Diana and Jake

[Second Hand Pat]

My daughter is home of Christmas and she decided she wanted to ride my old man Jake. Jake is a 28 year old arabian who I have owned for ten years. He is an retired breeding stallion but he was gelded just before he came to live with me. This old man has some life still in him.

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7461/15582252723_50950c996d_c.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/pJX7RH)DSC_6916 (https://flic.kr/p/pJX7RH) by plh (https://www.flickr.com/people/129594174@N08/), on Flickr

[Second Hand Pat]

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7507/16015959879_f88a9a7df4_c.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/qpgYTi)DSC_6865 (https://flic.kr/p/qpgYTi) by plh (https://www.flickr.com/people/129594174@N08/), on Flickr

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7579/16176209796_2017392b8a_c.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/qDriAU)DSC_6849 (https://flic.kr/p/qDriAU) by plh (https://www.flickr.com/people/129594174@N08/), on Flickr

[Second Hand Pat]

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7570/15579641614_3789f31a99_c.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/pJHJEA)DSC_6878 (https://flic.kr/p/pJHJEA) by plh (https://www.flickr.com/people/129594174@N08/), on Flickr

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8581/16014711090_f60c355a79_c.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/qpazEs)DSC_6870 (https://flic.kr/p/qpazEs) by plh (https://www.flickr.com/people/129594174@N08/), on Flickr

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7552/15582247993_5921537ae8_c.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/pJX6sa)DSC_6871 (https://flic.kr/p/pJX6sa) by plh (https://www.flickr.com/people/129594174@N08/), on Flickr

[Second Hand Pat]

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7501/16200171161_e3339cb4be_c.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/qFy7tT)DSC_6896 (https://flic.kr/p/qFy7tT) by plh (https://www.flickr.com/people/129594174@N08/), on Flickr

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7573/15582220903_f1b66c98b4_c.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/pJWXp6)DSC_6900 (https://flic.kr/p/pJWXp6) by plh (https://www.flickr.com/people/129594174@N08/), on Flickr

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7561/16016231607_d343749089_c.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/qpinEg)DSC_6907 (https://flic.kr/p/qpinEg) by plh (https://www.flickr.com/people/129594174@N08/), on Flickr

[Second Hand Pat]

This picture is a little out of focus but Jake looks like a little powerhouse

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8636/16014554828_8112c19c91_c.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/qp9Mdh)DSC_6911 (https://flic.kr/p/qp9Mdh) by plh (https://www.flickr.com/people/129594174@N08/), on Flickr

[Altum Nut]

For a second there Pat...I thought you guys got snow in Florida but then figured it was white sand.
Looks like your daughter Diane is proud to be home for the holidays and Jake looks to be in great shape for 28yrs old. Knowing how you care for your fish....who would second guess you do the same if not more for good old Jake.
Great photo

...Ralph

[Second Hand Pat]

Hi Ralph, we live on a white sand hill beside a lake. He looks amazing for a old guy and Diana enjoyed the ride. Diana is quite a good rider and has ridden since she was nine.

[Larry Grenier]

Gosh, I'm an "Old Man" too but I don't look near as good as Jake :-)

[Second Hand Pat]

Gosh, I'm an "Old Man" too but I don't look near as good as Jake :-)

Thanks Larry, I am just a bit younger then you but can relate to the "Old" statement. ;)

[rickztahone]

6900 is my favorite here Pat. Although it is out of focus (OOF), you still get a sense of speed from the OOF shot. Perfect composition, and the sun is helping light up your daughter :)

[John_Nicholson]

Nice.

-john

[Second Hand Pat]

6900 is my favorite here Pat. Although it is out of focus (OOF), you still get a sense of speed from the OOF shot. Perfect composition, and the sun is helping light up your daughter :)

It seems very hard to get a good focus on a large, white object Ricardo. For these series of shots I was using f-stop f4 and f5.6. I overall like the f4 pics better.

[Second Hand Pat]

Nice.

