An Equine Photoshoot in Cornwall - Maly & Freya

An Equine Photoshoot in Truro, Cornwall

On my first ever visit to Cornwall in October 2023, I found myself exploring the beauty of this part of the coastline feeling like I was missing out by not photographing a horse and owner in such a stunning location! The Cornwall coastlines are some of the best in the UK, the blue water, hilly landscapes, sandy Cornish beaches and the vast green vistas in all directions!

Maly had been following me on social media for a while and we'd had various message exchanges over the years, so when she reached out ready to book her very own equine photoshoot with her beautiful Bay Irish Sport Horse, Freya, I couldn't believe my luck! To be invited back to Cornwall for work - how many people really get to say that?! And during the spring... my favourite season!

Here's how the shoot went down...

The location

The beautiful old stone built farm, Polsue Manor livery yard in Truro, Cornwall offered us some of the most beautiful backdrops for an equine photoshoot! We had beautiful open fields overlooking the Tresillian River covered in butter cups, the driveway with so many beautiful foxgloves, long grasses and other wild flowers (and Freya's all time favourite delicacy... Cow parsley!). The stone walls and buildings that were once part of the Grade II listed Polsue Manor's history as a sheep farm gave the portraits so much character. So much so that Freya thought she'd add her own character to the mix by trying to rub her head on Maly just as she was perched on the wall, almost sending her flying off! We really laughed!

Maly and Freya love living here, and the liveries/owners I spent time chatting to made me feel very welcome as a visitor so I can completely see why. The horses all seemed happy, lots of them living out and lots of happy dogs roaming around.

Equine Photoshoot Styling

Maly and I discussed the photoshoot plan in advance at length during our pre-shoot consultation a few weeks before. We discussed outfit ideas and Maly mentioned that she wasn't so much of a 'dress' kind of girl! This is a really common theme amongst clients, and that is absolutely ok! We went with some smart looks - trousers, blazers and brogues for shoes, and then a slightly more relaxed and casual 'nice top' themed outfit. All three options worked really well - Cornwall is a very relaxed place and Maly's way of handling Freya was also very relaxed and chilled so the outfits reflected their relationship perfectly! Smart, but comfortable (and practical given that I was asking Maly to climb on and off of walls haha!)

The viewing

Part of my photoshoot process is to have every client view their images for the very first time in person. There isn't another feeling quite like it - it's exciting for me as the photographer and such a lovely experience for a client and their guests! Maly brought along her partner, Benoît and over a drink in one of the beautiful lounges at the Headland Hotel in Newquay, we sat and watched all of the photographs from our session a few days prior to music. Maly narrowed down her favourites shortlisting 6 of the best to go into a bespoke multi-frame. We chose colours, debated black and white images Vs colour and eventually came to our final design!

I'd like to say a huge thank you to Maly and Freya for giving me a reason to come back to Cornwall especially to photograph horses! A brilliant trip and one I'll remember forever.