Pick the Next America’s Horse Cover!
March 11, 2009
We need your help to decide between these three standout photos.
In the May issue of America’s Horse magazine, you’ll find a story with tips on how to train your horse on the trails. It’s based on a class taught by AQHA Professional Horseman Brent Graef on the trails of the Texas Panhandle. There’s just one problem: These canyon trails provided so much great scenery and the class so much quality interaction between horses and their riders … we couldn’t pick just one photo to put on the cover. So we’re calling in help — from you! We’re letting America’s Horse Daily readers select the next cover. Which one do you like?
Cover 1
Cover 2
Cover 3
Which cover do you like best?
- Cover 3 (Blue) (70%, 868 Votes)
- Cover 1 (Red) (25%, 309 Votes)
- Cover 2 (Green) (5%, 65 Votes)
Total Voters: 1,242
Loading ...If you’re not already an AQHA member, join now to begin receiving America’s Horse magazine. You’ll want to see the results of this cover contest and read the informative story about training on the trail. America’s Horse also delivers information on horse health and management, AQHA business and human-interest features exploring the great bond between humans and their horses.
Comments
44 Comments on “Pick the Next America’s Horse Cover!”
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March 9th, 2009 at 5:44 pm
As a female trail rider I couldn’t ask for a more beautiful picture. Only regret is that I wasn’t there !
March 9th, 2009 at 6:11 pm
looking forward to the article.
March 9th, 2009 at 7:41 pm
Loved the blue… you and your horse both look so happy. Who could ask for a better front page of a trail issue than happy participants!!??!! Happy Trails!
March 9th, 2009 at 7:44 pm
All of the photos are great, but #3 has a wonderful background, as well.
March 9th, 2009 at 8:08 pm
Really hard to pick between the Red and Blue photo.
Think the blue one and the back ground was just over the top, but I did like the red clay on the nose of the red background.
March 9th, 2009 at 8:28 pm
Was intersting , the red clay was too much red in th whole picture , the green kinda clashed too much , makes yoru eyes jump around to the backgound and miss the horse n rider, but the blue is easy on the eyes looks beautifull and all the colors flow into a very pleaseant inviting picture to lure you into the rest of the magazine .and you can stare into the soul of the blue cover , very interesting and pleasant . wonderful blue yonder is my pick.
March 10th, 2009 at 3:40 am
I thought cover one was the best,the photo showed emotion from the owner to the horse, and the red background added to the scene, fitting in with the black horse and the owners shirt.
March 10th, 2009 at 6:04 am
Love the chance to vote, thank you.
Number 3 is breathtaking… you could almost step inside…
March 10th, 2009 at 7:47 am
I liked the red clay on the nose of her horse, in one, the softness of the feel in two, but picture three was just breathtaking.
March 10th, 2009 at 11:38 am
All are great but number 3 has the most beautiful scenery.
March 10th, 2009 at 1:03 pm
What a beautiful tranquil photograph. The scenery is breathtaking. Black horse rider in white shirt, desert looking. Breathtaking.
March 10th, 2009 at 2:02 pm
The blue sky and the painted hills as the backdrop to such a great looking America’s horse and rider…how much better could it get?
Makes you want to go there!
March 10th, 2009 at 5:39 pm
This photograph shows the incredible beauty of Palo Duro Canyon with one of its colorful landforms under a perfect blue sky. It’s an amazing backdrop for horse and rider. I’ve ridden my horse here many times and relate to the contentment and oneness I see in horse and rider.
March 10th, 2009 at 5:59 pm
HAD to pick the Blue!! Well rounded picture all together. From the blue sky with the white clouds to the black horse and the owners white shirt to the darker blue “Q” with the lighter blue sky behind it to the sand colored mountains in the background. Makes us ALL want to be there!! The other pictures were great too….but i had to go with the BLUE!!!
