By Shya Beth
There are so many things about being an equine photographer that bring 25-year-old Madison Taskanikas joy. One aspect is that it allows her to travel across the country, meet many different people and learn their stories. Another is that she can explore her creativity in a way that benefits others by memorializing their special horses. The most emotional moments are when, a few years later after their photo sessions, clients tell Madison their horse passed and that they are so thankful for the intimate images she captured of their special horse. It’s in those moments of pure love for their horses that Madison sees how special her job is and how much joy she gets to bring to others.
From a photography standpoint, Madison’s transition in her personal riding career from the hunter-jumper world to eventing, ultimately leading to her focus on para dressage, helped her realize how her clients wanted their horses photographed and naturally followed her own riding ambitions. Specializing in fine art photography, specifically in portraits, Madison learned that her dressage clients wanted their horses to have a much higher yet expressive headset, much different from the hunters. She brought this nuanced approach to photographing her clients’ horses’ personalities, contrasted by monochrome backgrounds. Whether a beloved 30-year-old pony, a Grand Prix dressage stallion, a Junior Hunter/equitation horse or a beautiful AQHA Congress champion Western show horse, each one’s personality is put on an artistic display.
“As cliché as it sounds, ever since I was little I was always drawn to horses,” Madison said. “I don’t entirely know what it was, as my mom loved horses but no one in my family was a horse person. My mom’s favorite memory of me as a kid is when my grandmother was visiting and my mom was pregnant with my younger sister. I was maybe 3 years old, and my grandmother said, ‘Madison, aren’t you excited you’re going to have your own baby sister?’ I looked at her without any hesitation and said, ‘Not really, I’d rather have a horse.’ My grandmother was horrified, and to this day we still laugh about it. Our neighborhood would have yearly Easter pony rides, and somewhere there is a photo of me at maybe 4 or 5 years old with the biggest smile on my face. It wasn’t long after that when I begged my mom for riding lessons, and the rest is history.”
Jumping Into Dressage
Madison was elated to welcome her first horse, Sonja, a Norwegian Fjord, into her family in October 2017. “When Sonja arrived at our barn in Charleston, South Carolina, I couldn’t help but fall in love with her. She was so kind, snuggly and intuitive, but also really taught me how to care for a horse and build a partnership. She got me through some of the hardest times in my life when I developed several health conditions, and never failed to brighten my mood when I drove out to the barn to see her,” Madison said. “Honestly, she brought back my love for jumping that had diminished due to several difficult experiences, and then really introduced me to the entire world of dressage.”
Madison currently trains with Ferris Yanney, who owns Seasong Dressage and has helped Madison move toward the next level of showing as a para rider—and in her relationship with Sonja. “I owe so much to Sonja, and finally understood what people meant when they had a special horse that they truly bonded with,” Madison said.
It shouldn’t be surprising that as a dressage rider, Madison’s equestrian skills continue to inform her artistic focus. Specific to equine photography, learning about equine body language was a huge part of capturing the raw, natural personality of each horse. “I realized that when I first started, some of the images I thought looked ‘expressive’ actually showed the horse with a tense or stressed face. I had to learn how to capture the look or pose I wanted with each horse being naturally interested, not scared or stressed. It’s a skill that comes with time just being around horses and noticing their movements from both a creative and equestrian standpoint. I got very skilled in photographing dressage horses, but certain breeds had a different desired look than I was used to. My journey started with just a few friends at the barn, and shortly after I had so many people messaging me asking if I could take photos of their heart horses that I realized this might be something I could actually pursue as a career, much to my excitement.”
Now that Madison has graduated from Gardner-Webb University in North Carolina with a degree in American Sign Language, another passion of hers, she is focusing on continuing to expand her photography business. Madison has what is known as an “invisible illness,” as her health challenges are not always evident. After two major spinal surgeries in her early 20s, she is now pursuing her journey as a para-dressage rider and equine photographer.
“Being a photographer allows me to set up my schedule to my needs and then come home and rest while editing,” she said. “As my health improves, I’d love to travel to other states, too. I’ve traveled throughout the American Southeast for clients, and this past year I discovered how much I love shooting horse and rider portraits. I want to continue to offer that around the country while photographing different breeds and disciplines. For me, meeting more people, learning about their stories and their heart horses is the best part of this journey. I’m also starting to branch out creating video content, and I’m hoping to start creating branding content in the future. I’m blessed to continue in this career and cannot wait to see where the future takes me!”
For more information, visit hearthorsephotography.com
