Mallory Beinborn is a portrait and event photographer specializing in all things equine. From rodeos to ranches — and even the occasional wedding — if there’s a horse involved, she’s likely to be there with her camera at the ready. We sat down with her to talk about how she got started, and what it’s like working with these noble (if sometimes distractible) creatures.
SmugMug: Hi, Mallory. Thanks so much for taking the time to chat. For starters, tell us a little about yourself.
Mallory Beinborn: I live in Wisconsin but travel regularly to capture equine images. I grew up with horses and have a deep passion for capturing the athleticism of these incredible animals as well as the bonds they have with their humans.
SM: How’d you get into photography?
MB: I got a camera for Christmas about 14 years ago. It was a bigger-body point and shoot. I was showing horses locally at the time, so I would take it to the shows I was competing in and take photos of the people and their horses at the shows. One day I got a call from someone asking me if I would take some photos at a horse show (as the OFFICIAL photographer, which blew my mind), and I jumped at the opportunity.
SM: What a nice surprise! What happened at the show?
B: When I got there, I was greeted by Melissa (who from that day on has been my best friend and biggest supporter). She tossed me a horse-show magazine filled with photos of horses with backdrops, studio lighting, all of that, and said “here, make them look like this,” and she was off.
Needless to say I had no experience with lighting, and in all the photos I took with a backdrop the horses looked…deformed. (laughs) Fortunately, the light outside was gorgeous, so I couldn’t resist taking people outside for their photos instead. This was something rarely done in the horse-show world, and people were itching for something new.
My photos from that shoot got Melissa’s attention, and she had me out to her barn to take some photos of her and her horse, Cookie. I still remember sitting on my couch looking at the photos not believing I had taken them — it’s still a favorite session of mine many years later. From there my name got passed around a bit, and within six months I had a call to do some photos in Texas! I’ve been on the road pretty consistently since then.
SM: That’s a fantastic start to your photo career. What’s the biggest challenge about photographing horses that you’ve come across?
MB: Horses are living things with minds of their own that you can’t communicate with very well unless you’re the one handling them. My challenge is always getting the image I see in my head to actually happen with the horse and their human! I have to clearly tell the person I’m photographing what I hope their horse will do, and then see if that person can help make it happen.
Horses also don’t have very long attention spans, so it’s always funny what we have to come up with to get them to have their ears up. In the horse world, ears forward is like a smile! So to get that to happen we use all kinds of things: stick horses, apps that make horse-whinny sounds, mirrors, dogs, brooms, treats, kids that have a lot of energy to run around, people under blankets slinking across the ground…you get the idea.
SM: We can only imagine the props at your shoots! Speaking of, what gear do you use and why?
MB: I usually shoot with a Canon 1DX Mk II and just started shooting with a new MK III — it’s my new favorite camera EVER. I also have a Canon R5. Lens-wise, my go-tos are a Canon 70–200, a Sigma Art 135, a Canon 24–70, and a Canon 200–400 with a built-in extender.
SM: And how does SmugMug factor into your work? What got you started?
MB: I’ve been using SmugMug for so long I can’t even remember! I think this is maybe close to 14 years with your company. I believe I was researching the best ways I could store my photos (I love that SmugMug is like a third backup) and share images with clients, and SmugMug looked very user friendly, was reasonably priced, and had great reviews! I gave it a try and never looked back.
SM: What would you say is your favorite or most-used feature?
MB: I love how easy it is for my clients to access their photos and download or purchase prints. I love the ease of ordering and how many products SmugMug offers. Coupons are also very handy for me to use when I make packages for clients!
SM: Lastly: Any tips for new users?
MB: Use the Support Heroes! They are amazing and SO helpful if you have any issues EVER. They always respond super quickly and no question is too small to ask. It is also great to watch the webinars they offer when you’re setting up your site.
SM: Fantastic. Thanks again for talking with us!
