I love these beautiful creatures because they have a wide range of personalities that are unique to each animal. A Minnesota woman has dedicated her life to capturing the spirit of horses for clients who want some beautiful photos of their four-legged friends and for top companies who want to use the power of horses to get their messages across.
Shelley Paulson is an equine photographer from Buffalo, Minnesota, and she’s on the phone. Shelley, thanks for taking the time. Hi, Shelley.
SHELLEY PAULSON: Hello. I’m sorry.
CATHY WURZER: That’s OK. Don’t worry. Tell me, do you have horses? If so, what breed and what discipline do you have? Do you ride?
SHELLEY PAULSON: Yes. I have three horses at the moment. I have a three-year-old Morgan mare that I’m going to be riding soon. And then I have a 15-year-old Paint horse that I just bought and she’s going to be my fun horse.
And then I have a 31-year-old Quarter Horse that I’ve had since he was two years old. And I’m currently riding dressage, but I used to ride Western, so.
CATHY WURZER: Oh, my goodness. A 31-year-old. God bless you for keeping that horse to that age. I’m a dressage rider and I don’t have a horse right now, but – yeah. Yes. And I loved watching the Olympics.
So let’s talk horses, it’s going to be fun. I know you started out photographing weddings and events, which is fine, but I’m glad you turned your lens to horses. What do you see and what captivates you when you look at a horse through the camera?
SHELLEY PAULSON: Well, I mean, I’ve been a horse lover since I was a little kid. When I got a camera, one of the first things I pointed it at was horses. And I had my 31-year-old son at the time, even though it was 20 years ago since I first picked up a camera.
And I am fascinated by their beauty and grace and, above all, the bond we build with them. Hearing the emotions and love that people feel for their horses is a great privilege.
CATHY WURZER: And I’m sure there really isn’t a bad horse photo, I think. Although–
SHELLEY PAULSON: Oh, I could show you a few.
CATHY WURZER: But it’s difficult to get them to look at their best, sometimes it’s difficult to get them to look at the camera and prick up their ears. What’s your favorite trick to get them to prick up their ears?
SHELLEY PAULSON: My favorite trick is when horses neigh, because they think, “Oh, who’s that in the distance?” And then they prick up their ears and look curious. Most of them look curious. Some think, “Oh, who’s that in the distance?” And they’re scared.
But most are just curious and then raise their heads, eyes open and ears facing forward, and it almost always works.
CATHY WURZER: I’ll have to remember that. I know you do horse portraits for clients, but I’m also interested in your work for, say, Farnham, some veterinary companies and some horse-related companies. How did you get into that?
SHELLEY PAULSON: Yes. I did portraits exclusively for a long time. And slowly my work started to get noticed by companies like Nutrena and Farnham. And then, say, two or three years ago, I mostly gave up the private portrait business to focus on working for these larger clients.
And then I also have a horse-related stock photo library – over 16,000 horse-related images that are used by magazines like Horse Illustrated and Horse and Rider and other horse brands.
CATHY WURZER: Wow. Wow, that’s quite a business. So mostly portraits? I mean, headshots, or do you do action photos?
SHELLEY PAULSON: Oh, everything. For the brands, sometimes it really becomes more product photography. But almost every shoot, they want to have some of those images – emotional images with horses, because that’s what we like to see as horse lovers.
We scroll through our social media feed and we want to see beautiful images of people with horses. But yes, I have photographed showjumping at some of the highest levels. I have a showjumping client and I also – I was in Ocala, Florida, last year for Horse Illustrated and got to photograph the Longines League of Nations. And that day, 18 of the top 20 showjumpers in the world were competing.
CATHY WURZER: Oh my goodness. Look, the action shots are fantastic. So one quick question, because we don’t have much time left. What advice would you give to amateurs to get the best animal shots, usually horses?
SHELLEY PAULSON: Especially with horses, you want to use a longer lens because with a short lens they look kind of weird, like bobble heads. And that even applies to your cell phone because most cell phones have a super wide angle lens, a regular lens and then a zoom lens. With horses, if you use that zoom lens, they look a lot better.
CATHY WURZER: See? There you go. Shelley, I wish I had more time with you. Thank you. Good luck.
SHELLEY PAULSON: Yes, you’re welcome. Thank you for having me.
CATHY WURZER: Happy riding. Shelley Paulson is an equine photographer based in Buffalo, Minnesota. This is shelleypaulson.com. Thanks for listening to Minnesota Now here on MPR News.
