01/11/2026
It hurts when people seem so excited about having a photographer onsite and then nothing. All of the time spent driving, editing and posting those photos never seems worth it. I truly love what I do but people need to understand this is how I pay my bills. Please respect the show photographer and support them ❤️
POV: You’re the Photographer
I put my last $20 in my gas tank to hit a barrel race I was asked to come photograph. I had just started out and I don’t get a flat rate. I just get the right to sell the photos. $10 a photo, and if I could sell only 10 photos, I could survive that week. Selling more than that, I’m living in luxury. With a camera and lens that is probably worth more than the car I drove there. I spent hours in the sun, helping set a barrel in between runs, supporting each exhibitor.
You make the drive home, and you skip supper and head straight to uploading. You take the extra step of running through photos and culling photos where a barrel horse looks like the dinosaur on the front of a “Jurassic Park” movie. You cull every photo that doesn’t flatter the horse, or rider. You sorted by drag and have to upload folder by folder. You get them uploaded before the next morning, you make the social media post to share the gallery link. And then you wait. You get the email you had a sale. And then another, and then another.
But… You didn’t sell ten. You cannot afford to put to put gas in your car, and you pray you can book a session to pay your bills that week. You are marketing like crazy to get your name out there. You are doing everything you can to build your business. You keep photos affordable. You are putting in so many hours to survive.
And then you see it. Several of those photos screen-shotted off your website, posted to social media, with a huge watermark over top of it. You went hungry. You went with bills that were late. You went driving a car worth less than your equipment—that you bought used & worked many hours to pay for. You went above and beyond every chance you got. You lived with the bare minimum to survive, but they could screenshot it.
And that’s the reality of being a horse show, sports, rodeo photographer. I am not speaking at anyone directly. I have not taken my experiences to any social media platforms, but I have an army in my corner. I am being 100% transparent and vulnerable. This is why they say buy the photo. Because quite frankly, buying the one photo might put a meal on the table, or gas in the tank. I have been in business a little over a year. I have had a lot of photos stolen. And I am pretty non-confrontational. I want everyone to have photos they love and cherish, but not at the expense of my business. My post is not to make anyone feel bad, to bully anyone, or to trash anyone- that is why there are no names, but please know if you choose to screenshot a photo- even with the watermark- it is copyright infringement. But look bigger than legality and big messy lawsuits. Look at the hours put in. Look at the extra that photographer is doing- I am often ready and willing to set a barrel, donate back to the organization, and anything else I can do. Look at the person behind the camera and see someone killing themselves to survive. It wasn’t just a screenshot, it was a meal they could’ve had, fuel put in their car, a medical bill paid, or even means to upgrade equipment. Running a business is hard. Being professional is hard, and maybe this post isn’t professional. But maybe it is.
Thank you to everyone who has supported my business by buying the photo, standing up for my business—in a kind way, and for those who let me cry because I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to do. They don’t give maps out when you decide to chase your dreams. So when it gets messy, bear down & hold tight (like it’s a moody paint mare after 2 weeks off). And like I do that moody paint mare, I choose my business. I choose to continue to risk everything for that business.
acehighphotography.com
