I was a part time Portrait photographer for about 8 yrs, always wanting to go full time. It was becoming increasingly difficult to leave a corporate sales job with benefits, retirement and a love of what I was doing. Then, Covid hit, and I was placed on furlough.
 
Going crazy being cooped up in the house, my wife and I decided to take a road trip to Yellowstone. Along the way we stopped in Cody, Wyoming and found a section of land with wild horses. We spent three days wandering all over this 130,000-acre spread of land looking for these wild horses. It was a great adventure, especially believing I had a job to return to back home. Or could this be a twist of fate, giving me the freedom to pursue my photography full time?
 
We did some research about wild horses. I learned they live in herds made up of a few mares, young colts, and a single dominant stallion. The stallion has to fight to keep his standing in the herd. As they get older, eventually they must leave the herd and live alone or with a couple of other old stallions. This stallion was out with 2 others, and you can see the scars and the bitten ears. Time, the elements, and fighting to retain his position has left him pretty beat up. 
 
Standing there watching him come toward me, I felt that this horse and I shared something: we were both older and not sure of our futures in the world. 
 
He confidently crept closer and closer, and although I wanted to stay put - or even walk toward him to share a moment - I knew I had to back up. Our worlds may overlap, but he is wild, and it was important and respectful to keep a safe distance.
 
I took about 60 frames of this scene to get this perfect look from him in mid-step. A week later, I was going through the pictures when I was notified that I would be laid off. It was tough to hear but exciting to think about a new phase of life in photography. I felt a connection to this stallion as we’re both getting older - fighting and surviving. I’m taking pictures and he’s roaming, running and thriving in the wild.  We have made several trips back to the west to photograph these horses.