10 QUESTIONS WITH Deb Lee Carson

*Photo above by Deb Lee Carson

This Mustang’s Life is kicking off a brand new series “10 Questions With ______” with the one and only Deb Lee Carson! Deb, an accomplished wild horse photographer sure has a way with words and the camera. She lures you in with her stories and takes your breath away with her images.

Deb was kind enough to answer my questions, and I was blown away with her answers. Enjoy this post, because I surely did :)

1. For those who don’t know you, what do you want people to get out of your wild horse photography when they see it?

I want my viewer to come away with a sense of awe and respect for America’s wild horses.  I want them to have an emotional reaction to each piece, something that tugs at a memory or leaves them longing to know more, or in some cases an emotion that provokes discussion which may lead to solutions for America’s wild horses. Those emotions may even be of anger, depending on the role the viewer has in relation to the wild horses, such as a rancher or politician or sensitive taxpayer.  Each image is a way to bring the wild ones to life by placing them in their distinctive landscape so the viewer immediately understands they are wild versus a horse standing in someone’s backyard.

2. Do you have a favorite photo? If so can you share it with us?! And tell us a little bit it about it.

Well, isn’t this a tough one?  I have several and it depends on the model.  Our own quarter horses, our recently adopted daughter of Blaze, Ms. Pinnacles, my granddaughter’s with a former wild one, or Blaze himself, or possibly an image captured with my awesome friend, Jamie, last July at McCullough Peaks near Cody, Wyoming.  Out of all of those possible scenarios, I would pick this one of Blaze.

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It was captured on a late May afternoon in 2015 along the North Ridge in Theodore Roosevelt National Park.   It was the eastern most part of Blaze’s range and it is approximately a thirty minute hike in from the loop road.  Between two small buttes is a narrow saddle and the band had gone ahead of Blaze who was lingering behind.  I had moved to this narrow area to photograph him not realizing I had totally messed with his plan and was preventing him from peacefully trailing his harem.  He lowered his head, did a dance, and then he chose to sail around and behind me to lower ground to reach his girls.

Afterwards, I felt bad, because I had been disrespectful of his space.  So I use this image as a reminder I am in their home, but it is also an image I will always cherish because of him shaking that great mane and lowering that amazing blue eye and asserting his wildness to get where he wanted to be.  I have never been able to create this image exactly like I want it, so consequently I have never offered it is a print.  It will become a part of the 2018 Stallions exhibit and I anticipate between now and then I can have it right.  That spirit horse will forever be missed.

 

3. Beyond photography do you have any plans to get into the politics of wild horses?

No, I believe that as a private citizen I can have more influence than as a politician who is limited to how the media perceives and reports the political issues. Unless someone knows something I do not about politics, I will continue to use my art as a driving force in solving the adoption gap with our wild horses in America.

 

4. What is the best part of being on the CSU team for TRNP?

Working as a research tech for CSU allows me to use my equine reproductive experience, my awe for the landscape in TRNP, and my love of the wild ones, and the best part of being on the team is that we are working on something that could be for the greater good of the wild ones!  I strongly feel that I am a part of a bigger picture and if the contraceptive research is a positive outcome it has the potential to have positive far reaching affects for the wild horses of America, and the best part of being here is the opportunity to witness the heartbreaking and heartwarming stories.  We have laughed, stood in awe, cussed, and cried on many occasions.

 

5. Do you have any tips for aspiring wild horse photographers?

Be respectful of their space—you are in their home, where they sleep, eat, go to the bathroom, raise a family, have sex.  Don’t be a part of the habituation problem; leave them wilder than you found them.  Be patient.  Listen to who they are.  Shoot from your heart.  Invest in a long lens so you can be respectful, 400mm minimum or better yet, just put them in the landscape! That is the ethical responsibility as a wild horse photographer.

The technical side of photographing wild horses uses the same simple rules for any type of photography: know how to use Aperture, Shutter Speed, and ISO to obtain the ultimate exposure of your image.  Understand how to use depth of field, Aperture, so you can create emotion in your image, use a high shutter speed to freeze movement and ensure sharpness, and control those settings with ISO. First and foremost know how to use those three settings rapidly.  You do not need high end, expensive equipment, but you do need to know HOW to use your camera out of the program mode.  It’s not the gear that captures a compelling image, it’s the heart.

