51/100 Eugene and Boogie
I awoke early this morning to go to the staging area of the parade that heralds the beginning of the Bayou Black Open Rodeo in Louisiana. The morning sun was still casting long shadows when I met Eugene Reynolds. Eugene is a member of the Cherokee Riders from Lake Providence Louisiana, and he had plans to ride his Tennessee Walker, Boogie, in the parade.
The dew was still on the grass though, and Eugene had work to do. Eugene is a fifth generation farrier and horseshoer. As I watched Eugene bend horseshoes on an anvil with a deftly wielded hammer, he told me his father is still an active farrier as well.
The heritage of the blacksmith is preserved with horseshoing. While the horseshoer is essentially an equine manicurist, each horse and indeed each hoof is unique. The steel shoe must be bent and altered to fit each hoof, but only after the hoof is cut to the proper angle, length and the foot is cared for. The entire weight of the horse rides on the hoof. A poorly done job can disable the animal. I learned that different horseshoes exist for different purposes, much the same as human shoes. More significantly, the tolerances for a properly placed nail in a horseshoe is about 1/60,000 of an inch.
Eugene had a que of customers waiting. As he patiently backed up to each horse and tapped it's ankle to convince the animal to shift it's weight and allow him to place it's foot between his leather bound legs, I was amazed at the ease with which he worked, and the trust a spirited horse places in the farrier to do the job right. Thank you Eugene, for allowing me to photograph you working, and for posing with Boogie.
Eugene is my fifty-first stranger the 100 Strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the flickr group page.
Morning sun. Nikon D200, 50mm.
The 100 Strangers website can be found at 100strangers.com/
51/100 Eugene and Boogie
I awoke early this morning to go to the staging area of the parade that heralds the beginning of the Bayou Black Open Rodeo in Louisiana. The morning sun was still casting long shadows when I met Eugene Reynolds. Eugene is a member of the Cherokee Riders from Lake Providence Louisiana, and he had plans to ride his Tennessee Walker, Boogie, in the parade.
The dew was still on the grass though, and Eugene had work to do. Eugene is a fifth generation farrier and horseshoer. As I watched Eugene bend horseshoes on an anvil with a deftly wielded hammer, he told me his father is still an active farrier as well.
The heritage of the blacksmith is preserved with horseshoing. While the horseshoer is essentially an equine manicurist, each horse and indeed each hoof is unique. The steel shoe must be bent and altered to fit each hoof, but only after the hoof is cut to the proper angle, length and the foot is cared for. The entire weight of the horse rides on the hoof. A poorly done job can disable the animal. I learned that different horseshoes exist for different purposes, much the same as human shoes. More significantly, the tolerances for a properly placed nail in a horseshoe is about 1/60,000 of an inch.
Eugene had a que of customers waiting. As he patiently backed up to each horse and tapped it's ankle to convince the animal to shift it's weight and allow him to place it's foot between his leather bound legs, I was amazed at the ease with which he worked, and the trust a spirited horse places in the farrier to do the job right. Thank you Eugene, for allowing me to photograph you working, and for posing with Boogie.
Eugene is my fifty-first stranger the 100 Strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the flickr group page.
Morning sun. Nikon D200, 50mm.
The 100 Strangers website can be found at 100strangers.com/