When I was young, I remember being very passionate about horses. I also loved taking pictures. I received my first camera when I was 12, and one of the first subjects I photographed was my Quarter horse, Annie. I blew up my favorite picture of her into a black & white poster, which I hung on my bedroom wall. It remained there until I left home and started my freshman year at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, CO. I continued to shoot pictures throughout college and eventually became interested in photojournalism. After doing a couple of internships, I attended the Ohio University School of Visual Communication graduate program in Athens, Ohio. I worked as a newspaper photographer for 9 years. In recent years I returned to my love of horses and began photographing them.

I have always been inspired by other photographers, especially equine photographers. I love the work of Tony Stromberg and Mark Barrett. Their pictures capture the very essence of the horse - the beauty, power and grace. I try to look at as many photographs as I can, and theirs are the ones that I have studied over and over. I do farm shoots and horse shows, but my primary emphasis is on editorial work. My photographs have been published in such magazines as Horse Illustrated, and The Horse: Your Guide to Equine Health Care. My work has also appeared on the covers of Back In the Saddle, which is a catalog company in Durango, CO.

I try to take a sensitive approach when photographing horses, and just about everything else for that matter. Maybe this comes from my days as a newspaper photographer as I do not want to be intrusive on my subjects. Natural light and how it relates to what I’m photographing is very important. As with light, there is an innate beauty and drama with horses. In my opinion, a photograph can have much more impact when both are used well together. Horses stir a number of emotions within a person. I try to express emotion as best I can with my photographs.

My own horse is Speedy, a 12 year-old Arabian. He brings me an enormous amount of pleasure. It’s incredible to love and care for something as awesome as a horse because of their immense size and strength and then, when they give their love to you in return, it’s just amazing.

If you really love taking pictures, you will, and you’ll do whatever it takes to succeed, no matter what type of photography you plan to pursue.

Contact info:

web site: www.louriezipf.com
e-mail: louzieann@aol.com 
phone: ( h) 970-663-4322 (c) 970-310-3123
residence: Loveland, CO