6. Do you prefer to shoot by yourself or with friends?

Both.  I do my best work alone when I can get lost in what I am doing and completely listen to the moment, no distractions, quietly sit and wait, follow my instincts. On the other hand, I LOVE to share with other likeminded individuals, because reminiscing is a part of friendship and growing older.  Sharing moments with the wild ones and friends is a bond that is priceless and forever.

 

7. Do you ever watch the horses without a lens?

Yes.  Watching and listening and ‘feeling’ what is happening with the subject matter allows me to understand the wild ones even better.  By understanding their individual personalities and quirks, their habits, and their movement allows me to anticipate what they may do at any given moment.  It is a two-fold endeavor; I get to immerse myself in who the wild ones are to be able to anticipate that heart stopping moment to share with my viewer.  It is a win/win!

I prefer to be able to just watch and listen, but with a hectic schedule and the demands of time, it is a rare occasion and I cherish those moments when I can do that, and I have been able to do that more this year as a full-time CSU tech because my focus is not on photography but on the research work itself. Once I am done here in TRNP this June, I will put the photography hat back on and head west to begin capturing images for Stallions.

 

8. Are you a Nikon or Canon gal? Spill your secrets woman! 

I’m a Nikon girl. After giving up my Pentax K1000, my very first camera back in 1999, I purchased a Nikon F5.  When finally switching to digital in 2012 and to prevent investing in lenses I stayed with Nikon and purchased a used D3.  My primary body now is a D5 and two back up D3’s along with my primary lens for wild horse photography a Nikon 80-400mm 5.6, my ultimate favorite lens a Nikon 70-200mm 2.8, and two other Nikon lenses a 24-70mm 2.8 and a 13-35mm lens that I finally fell in love with at a commercial shoot recently in the almond groves near Modesto, California.  Of course I have filters for landscape photography, two tripods, and a monopod that is always on my 80-400 mm lens and other miscellaneous gear.

9. If you had the stage to talk wild horses to the American people -(who do not know anything about wild horses) what would you say to them? You only have 1 minute, so it has to be quick!

History.  Where would America be without the horse?  The horse was an integral partner in establishing America.  The horse carried us into battle.  The horse carried us to hunt for food.  The horse plowed our fields.  The horse carried our mail.  The horse carried furs out of the western mountains.  The horse pulled the buggies to town.  The horse moved us across America, from east to west.  We drive horsepower cars. The horse is the spirit of America, written into the fabric of this country not only by their contribution but by Congress back in 1971, when the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act was passed.  

Historical speaking, the 67,000 plus wild horses roaming free today and the 45,000 plus horses in off-range facilities are descendants of those very horses who made America and are a burden on us, the taxpayer. The largest portion of the BLM budget is used to maintain those 45,000 horses available for adoption.  

It is our job to ensure that fragment of our American fabric is not swept away, the final thread unraveled so they will no longer be available for future generations to find their own spirit; their own connection to the past, one that built this country.  It is our job—as horse advocate, city dweller, politician, rancher, taxpayer, to work together to fulfill the biggest gap in managing our future and past at the same time, the adoption gap!

Regardless if you think they are ‘junk’ because they do not have a five generation pedigree and you didn’t spend thousands of dollars on them, their story is bigger and wilder than anything you have ever experienced, and there is no denying what they did for this country, for you, of for one of your ancestors.  We need to work together so that there is a lifetime waiting list for the next opportunity to own a piece of American history—a wild mustang! That is what horse and non-horse American’s are tasked to do.  If each of us told the next person, who told the next person, who told the next person about how amazing these horses are how long would it take to have them all adopted?  

A wild one need not be anything more than a pasture ornament or a wild one can become the greatest jumping horse of our time or a wild one can save a human soul.  You decide.

 

10. Is there a funny story you can share about an encounter you have had with wild horses?

Picture yourself walking in the city, minding your own business and coming around a corner and bumping into someone and being startled, saying you’re sorry and then smiling about it later.  Well retired band stallion, Singlefoot, and I had that brief encounter in 2016.  Brief and powerful! He was on one side of a guard rail on the loop road and I was on the other and he popped up from below right next to me. I had no idea he was there and he had no idea I was there.

