I have always dreamed about meeting and photographing a Zebra! During my last trip to Florida, that dream came true! This 7 month old Zebra, named "Ken," was born on a safari in Texas, and had recently relocated to a private ownership in Florida.
Zebra's are still very much wild animals, having never been domesticated over millions of generations of selective breeding. Little Ken wasn't fully halter broken, which was going to make our original plan of photographing his Equine Portraits in the naked halter, in a shaded doorway to his barn, a very big challenge.
When photographing, I ALWAYS want to do what is best for the animals, as no photo is worth discomfort physically or emotionally, on either animal or owners. So instead, we funneled him into a familiar round pen that had ample shade, and used our own body language to move Ken throughout the pen and into desired poses.
Flighty and a skeptical nature has kept Zebras alive, so the most subtle of movements, weight changes, or even direction of our gaze could reinforce or alter Ken's movements. It took all of 15 minutes for him to figure out that the hay in the pen was more interesting than we were, but he continued to oblique with our body language game, posing every which way we requested.
This is not the ideal set up for fine art equine portraits, but a hands off approach kept Ken comfortable, allowed me, as the animal behavior enthusiast, to observe and interact with his unique traits, and pushed my skills to capture the art I craved to create from his incredible coat.
I could have stayed all night to photograph him. I am thrilled to be invited back to photograph Ken whenever I am in Florida, and hope that the next time I visit, I'll be able to thank him for his willingness and beauty through a hug or a boop on his nose.
These are a handful of my favorite photographs from his photoshoot. Scroll to the bottom for a BTS photos my assistant took with her iphone during this photoshoot!
““J.Klein photos was absolutely great to work with, my young zebra was still new to accepting strangers and very unsure but Jesse’s energy and patience had him settled down in no time. She kept him comfortable while managing to capture some of the most magical images of him. The final photos are truly works of art!””
J.Klein Photos is a Michigan Equine and Canine Photographer, but available for travel throughout the USA.
READY TO BOOK YOUR SESSION WITH J.KLEIN PHOTOS?
