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Best of - Cowboy-ing

I'll be the very first to admit... I'm not a cowboy. I'm not even a wanna-be cowboy. I'm a city boy, have been my entire life. Now, that's not to say that I don't have a pearl-snap shirt or 4 hanging in my closet, but I don't own Wranglers, or anything that even remotely resembles cowboys boots. I have some Timberland hiking boots and some black leather Nike's and that's about it.

Oddly, I don't feel too out of place at a rodeo or any other horse related event. Even riding one I'm comfortable (until the horse gets a little rowdy). Anytime I have a camera in my hands, I feel as if I can just blend in to the surroundings even though I probably stick out like a sore thumb.

I do love shooting the rodeo though... always have and always will. Little kids watch in awe of their cowboy heroes like they are seeing a comic book legend for the first time. Some of the time, I'm in total awe myself seeing the photos and the looks on the cowboys faces as they battle the raw power of an animal.

Here are a few of my faves from the past year...

Jason Palmer/Times Record News
Zach Dishman, from Beamount, Texas, looses his hat as he hits the back of Red Water during the bareback riding portion of the 51st Annual Red River Rodeo at the Wichita County Mounted Patrol Arena Friday night.

Jason Palmer/Times Record News
Tom McCallum flies off the back of his bull draw during the Professional Bull Riders Enterprise tour Gilbert Carrillo Classic in Henrietta Friday night.

Both of the men above deserved to have their photos published in a newspaper for everyone to see. That is a level of dedication that I have no idea how to attain in their sport.

This one was from a Red River event near Vernon.

Jason Palmer/Times Record News
Several riders on horseback cross the Red River from Oklahoma into Texas headed to Doans for the 125th anniversary Doans May Picnic.

This was a spur of the moment thing that took me miles away from Wichita Falls and cilivization for that matter to the near ghost town of Doans. One of our regional correspondents invited me out to hike along the Red River and find these 125 horseback riders crossing. It was a harrowing event that nearly was derailed by private land owners and hard feelings on both sides of the River.

Luckily for me it worked out and although many of them crossed right in front of me, this shot looking down the river a ways was always my fave. From a distance I'm not intruding on their peaceful journey and can capture a scene that could have happened 100 years ago.

But my real best cowboy photo of the year is this one....

Jason Palmer/Times Record News
Ryan Routh, 5, stands on the rails as he watches the part of the Horse Show competition during the Wichita County Livestock Show Saturday afternoon at the J.S. Bridwell Ag. Arena.

I stayed behind this little cowboy for about five minutes as he wiggled and moved around the fence, all the while never once noticing that I was there behind him taking photos. His parents watched me with huge smiles on their faces, knowing who I was and what I was doing.

Finally, he kicked his knee up on the next pipe and stayed there for just long enough to get a good frame off. After that shot, I knew I was done and had exactly what I wanted in the photograph.

Another horse rider was perfectly position in the background, the angle was just right, everything fell into place at the right time for a perfect shot.

This is probably in my top 5 for the entire year.... for good reason. It just makes you smile looking at it, and that's how I know I did a good job.

Posted by Jason Palmer at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)