-john

Thanks John :)

[rickztahone]

It seems very hard to get a good focus on a large, white object Ricardo. For these series of shots I was using f-stop f4 and f5.6. I overall like the f4 pics better.

f/4 would have gotten you faster shutter speeds. Check your EXIF and I bet that is right ;)

[Mrs. J]

Beautiful! Had saddlebreds a Tennessee walkers for years. Had to give them up due to job transfer. I miss them. What a great job with your old man.I worked for equine vets for years, and this is absolutely one of the most beautiful and healthy old men I have ever seen. Thank you for the pictures.
Julia

[Second Hand Pat]

Thanks Julia, my daughter's first horse was a saddlebred. They are totally beautiful horses. You must miss having horses in your life?
Pat

[Second Hand Pat]

f/4 would have gotten you faster shutter speeds. Check your EXIF and I bet that is right ;)

Yup, you were correct. If I get another chance to with Diana and Jake I will stay with f4. Need the faster shutter speed for objects in motion.

[rickztahone]

Yup, you were correct. If I get another chance to with Diana and Jake I will stay with f4. Need the faster shutter speed for objects in motion.

Yes, in most situations. f/4 is great to get faster shutter speeds, but being on a moving object makes it more difficult to nail focus. This is why, if I had been shooting it, I would have gone to f/8 and hoping that my shutter speed would be close to at least 1/200 of a second. If I can not get there on its own, I'd have to bump up the ISO to get to those settings.

Lastly, You don't always want faster shutter speed. In this particular instance, you have a technique called "panning" available to you. It means to track your subject while they are in motion.

For those settings, I would have gone to a shutter speed in the 1/40-1/60 area, and shot wherever the f/stop may have taken me. In this instance, it is typically better to switch to "Shutter priority" and have the settings land where they may.

[brewmaster15]

Pat,
Jake looks great for his age!:)

On the tech side of the pic... are you shooting manual or auto focus? Tripod or handheld?
al

[Second Hand Pat]

Thanks Al, handhold and manual focus. Aperture Priority and ISO 400.

Ricardo, I should mention I do the panning technique. Sort of have to do that with a moving horse to try and get the shot you want.

[brewmaster15]

Thanks Al, handhold and manual focus. Aperture Priority and ISO 400.

Ricardo, I should mention I do the panning technique. Sort of have to do that with a moving horse to try and get the shot you want.

Hand held, moving objects and relatively low light..Thats makes for a harder shot... only tip I can give you is can always bump up your iso a notch and drop down the lens like Ricardo suggested. It also helps to pick the point you are focusing on. Trying to track a moving target and focus is tricky as your eyes see the whole thing moving. Pick something like the horses face, or your daughters. depending on the goal of the pic. You can also sometimes cheat. Not sure how many frames per second your camera gets off but that may be useful on moving objects.

Either way...nice memories you captured there with both your daughter and Jake.
al

[Second Hand Pat]

Thanks Al, I will play with your and Ricardo suggestions if I get another chance.

[Mrs. J]

Yes, I miss them VERY much.. I think if you are a horse person, you never stop loving them....We have a private stable close to here that I pass daily, I have been watching a young dun colored stud since the day he hit the ground. Even though I can only watch him, it helps a little. As I am older now, I would liketo look into boarding and acquiring one that needs a home. We had a horrible situation here in MS where approx. 100 horses were left to fend forthemselves...when found only 73 had survived....just barely. Eventually some of these will need homes...Arab rescue group is taking some. Don't think I can do without. Right now the best I can do is keep my great danes....closest I can get where I live now!

[Second Hand Pat]

Julia, if you have some spare time you can volunteer at a horse rescue to get a horse fix and you are right, once a horse person always a horse person...kind of the same with fish.
Pat

[Mrs. J]

You are so right....Love these round babies. Interval of 30 plus years between our wild discus and these from Hans. You may have to give them up but you will always come back to them...horses and fish both.