"The photos do not do him justice." That comment is famous in the horse world, and more than true most of the time. A really great stallion may be winning the biggest shows and go year after year never getting a valid photo that shows them at their best. So was the case with one of the most correct conformation horses ever, Skipa Star. When Sam Wilson called, ready for me to fly to Houston, then go to Pattison, Texas to do a shoot of Skipa Star, he was desperate. He had files of show photos, but none perfect.
Really great horses are hard for photographers. They may look so good the "snap shot" guy starts firing away and gets excited, yet with closer evaluation the photos were not "justice." Skipa Star would blow anyone away from any direction. The key was not to let his total perfection prevent a critical hard working effort to get something as good or better than the real thing. With a little wrong angle or lack of judgement a good photo could easily prevent the real perfect one.
Sam Wilson was a highly respected, very hard working equine professional. He had a big breeding and training program on his 255 acres 35 miles west of Houston. The Texas heat was his battle. He needed to ride and train dozens of horses and the heat used up their energy. His indoor arena was open sided, but hot as a Chicago pistol. As a result, Sam trained cutting horses during the night when the heat was more tolerable. He rode all night. I don't know if he slept at all.
Skipa Star (1972--2002) was by Skipper's Lad by Skipper W. He was bred by Jim Senkbeil of Chapman, NE. Larry Sullivant was a North Texas District Judge. When not wielding the gavel he was sniffing tires all over the Quarter Horse world hunting a Skipa Star, and he found, and acquired him. After winning a wheel barrow full of trophies Larry sold Skipa Star to Sam Wilson and C. B. Ames.
When we started to work with Skipa Star he had no areas to hide nor little "great spots." He was all balanced and correct, to the penny. He did not need standing in deep grass to hide bad legs. Sam stood him perfect for poses in all directions. Some say this side view is the perfect QH photo. I used his front angle shot on the cover of the PHOTOGRAPHING HORSES book (1979). It was just light, angle, pose, elevation, and there it was---beautiful. After a round trip flight to Texas it only took about a half hour to do the shoot. He was a dream to photograph. He had a perfect-tiny Wiescamp head.
About 99% of the great stallions are never seen by their fans in real life--only in photos. Often one good photo is what a horse is known by, forever.
Skipa Star was 1975 AQHA World Champion, a Superior Halter and ROM in performance. He sired 915 foals including 7 World Champions, 20 AQHA Champions with a total earners of over 2000 Championships. A once in a lifetime stallion. Now back to the airport and head to Nebraska to shoot Tiger Leo.
Author: Darol Dickinson