March 10th, 2009 at 6:02 pm
Number three is the most tranquil picture of all the pics. I enjoyed all three, but I would have rather seen a blue blouse on the lady in the first picture (for a little contrast),and two was just “normal”….three is incrediable. Whom ever took this picture captured not only the horse and ride….with a plan in mind, but also this beautiful part of Texas that we are all so proud of! Number three is my vote!
March 10th, 2009 at 7:01 pm
I love the beautiful background of #3, but the poor posture of the rider, hunched back and foot too deep in the stirrup, looses out to the loving touch of the rider in #1, the winner.
March 10th, 2009 at 7:02 pm
Thank you for letting us vote!
March 11th, 2009 at 9:11 am
Loved the softness and “feel” of #1. It shows the closeness between the horse and rider. It doesn’t look posed—just a natural moment .
March 11th, 2009 at 9:23 am
Love both #1 and #3; #2 is a good photo, but with the green frame it looks like a hundred other ‘America’s Horse’ covers. Either #1 or #3 would be a welcome visual change.
March 11th, 2009 at 10:29 am
Kris you look absolutely wonderful in the blue picture and so does your horse. I also think that picture is more suited to the article topic. Thanks for the opportunity to vote. By the way have you seen Brent’s hat?(inside joke)
March 11th, 2009 at 2:37 pm
Red is the best photo so voted for it as a photographer, but the blue mag cover is the best cover.
March 11th, 2009 at 3:36 pm
By far the cover #3 shows not only the most prettiest background and colors, it to me, shows how versitable the American Quarter Horse can be without reading the article. I can’t wait to flip inside and see what the article says.
March 11th, 2009 at 6:47 pm
Love them all but the blue background and the side view of the beautiful horse against the awesome background is striking !!! The chick on that horse ain’t bad either. Your gorgeous Kris no matter what horse you ride.
March 11th, 2009 at 10:30 pm
I love the feeling of oneness between the rider and horse in #1; the sharing of a moment, but the red on the horse’s nose gives the impression he’s bleeding from the nostrils.
So I vote for #3 — beautiful background that goes with the “trail” article inside the mag.
March 12th, 2009 at 5:57 am
I thought they were all fabulous pictures but my favorite was the blue. The scenery was breathtaking, the rider has good equitation and is well balanced with the horse. And the horse is attentive, on a loose rein. I vote for blue!
March 12th, 2009 at 7:09 am
Cover # 1 looks like the horse is bleeding out of his nose and his expression is just a little bored, almost like he/she is rejecting its riders touch. For that reason, this is my least favorite cover. Also, the red-brown color scheme pulls to much of the mud out in the pic. I don’t know about you, but mud to me means bad riding conditions and that’s the last thing I want to think about; maybe that’s why she’s sitting on the ground.
Cover # 2 has a nice green color scheme, however the horse is turned in an awkward position and again he has a bored expression. It almost looks like they were out on a trail ride and one rider took a picture of the rider for the family vacation album and didn’t even bother to tell him. There doesn’t appear to be a chemistry between horse and rider and isn’t that what QHs are all about? They’re famous for working all day and then turning around and playing babysitter to the 3 y.o. grandkids.
Cover # 3 was the clear winner of my vote. The blue color theme is well done and it brings out the natural beauty of the surrounding sky, and it does all of this w/o distracting the reader from the focus of the pic, the horse and rider. The horse has a delightful expression, like “This is great, what’s next”. The rider also has a content expression and looks very in tune to his horse. There is a calming err about the pic that make you wish that you were there with your favorite horse.
March 12th, 2009 at 7:11 am
All nice…but the blue has it all.
My vote is definietly for the blue.
March 12th, 2009 at 8:16 am
Red gets my vote. I love the connection between the horse and rider.
March 12th, 2009 at 8:21 am
They are all great photos, but #3 probably gets the message of the article across best – out on the trail with your horse, and what can be more inspiring that than beautiful scenery? By the way, for all of your great cover shots from previous issues – will there ever be an opportunity to get some of these as posters or download as screensavers/background?