We were both startled, he slammed on his brakes and I jumped back and we both quickly went in opposite directions, Singlefoot to a place where his bubble was intact and I to where I wasn't invading his space, respectfully giving him his domain back.

As he glanced back over at me, with his piercing blue eye, I felt honored and privileged to have had that very, very brief electrical connection with the great patriarch of the wild ones of TRNP.He is magnificent and it was the first time I felt his keen sense of nobility and strength! I felt like he was saying, "Here I am, I have lived my life, I am proud, filled with the spirit of the wild, do not feel sorry for me, my life is as it should be.”

I want to personally thank Deb for humoring me by answering these questions! Now go check out her awesome art!

Deb Lee Carson Facebook

Deb Lee Carson Website

How Bout A Little Flax History

Everyone please welcome my first guest blogger, Jonathan! Jonathan is a mustang advocate who knows the subject in and out. Whenever I forget the name of a horse in the Pryors he’s the man to go to!  Which is perfect for me because I wanted to learn about Flax’s past, and I only had to ask him. Enjoy a very in depth look into my little Flax’s life on the mountain when she was wild. Let’s see if you can read all this info in 30 seconds and in one breath!

Flax was born in 2005 to Looking Glass and Tonopah's 1996 golden dun son Baja and Sitka and Shaman's 1994 golden dun daughter Washakie. Flax is their first offspring. She left her parents in early 2007 as a two year old and found herself with the dark bay stallion Morning Star and his band where she spent the entire summer.

In late August of 2007, she was taken by Flint, staying with him for a few days and then she was taken by Velvet and Cocomo's 1998 black son Stiles. She stayed with Stiles for a bit, but they didn’t really bond. So one afternoon, Stiles was trying to get back Diamond's current band (stolen back in 2006 during the bait trapping which left Diamond severely injured) and while he was fighting with Diamond, the one and only Cloud swooped in and snaked her to his band. As soon as the pretty dun filly arrived in Cloud's band, Velvet and Aztec chased her all over the place. The only mare that protected her was Velvet's black daughter Flicka. Once the situation settled in the band, she had found her place in the family.

In the spring of 2008 while with Cloud, Flax gave birth to a sickly bay colt who was sired by Morning Star, but he died a few days after his birth.

In the spring of 2009, Flax gave birth again, to a beautiful dunskin filly sired by Cloud and was named "Windflower". Shortly after the birth of the Windflower, Flax was taken or went with Jackson (a coyote dun). While in her new band, a few weeks later, Windflower was sadly killed by a mountain lion. However, Flax stayed with Jackson and his family for the the rest of the summer until September that year.

In September 2009, when the roundup began, Flax was removed along with 56 other adults and 3 foals with their mothers. She was unknowingly pregnant with a Jackson foal at her capture.

In 2010, she gave birth to her beautiful and very Spanish looking dun son in the BLM holding pens, who has found a great adoptive home. Unfortunately the same could not be said of Flax. The people who adopted her did not know how to care for a mustang and they tried to use her as a broodmare. This didn't work out so they left her in a filthy roundpen. She never had her hooves trimmed and was overweight and unhappy. One day, Effie Orser saw her on Craigslist and The Cloud Foundation rescued her.

She spent most of 2014 with Lisa Jacobson in Colorado and on 1/24/2015, I told my new best friend Jamie and her husband about Flax. Now after 6 years of captivity, Flax found her family in Jamie and Michael Claps and has the forever home she's always wanted"

*Photos below by Tony Wengert

MAKE THE RIGHT FRIENDS

I’m not an expert in horsemanship, but I’m learning to speak the language. I’m 33 years old, and for 32 years I thought I “knew” horses. But the truth is, I only knew what the textbooks told me. For years I drove to a barn, got on a horse, rode around for a bit, jumped off and went on my merry way. I didn’t get real horse owner experience until I was 30, when a big, beautiful, redheaded quarterhorse named Matilda came trotting into my life. I boarded her at a stable in town, met tons of horse people, and thought everything was grand.  But soon after the new horse high, I realized I was falling flat in communicating with her. Hell, I had no idea what I was doing. She had a hard mouth from a previous owner and bad ground manners. Instead of trying to work through the obvious, I was taught to use stronger tack and have stronger hands to pull back. This went against every bone in my body, but I did it anyway. I wanted to be accepted, I wanted to be the city girl who could ride, I needed to fit in. When the harsher bit stopped working and my arms got tired, I deflated, I was lost. I didn’t want to go to an even harsher bit, but what was I to do? At the same time, my husband Mike and I made the decision to adopt two mustangs. One straight out of the wild and the other who had a bucking problem.  Reality set in and something had to change.

