Horses and Flash

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Jemma B

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Jemma
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I've been asked to take some horse pictures at a Polo match, just as a favour for a friend. Is it ok to use flash with horses?
 
My first question would be why do you think you're going to need flash?
 
Depends on the horse so definitely ask the owner.

Some horses, especially "well bred" ones can be extremely nervous and I can confirm from personal experience that being thrown or trying to catch a frightened horse is not an enjoyable experience!
 
If it's sunny I want to use fill in flash. I won't have the opportunity to ask each individual player, so sounds like it may be a bad idea. But I'm sure when I've seen pics of eventing horses in action it looks like fill flash was used?
 
Competition horses and flash do not go together particularly at a polo match. To be honest the flash will make no difference as you will not be close enough the majority of the time.
 
Ive been at the stables taking pics & a horse got spooked & acting a little
strange.

I wasnt sure if it was the sun reflecting on the lens or something else so
i walked away slowly.

I didnt want to take the chance :thumbs:
 
(from someone who (unfortunately) has to spend alot of time with nag's) flash is a big no no with horses, iv'e seen a mobile phone ring tone spook a horse and launch the rider (who's phone was ringing) off it's back!!

Don't take the risk
 
I never ever use flash with horses. If you have your settings right there is no need, plus I've seen so many horses spook at stupid things (and been riding them at the time!)- a flash is unnecessary and will spook a lot of horses.

I was photographing dressage on Sunday, and someone was stood at the edge of the field using a flash, I spotted it every single time it went off, so the horses must have (if I had been riding at the time I would have been pretty ticked off).
 
I frequently use flash with polo horses and it has never been a problem. Having spoken to a number of riders and grooms they've said that the horses dont really notice flash and they haven't been bothered by it.

The problem I imagine you are trying to overcome is taking pictures against a bright sky where the rider's face is often also in shadow from their helmet. Whatever settings you might use, the only way to get a properly exposed photo in this situation is to use flash.

Here's one from yesterday

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And one from a few weeks back which is much cooler.

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Tobers
 
Tobers, Thank you, at last someone who understands what fill flash is for!
 
Jemma B said:
Tobers, Thank you, at last someone who understands what fill flash is for!
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A little bit harsh there Jemma, I think people understand what fill flash is for, that wasn't your question. Also, people were answering more in respect to using flash during the actual play and I made it clear in my reply that it would probably be ok at the lines as long as you had permission from the owner/player.
 
i dont think its about people not understanding what fill flash is for, i would assume anyone answering this question more than knows.. its more about respect for horse and rider....using flash IMO is disrespectful, thoughtless and even dangerous with horses. as with other big animals, I wouldnt even use it at the lines, unless YOU know the animal and how its going to react. and even people who have worked with the same animals for years can not absolutely say how that will be.
 
My first question would be why do you think you're going to need flash?/QUOTE]
To be honest the flash will make no difference as you will not be close enough the majority of the time./QUOTE]
if its a dull day then boost your ISO a bit and open up your aperture./QUOTE]
If you have your settings right there is no need/QUOTE]
you should should get away with just upping your ISO /QUOTE]

I may have been a little harsh but I think with good reason, none of the above suggestions will achieve the same effect as fill flash.

I'm just going to ask the guys playing and gauge the reaction.

Kerioak, practice match at Hurtwood, Surrey.
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Jemma B said:
My first question would be why do you think you're going to need flash?/QUOTE]
To be honest the flash will make no difference as you will not be close enough the majority of the time./QUOTE]
if its a dull day then boost your ISO a bit and open up your aperture./QUOTE]
If you have your settings right there is no need/QUOTE]
you should should get away with just upping your ISO /QUOTE]

I may have been a little harsh but I think with good reason, none of the above suggestions will achieve the same effect as fill flash.

I'm just going to ask the guys playing and gauge the reaction.

