White line disease is a tough condition to treat. It eats away at horse's hooves, and can be both painful and chronic. This article for the American Quarter Horse Journal explores diagnosis and treatment options with the help of several veterinarian experts.
This article places second in the Service to the Reader category at the 2015 American Horse Publications seminar this past weekend. Read the article below:
Lyle Lovett has a palomino stallion that is a real-life Barbie horse. His mane is LEGENDARY, and he is so talented. Smart And Shiney stands at McQuay Stables in Tioga, Texas. Last year I pitched a mane and tail care story to Horse & Rider with Smart And Shiney as the model! The experience was so much fun. Colleen McQuay was a wonderful source and I'm really happy with how the photos turned out.
The story ended up winning first place as an instructional article at the 2015 American Horse Publications Seminar last weekend! Here's the article below:
Aaron Watson has long been one of my favorite country artists. I spent most of my college years attending several of his concerts each semester at the Texas Hall of Fame (RIP) and two-stepping the nights away. As he's matured, he's grown his reputation as a family man and an unashamed Christian. In 2013, I attended Carol Rose's dispersal sale and noticed two things: 1. Aaron posted a photo with his new QH the same day and 2. he was the surprise music the preview night. I did some follow up research and in 2014, pitched a story about Aaron as a QH member to America's Horse, AQHA's member magazine. Lucky for me, editor gave me the green light.
Aaron's manager was gracious and set me up with an interview right away. Aaron chatted with me for a long time, and I felt like the story I wrote for the magazine was one of my best. And after the story was published, Aaron's latest album The Underdog went on to break records for an indie album on the country music charts!
It was my honor to win an American Horse Publications first place award for this profile last weekend! Here's the profile:
This article was fun to write. I love fashion, and learning about new items these businesses are carrying and crafting was really interesting. This piece was for Western Lifestyle Retailer, a business-to-business special publication by Western Horseman.
Training articles are always fun, and ponying is a topic I haven't covered before. After interviewing these experts, I feel better prepared to take on this challenge in the future. Check out this article for the Paint Horse Journal.
I really enjoyed researching this article for Chrome magazine. Zach and I are considering building some kind of outdoor entertaining space at some point, and after writing this article, we have a better idea of what to do next. Hope you enjoy!
Last year, the horse world lost a legend. Gunner, aka Colonels Smoking Gun, had an immeasurable impact on the equine industry, particularly for reining and the Paint Horse breed. I was honored to write an obituary profile looking at his legendary life for Quarter Horse News.
This sweet baby foal stole my heart while I was out at the Fulton Quien Sabe Ranch in 2013. There's something so special about foals! This photo was published on the August 2013 cover of the Paint Horse Journal, which seems a fitting tribute to Joe Fulton, the founder of the ranch and breeder of such greats as Peppy San Badger. He passed away August 1, 2013.
One of my favorite shoots took place in Northern New Mexico. CS Ranch is picturesque, and despite a horde of monster mosquitoes, I captured some lovely images of the ranch's horses. Check out the feature that ran in Western Horse & Gun (formerly Western Shooting Horse) .
Last year, sweet Cade started kindergarten, and his mama Courtney asked me to take photos of his first day of school. I've had the privilege of photographing Cade every year since he was born, and it was so special to capture his big day. He's getting so big! Here are a few photos from Courtney and Cade's photo shoot.
Last year I traveled to a series of ranches for Western Shooting Horse magazine. Bartlett Ranch in Weatherford, Texas, was one of them. The ranch is spread across three locations in Texas, Alabama and Wyoming. I really enjoyed getting to talk to Mr. Bartlett and touring his beautiful Texas ranch. His home was so unique--I could write an entire article on its decor. I hope you enjoy the article as well!
Emergencies can happen with horse at shows in an instant, but you can prepare for many of them. In this article for the American Quarter Horse Journal in April 2014, my experts shared how to spot common equine health issues encountered at shows, as well as how to treat them and prevent them.
The Bittlebrun-Radwanski wedding was such a fun affair. Bright and colorful, with lots of fun details, the wedding was really a tribute to two wonderful people. Friends traveled to attend from all over the world. I really enjoyed seeing Jana and Michael celebrate their next chapter with all of their loved ones. Here are a sampling of my favorite photos!
Speed control can be tough for youngsters. I definitely remember the days of ineffectively kicking my slowpoke gelding in hopes of getting somewhere a little faster. This article with Mason Lyons for the Paint Horse Journal was fun and I think it's great information for riders young and old alike. What do you think?
This July 26 will mark three years since I started Abigail Boatwright Communications. I can't believe it's been that long--it seems only yesterday that I was packing up my office at APHA and nervously pitching my stories to editors. I've been really blessed to have had steady work and awesome assignments these last few years. I'm excited about what the future holds. And now I'm unveiling my brand-new website!
The biggest change this year is THIS… my website has received a makeover! The talented team at Rethink helped me rebrand my company and I'm so happy with the outcome. I hope you'll find my site easier to navigate, with content bigger and brighter than ever. Check out each of the sections if you get a minute--it's all been updated. My favorite feature is the way the portfolio items are displayed. Now you can click on each article thumbnail and it'll direct you to the full scale PDF on my site. You can also click on photo thumbnails and they pop up into large photos. I have a contact form and links to my social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn. Finally, my photo proofing site on Smug Mug has been integrated into my toolbar.
Other highlights from this year:
Thanks for your interest and support. I hope to continue bringing you interesting articles and compelling photographs!
Also, if you're looking for recaps of my (personal) travels, you'll want to check out Through Abby's Lens. The rest of my personal blog lives at Downton Blabby.
My garden is pretty small. It consists of about 8 herb plants. But I'm always looking for yummy vegetable recipes. This article for APHA'sChrome addresses the problem of when your garden ripens all at once and you're left with say, 10 lbs of zucchini. I personally tried each of the recipes--one is from my own brother-in-law--and I give them all my stamp of approval. So what do you think? Full article PDF HERE.
Jana was the very first friend I made when I joined Texas A&M's Equestrian Team back in 2003. She was a team captain and she really made me feel welcome. We became close friends throughout all those practices, competitions, Aggie football games and especially nights out dancing at the Texas Hall of Fame. She's now a pharmacist (and pretty awesome at it). When Jana asked me to be her wedding photographer I was so thrilled. We shot her bridals photos in her aunt and uncle's beyond gorgeous home and at historic Gruene Hall--a honky-tonk where every Texan worth their salt should spend a night dancing. It poured down rain throughout our shoot, but Jana was a trooper and we had a good time!
Last year I traveled to the wilds of South Texas to meet with Cindy Meehl, the executive producer of UnBranded, a documentary chronicling the journey of four young men from Mexico to Canada on mustangs. The trip was a success and the documentary is set to be released this summer, but when I met with Cindy, the men were preparing to begin their epic travels. Cindy was also the director behind the critically-acclaimed documentary Buck.
It was really neat to get to know her, and I love how the article in Chrome turned out. What do y'all think? Read the whole article HERE.
Zach and I visited our friends Julie and Chris in San Francisco a little while back, and we had a wonderful time exploring Napa and Sonoma's fine wineries. Julie and Chris own an event design company called Yonder, and they needed some photos for promo materials. It was a great excuse to do a photo shoot in a beautiful vineyard! Check out a few below.
