What I have been up to lately

Have a had a busy summer horse showing, taking photos and traveling. Additionally, I finally got moving on my new office. I have had the Airstream itself for a while, but had some work done on it, got put on the back burner, had complete indecision about where it should live, but finally got going.

So now it has its own parking spot! I haven’t got quite set up there yet but am almost there… Here is a video tour!

Cute Dogs in Germany

Recently, I was lucky to travel to Germany to watch my friend compete at the FEI World Driving Championships for Ponies. You can read more about that here, if you are interested. But, there were so many cute doggos in Germany, I couldn’t help but take their pictures.

2017 Windsor Trace Photo Sign up

Windsor Trace CDE photos

Windsor Trace CDE photos

If you would like photos from the Windsor Trace CDE, be sure to sign up early for special pricing on prints and digital files. Fill out the form and we’ll email you a link to pay.

Pre Order prices for a download of all your photos are: $70 for the CDE, $35 for the CT or $100 for both. Don’t miss out on a great deal!


Stable View “I Love Dressage” Show

Photographed the dressage show at Stable View this February. It was kind of dark and dreary but luckily no rain! Looking forward to the next one. 

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Stable View Farm Dressage Show

stable view farm dressage

On July 13th, Stable View Farm held their second recognized dressage show. Stable View is yet another gorgeous facility just outside of Aiken. More known for their eventing shows, this summer they have held their first recognized dressage shows. They have kept the competitors in mind when planning the shows, on the day of this show, it was around 95 degrees. Competitors got to do their warm up in the covered arena and then venture outside for their tests.

It is fun to see the variety of animals present at the show. There were the standard Warmblood types, but also a few Quarter Horse types, a Haflinger, a Connemara, and a few other really nice ponies.

To see all the photos visit: http://proofs.meghanbenge.com

 

The Vista Derby Cross

A few weeks ago, I attended a Derby Cross held at The Vista Schooling and Event Center. Derby Cross is sort of a combination of show jumping and cross country. The course started over stadium jumps and then ran through the cross country field.

The Vista is a gorgeous facility developed specifically for training and schooling horses. The entire grounds is pristine. Riders can buy memberships or pay by the ride. It is an interesting idea and seems highly successful at least with the eventers.

The course seemed fairly straightforward. I was not in the best place for the novice riders. Unfortunately, the sun was super bright and greatly limited my opportunities, so I headed down to the water jump. The beginner novice and tadpole riders had multiple jumps right around the water. The novice course seemed to go behind trees, other jumps, etc. Oh well.

A few people had problems at the water, but seemed like a schooling opportunity for most and like everyone had fun.

To learn more about The Vista: http://www.schoolthevista.com

To see or order photos: http://proofs.meghanbenge.com

 

Stable View Dressage

I was back at the beautiful Stable View Farm in Aiken, SC on June 8th to photograph their first USDF recognized Dressage show. The facility is gorgeous and geared toward competitors. Competitors got to warm up in the giant covered ring and then do their test outside. It was actually not so hot this day either. It was fun to see a variety of entries, from clearly seasoned competitors, to what appeared to be first-timers. See my favorite pictures below! To see all the galleries: http://proofs.meghanbenge.com

Aiken Pony Hunter Derby

The hunter show at Highfield’s Event Center in Aiken held a hunter derby for ponies. So, turned up to take a few pictures. Was thinking it was on the derby field, but was in one of the rings. They came up with some cool jumps anyway and a more interesting course than the usual. Of course, the ponies were super cute and mostly well behaved. Some of the kids went off course in the second round, so I guess it was a bit challenging.

Aiken Driving Club Pleasure Show

The Aiken Driving Club held their annual pleasure driving show on April 30 at Wendy O’Brien’s beautiful Trout Walk Farm. A variety of turnouts, from minis to large horses, took advantage of the nice weather and lovely setting. In addition to the standard ring classes, a cross country class and cones class were offered. Janelle Marshall organized most of the festivities and Caroline McSwain was the judge.

These and other photos are available at http://proofs.meghanbenge.com

Windsor Driving Derby Finals

The Windsor Driving Derbies wrapped up with the finals, held April 3rd.

Gene Rhinehart
Gene Rhinehart

IMG_8082_katydid_derby

IMG_8085_katydid_derby

I liked the pony in the bandana.

Kim Allen
Kim Allen
Caroline McSwain
Caroline McSwain
Kim Allen and Fudge
Kim Allen and Fudge
Mary Baillie and Archie
Mary Baillie and Archie
Caroline McSwain
Caroline McSwain

The VSE’s are always a hit and kind of well suited for Derby driving. Kim Allen and Fudge were the ultimate winners of the Single VSE. Caroline McSwain and her four in hand are always fun to watch.

Smoke and Mirrors
Smoke and Mirrors
Ray Mansur
Ray Mansur

Pony pairs were Ray Mansur with his Haflingers and Janelle Marshall driving Sherri Dolan’s pair of ponies.