The Blue Diamond picture, Samaready, and my Black Horse

I will kick off today with a piece, and some images, that are NOT of that Famous Pony, as I fear it is possible that people may begin to suspect that Black Caviar is the only horse I ever photograph!  Of course there are fresh images of her to follow, but I will begin with the supporting races from CF Orr Stakes Day on Saturday 11 February 2012.

The CF Orr Stakes is a race meeting that I would photograph around 50% of the time.  It's not a meeting that I attend year in and year out, like Melbourne Cup Day, Cox Plate Day, Caulfield Guineas Day and Blue Diamond Stakes Day, but it is an important enough meeting for me to keep on my radar should certain important horses be likely to target it.

The other interesting aspect for me, from a work perspective, is that two of the supporting races are the Blue Diamond Preludes, for the 2 year olds headed for the G1 Blue Diamond Stakes, with one race for Colts and Geldings, and another for the Fillies. Because my work has two important and interwoven 'streams', one being racetrack and the other stallions, I am always on the lookout for, and hopeful that the progeny of 'my boys' will be successful on the track, and win important races.  And naturally, the more fond I get of a particular stallion, the greater my desire for their offspring to succeed becomes.

My all time favourite stallions remains my Black Prince, the champion Vinery Stallion, More Than Ready.  He is classically beautiful, and a wonderfully successful stallion.  I love him to bits, and, in stallion terms, he is the equivalent to Black Caviar, in that he is a stallion that I cannot get enough photographs of.

More Than Ready..  My prince....



 
They just don't make horses any better looking than this fellow.  Look at the balance and the sheer strength of the horse.  He's a delight, and he's explosive..
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The favourite for the fillies division was a neat brown filly called Samaready.  She is by More Than Ready, and out of Samar.  I actually, much to my delight, photographed her as a yearling at the 2011 Inglis Easter Yearling Sale.  She was part of the Vinery Stud draft, and was bred by Gerry Harvey, and sold for $150,000. 







Samaready, now racing in the Vinery Stud colours, showed an explosive burst of speed to win clearly, and is now the favourite for the Blue Diamond Stakes, which is run on 25 February.  She's a calm, sensible and gorgeous looking filly, and in looks is not unlike her famous sire.  And I feel real pleasure in working so closely with Vinery, and being able to produce not just images of her on the track, but images of her in the sale ring, and of her great sire.

 



 
 
 
 
 




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