I didn’t realize “the” change happened for me until I met the right people. Who are “the right people” you ask? Oh, you know, the random people fate throws your way because for some reason the universe knows better than you. The people who become your life, inspiration and shoulder to lean on. The right friends that let you be you, and support you along the way.

My wild horse journey started with a group of people coming together for a common cause.  That common cause? The advocacy for the Wild Horses of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Being from NJ I thought it would be hard for people to accept me wanting to help, but it was exactly the opposite. They welcomed me in as one of their own and taught me that passion can be used to do great things.That kindness, by how you treat a wild horse, can help build a better relationship with their future adopter. Through them, I learned to love educating unknowing humans about wild horses and seeing their disbelief in how the government treats them. I felt accomplished in knowing at least one more person knows and I can actually help make change, no matter how small. The wild horse world gets highly political and missions constantlty get derailed, but if this group has taught me one thing, it is to keep trying and to always fight for what you believe in. I’m honored to be fighting the good fight with them, and I would say some of these people have become my dearest friends. AND all of these people in some shape or form, have influenced in how I act with my horses. I call these guys My Soldiers.

Through my soldiers, I met a man in MN who would go on to teach me the art of horsemanship. My extremely supportive husband supported my mission to fly out once a month to train with him and my horses. He trains with the ways of Tom and Bill Dorance, and Buck Brannaman (a personal idol to me). He taught me to start on the ground to accomplish what I want in the saddle, rather than just jumping on and kicking my feet. He showed me how to use my body language and energy to move my horses and to teach them. He introduced me to a flag to act as extension of myself to help further my training.  My tack changed to a soft snaffle bit and a mecate rein. The reins I used to pull and pray my horse stopped, are now an extension of my mind & heart asking my horse to yield to the lightest pressure possible to move their 1200 lb body. I used to focus on as harsh as necessary and now it’s as light as possible. I’ve become a smarter and more understanding human being when it comes to horses.  There is still so much to learn and I know he has so much more to teach. I consider myself very lucky to have him in my life. He’s My Mentor.

The day I met the one and only spirit horse woman, my life was different. She is everything I was striving for. Creative, inspiring, knowledgeable and in tune with wild horses. But watch out! When inspiration strikes, she hits the ground running with a burst of positive energy trailing behind her. And you can’t help but smile and say “Wait for Me! I’m coming too!”  Her photography and stories have inspired me to share my own and dig deep within me to find the artist inside. But the really cool thing is, even though she’s a photographer, she taught me to see beyond the lens, to see a wild horse’s soul. To read their body language and study herd dynamics. To put the camera down and enjoy the moment, perhaps crack open a beer, and watch them graze in the sunset :)  I call her My Like-Minded Passionate.

Through all my wild horse endeavors out west, there was someone back home in NJ that became essential to my life. However, our story didn’t really begin until we realized we wanted the same thing:  to become selfless with our horses and to understand how to have a better relationship with them.  She yearned for the same knowledge I did, and with that our bond grew strong and we began our journey of horsemanship together.  Through our journey she has kept me on track, and without her I wouldn’t be where I am today with my horses. When I have bad sessions and I’m feeling down, she hops in her car and helps me work through it, and NEVER lets me give up. She’s the friend everyone wish they had. But lucky for me she’s my friend, My more than Horse Friend, but Life Friend.

So as I look back, I see the moments clearer that brought me to where I am today. Letting positive influences into my life was the best thing I could've ever done. Because of them I will never stop learning (and I never want to stop), because I have this incredible support system in my life.  For me it was crucial to get out of a negative mind frame and make it a positive one.  

So, I’m asking you the reader, to take a step back and think about your "horse" friends. Do they build you up? Are you always learning from them? Do they listen without judging? Each and every person I mentioned above does all of this, and I only hope I return the favor to them. I can continue on my wild horse journey because I know I have the right people to support me.