be photoshopped so will still include the photo halter where used. This will be removed from any images you chose to purchase including your included print. Selected digitals/prints will normally be dispatched within approximately 2 weeks of selection. Product pricing can be viewed via the below button. There is no obligation to purchase any photos beyond the free print you are entitled to.

I may choose to use different images from the one(s) you choose for marketing, products or to add to my stock library. In relevant circumstances I will provide a complimentary watermarked social media image. If a book is published then I will make available the chosen final images in high resolution format if not already purchased.

 

The Breeds List!

Below are two lists, on the left breeds that I have already photographed. On the right those that are scheduled to be photographed in the next month but have yet to be photographed. If your equine is on the left list already then sorry no spaces remain. If your horse is on the right list then your equine can be placed on a wait list in case the original horse drops out for some reason. If your equine is on neither list then please get in touch asap.

Completed

Belgium Ardennes
Dartmoor
Hanoverian
Irish Draught
Welsh D
Percheron
New Forest
Exmoor
American TB
American Quarter Horse
Highland Pony
Connemara Pony
Pre (ANCCE stud book)
Cleveland Bay
Fell Pony
Morgan
Lusitano

Scheduled/confirmed

Icelandic
Akhal Teke
Suffolk Punch
Arab

equine black background portrait

How do I apply?

Super easy! Either complete the contact form at the bottom of this page or email me at breedproject@katiemortimore.com with the following details:

 

  • Your name, email and contact number
  • Your equine’s breed, name, age, sex, size and colour.
  • Where your equine is located (closest village/town is sufficient)
  • Confirming if you are available weekdays (including evenings) within the next 6 weeks
  • A photo of your equine (preferably side on)
  • A copy of your equine’s breeding (photo of papers or link to online record such as allbreedpedigree)
  • Any other information you think relevant
equine black background portrait
equine black background portrait
equine black background portrait