Elizabeth Hay Photography – San Luis Obispo Equine Photographer

My “Why” –  San Luis Obispo Equine Photographer, Elizabeth Hay

Being a San Luis Obispo Equine was something that never crossed my mind when I was a child. In fact it was never something I even thought about though I would pour myself over equine calendars and photo books for hours as a child.  If you’ve cruised around on my site you may have stumbled on the part that mentions I was a shy child. Like, painfully shy. Would not look at strangers or even the mailman that came to our house daily.

One day my mom and I were having a picnic in Golden Gate Park in my hometown of San Francisco. A rider on a horse came by and I actually shouted at them (very politely I might add – I just wanted them to hear me), “Excuse me lady where are you going on your horse!?”. She replied, “Back to the barn”. To which I whipped around at my mom and said, “We have to follow that lady!”. I may have been a shy child, but I was also a very intense child according to family lore.

So follow we did and we found a little boarding and lesson barn at the end of the trail. Right across from the Bison in the heart of the Golden Gate Park. I waited in line and walked up to the counter when it was my turn and ask how old you had to be to take lessons.

My mom probably had her jaw on the ground as I was talking to MULTIPLE strangers in one day. The woman replied 8 years old. “Mom. I’M EIGHT” was my response. Lessons were $12 per week for a one hour beginner lesson. I could say “the rest is history here” but in all honesty it was but I worked my little butt off from that point forward. It wasn’t an easy path being a kid in the middle of San Francisco that loved horses. We had found a barn but getting there involved a major commitment by my parents until I could drive. Once that happened you could not stop me. I almost never missed my weekly lesson and by 18 I was finding way to fund my addiction on my own. The price had of course increased from age 8 to age 18. So I worked in exchange for lessons, but of course I never viewed the work as actual work.

I lived and breathed it. Learning how to care for a horse, condition a horse, feed a horse, clean tack… I loved all of it. This love never faded and it lead me to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo where I earned a degree in Animal Science with an Equine Science minor and a concentration in Equine Production. I worked at the Cal Poly Horse Unit while I was there and even managed the unit as a student my Senior year. I worked in the Equine industry post-college as an Equine Nutrition Advisor, Breeding Manager, Ranch Manager as well as an Equine Stem Cell Lab technician and then manager at the prestigious Alamo Pintado Equine Medical Center in Santa Ynez. Despite all of this, I still hadn’t figured out that I wanted to be a San Luis Obispo Equine Photographer when I “grew up.”

I purchased my first horse right out of college and worked so hard to give her everything she needed and more. Post-college is rough on the bank account as you struggle to find your place in the world but I would not let that mare go without. I distinctly remember the few months where I ate a LOT of Top Ramen because hay prices were through the roof and my baby needed grass hay at $20/bale. I never minded sacrificing for her. Tragedy struck one day and I lost my sweet heart horse. I felt like I had worked for her my whole life and she was my very best friend. Losing her was one of the most crushing loses I’ve ever been through. I kept a crappy gold razor flip phone for months because it had the last pixelated picture I had of her on it. I had never showed her so I didn’t have any show pictures and I never had the funds to have a photo session with her. I was devastated for years.

Later on I was able to purchase a new mare and instantly booked my photographer friend to take pictures of us. When I got them back they were wonderful… with one exception. He hadn’t really understood that I wanted to document our relationship or the subtleties of getting her ears up and looking cute. My fault for not explaining it to a non-horse person. It was then and there that I decided that it HAD to be a “horse person” behind the camera. Someone that not only understands the bond, but someone that felt comfortable around them in order to hold them while you change clothes, adjust tack, and of course in order to get ears up!

I recently had another session with my photographer friend with my current mare, Stella. She is so special to me and I consider her a heart horse as well. I recognize that some people never get a “heart horse” and I’ve been so lucky in my life to easily say I’ve had three. Stella is a mare that I bred myself, foaled and raised. She is literally the pinnacle of everything I’ve been working towards since I was eight years old and I am so lucky she’s mine. Every day I see her (which is pretty much every day), she makes my heart smile. I can’t say enough about this horse. Her heart, her sweetness, her personality. To me, she is absolute perfection. So here’s some pictures of me trying desperately to look as cool as my clients with my magical mare Stella, my dog Hula (who I love with the fore of a thousand suns) and my hunky cowboy husband! Finally, after all of the countless hours of pouring over horse images, studying horses, raising horses and loving photography I figured out that being a San Luis Obispo Equine Photographer was the right path for me.

Contact me here to book your personalized Equine Session with me.