March 12th, 2009 at 9:30 am
Hi Nadine,
Actually, AQHA does sell a lot of its photos — including America’s Horse covers (see link below) — at sizes that go up to 16×20.
http://pictopia.com/perl/gal?process=gallery&gallery_id=40052&provider_id=779
To everybody that has voted … thanks so much!! It has been *so* much fun to watch you all analyze the pics! I keep hitting “refresh” to read the new comments that are coming in!
March 12th, 2009 at 9:44 am
I had a little trouble deciding between the red and blue. The blue has a great background but looks too posed. It should have been really posed if the horse was stopped – something like the rider turned in the saddle, looking back. The red is a really interesting photo because of the background and natural pose, but you have to do a double take on the clay on the nose. If the horse had been walking in the blue, I would have picked that. So I prefer the red because it is natural and interesting.
March 12th, 2009 at 12:45 pm
Thank you to everybody who has voted so far. It has been fun to hear everybody’s comments.
For those of you who were curious, none of the photos were posed, they were just moments that took place during Brent’s Trails clinic. (If the blue photo had been posed, I would have sat up straighter and relaxed my leg, and taken off my sunglasses! LOL!)
A few of you were curious about the clay on my horse’s nose in the “red” cover. He had been licking the rock I’m sitting on and that’s where the clay came from. I was trying to offer a good feel to him, he softened and he offered a wonderful feel back to me. I’m glad that moment was caught on film.
If you’re curious to see more photos from the class, there’s a slideshow at http://www.BrentGraef.com
Scroll down toward the bottom of the home page and play the “Canyon Class, Horsemanship on the Trails” video. We hope you’ll come ride with us one of these days.
Happy Trails!
March 12th, 2009 at 2:10 pm
Great pics overall…
Red one looks like the horse has a bloody nose (I know its clay, but still…)
Cover 2 looks more like a training pic (bending the horse around)
Cover 3 is a total winner for a trail riding issue – makes me want to be there on the back of that horse! Nice blends of background colors, balance — and a very “undated” picture.
March 12th, 2009 at 3:08 pm
There are LOTS and LOTS of pictures with the rider relaxing on a horse with a beautiful background—-#2 has a message and gets my vote
March 12th, 2009 at 3:09 pm
made a mistake before–#1 is the one with the message and got my vote
March 12th, 2009 at 5:07 pm
i loved them all but my friend took the 3ed one and it is sooo pretty. It looks almost air brushed. plus blue is my favorit color. everyone did a great job!!!
March 12th, 2009 at 7:05 pm
All three are great shots. Blue favorite color. Had a black horse, great one. The rider look just right, white blose, chaps, and very at ease on her horse. I vote for the blue. Again they all look very good.
March 13th, 2009 at 3:56 am
#3 for me, make`s me want to be there. Awsome background blue sky`s with the black horse and wide open spaces. Unlike where I live where you have to be careful of traffic when you ride.Thank you for letting us vote, I enjoyed the all three.
March 13th, 2009 at 5:43 pm
Loved the relaxed look of both horse and rider in the red photo, although they all look great and I wish I could see the sites in person!
March 13th, 2009 at 8:25 pm
To everyone who wants to visit the site featured in the photo shoot….
Come on over to Amarillo! Visit the Palo Duro Canyon and then spend some time at the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame & Museum. We’d love to have you!
http://www.aqha.com/foundation/halloffame/index.html
March 17th, 2009 at 9:00 am
I picked photo #3 for overall effect. Howerer, it is to obviously posed.
March 18th, 2009 at 8:24 am
[...] and rider, with a crystal blue sky and the painted hills of Palo Duro Canyon in the background. (Click here to see the other finalists.) And the second winner is photographer Lynda Harris, a longtime AQHA [...]
March 22nd, 2009 at 8:37 pm
# 3 is the hoof’s down winner. I live and ride in Southern Utah and it is just as gorgeous and real every time. That photo says it all.
August 8th, 2009 at 10:34 am
I liked all of them but I think the 1st one was my favorite