Kerioak, practice match at Hurtwood, Surrey.
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But none of the above suggestions indicate that people don't know what fill flash is for. They are perfectly valid if you are planning to photograph polo being played. You are not close enough at any point for fill flash to be effective anyway as the horse achieve speeds of up to 40mph. And I seriously doubt any player would be happy at a flash going off in front of them whilst they are at full pelt chasing the ball.
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I do a lot of sports with players using helmets and hats and bright sun and have never used flash.. Bit of highlight/shadows in PS and bobs yer auntie..
 
Move to Talk Photography - Sports section is for photo sharing only. Thanks :)
 
Ok, the subject of upsetting the horses is now becoming academic, like I said, I've taken everyone's advice onboard, and I'll see on the day.
But what does interest me now is the subject of fill flash. Ok, I'm no PS expert by any means, but are you trying to suggest I can get rid of the shadows on a sunny day with PS, you can even out the exposure that easily?
 
Jemma B said:
Ok, the subject of upsetting the horses is now becoming academic, like I said, I've taken everyone's advice onboard, and I'll see on the day.
But what does interest me now is the subject of fill flash. Ok, I'm no PS expert by any means, but are you trying to suggest I can get rid of the shadows on a sunny day with PS, you can even out the exposure that easily?
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No...Not to the extent shown in the two examples above.
I think fill-flash will be fine if you're doing set-ups like these ^^^ after the match - for the action during the matches (chukkas?) it won't matter much if the riders' faces are slightly obscured...
 
Jemma B said:
I've been asked to take some horse pictures at a Polo match, just as a favour for a friend. Is it ok to use flash with horses?
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Jemma B said:
Tobers, Thank you, at last someone who understands what fill flash is for!
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/mod hat off

I must admit your response is a bit rude considering the time people have taken to respond to your original question which never mentioned fill flash. Funnily enough I too know what fill flash is for and I've also taken one or two shots of horses (as has Fabs). It does cheese me off when people ask for advice then dismiss the responses given.

Tobers shots are very good but they are not of horses and certainly not of horses on a polo field and I will state again that you shouldn't use flash when the horses are playing for during any other competition for that matter - there was a rider thrown at Badminton Horse Trials this year because the horse spooked when a flash went off, if that happened on a polo field you could have a major pile up.
 
Hacker said:
there was a rider thrown at Badminton Horse Trials this year because the horse spooked when a flash went off, if that happened on a polo field you could have a major pile up.
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Excellent!!! Call Kennomeat and photograph the result!

Glue and Dog-Food everywhere...lol
 
hahahah...mmm....MMM... that IS a tasty Burger...can I have some of your...beverage...
 
I must admit your response is a bit rude considering the time people have taken to respond to your original question which never mentioned fill flash
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Hacker,
Yes, true, which is why I added my next post (5th down).
If it's sunny I want to use fill in flash.
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However I do apologise if that is not forum etiquette, and people only read the OP and not any of the OP's follow up.
It does cheese me off when people ask for advice then dismiss the responses given.
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I hope you're not suggesting that every response to a question on here will be the correct answer that should be followed at all times? I could have hours of fun!
 
Hmmm...no...but you should still respect the fact that people have taken time out to try and help, even if it's not the right solution to your problem...
 
Some of us posting in this thread do have experience at Polo - check out our websites or these threads

Polocrosse - nearly Polo - Kerioak

Polo - Foxymoose

Polo - Kerioak

Polo - Kerioak

Polo Ponies (before they were tacked up) - Kerioak

Polo at Hurtwood Park - Tobers

Arena Polo - Hacker

Arena Polo - Fabs

..... and this is just a few threads from this year and does not take account of all of Hacker's horse work just to show that the answers we gave were as a result of experience and not guesswork as to how fill flash works.
 
Ok folks my apologies for any offence caused. I'm suitably chastised and I'll count to ten and breathe next time before firing off any abrupt posts.:bonk:
 
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