I had the privilege of photographing Laurie G. and her family last fall at their home in the country. It was a great Wisconsin family photography session! During part of the shoot, her daughter Abi held a beautiful black and white chicken. The images of Abi and the chicken were really memorable. Certainly not your average portraits!
So we took it one step further. Laurie agreed to bring a rooster to me to photograph in my little camera room.
“Hawk” is a Black Sumatra. As you can see, his feathers have a beautiful iridescent quality to them.
Never having handled a chicken, much less a rooster, I prepared for some real excitement!
My son David agreed to be grip and rooster chaser (if needed).
Laurie’s daughter Abi came along — she knows her chickens!
I put country music on XM. (Because, isn’t that what roosters listen to?)
Surprisingly, Hawk wasn’t as wild as I thought he would be. I think it was the strange environment. Or maybe the country music lulled him into a sense of security. Certainly having Laurie (Chicken Whisperer) hold him helped a LOT.
He was pretty settled from the get-go. And then he began to focus (as only a rooster can). I didn’t even have to say “work with me, Hawk!”
Abi, of course, is a natural. Without her, and her Mom Laurie, these images would be just that of another pretty rooster.
But they are magical!
Thanks Laurie and Abi! It was so much fun!
