So—action photographers galore would probably rake me over the coals for my camera settings at horse shows.
Well, maybe not all of them. But definitely for my shutter speeds.
Here’s the thing: I photograph high-speed action in wildly inconsistent lighting. Horses running at 40 mph toward a stationary barrel. Riders making split-second decisions under pressure. Now drop that scene into a closed indoor arena, where the lighting is… let’s say… less than optimal.
The Reality of the Ring
Most of the places I shoot have:
Three rows of dim arena lights
Harsh shadows in the corners (especially where two of the three barrels usually sit)
Fast-moving subjects and no second chances
I’ve got about 15.5 seconds per run to capture images that riders will remember—and, yes, images that will pay my bills. These folks aren’t just looking for proof they showed up; they want something that captures their moment—with clarity, with movement, with feeling.
But under these conditions? Cranking up shutter speed to get tack-sharp freeze frames often means introducing serious problems:
Underexposed images
Blown-out whites on horses or faces
Grainy, flat results when exposure has to be pushed in post
So I Made a Choice
I used to be hyper-technical. I chased sharpness like it was the goal. I wanted crisp hooves, frozen tails, and pinpoint eyes.
But over the last couple of years, my work has shifted. I’ve been leaning deeper into a documentary fine art style—a blend of realness and aesthetic storytelling.
And that means letting go of the “perfect” freeze in favor of tasteful, intentional motion blur—the kind that comes not from error, but from allowing in more light with slower shutter speeds.
Blur Isn’t a Flaw—It’s a Feeling
Sure, sometimes blur is a miss. But other times? It’s what makes the image breathe.
It shows the rush of a horse driving into a turn.
It shows the motion of reins snapping and manes lifting.
It shows the energy of the arena—not just the shape of it.
With a slower shutter, I can pull in more ambient light. I can preserve detail in both the highlights and shadows. I can give the image room to move.
And in the kinds of arenas I shoot in, that tradeoff is worth it.
So No, I Don’t Freeze Everything
But I do capture something real.
I capture the sweat, the movement, the blur of memory, the breath between barrels. My images aren’t always tack sharp—but they’re honest. And in a world that’s over-edited, over-lit, and over-posed… sometimes honesty is what sticks.
— Tiffany,
Exposure One Studios
