The inaugural Kit Houghton Photo of the Year competition was a great success, with 57 entries from a wide variety of equine photograph disciplines.
Some entrants told us a story with their entries, some provided them as they were, allowing the viewer to create their own backstory.
Entries were collated and added to a new page on this site where they were displayed with only a number as reference. Four judges were involved, two photographers and two non-photographers, and they were asked to rank ten photos with 10 points awarded to their favourite and 1 point to image in tenth.
Each judge made their decision individually and sent their ranks by email where they were collated in a spreadsheet.
Until the very last few points were awarded the competition was wide open, the winner could have been one of three different images.
Here are the top five images:
Winner: Tilly Berendt
"Hickstead’s British Speed Derby made global press this year, not for its worthy winner, but for a shock tack malfunction for Harriet Biddick and her Speed Derby specialist Silver Lift, who were on track to set the record for the greatest number of wins in the class. They didn’t, but instead, perhaps made history: as they tackled the Irish bank, the diminutive gelding’s bridle broke, but neither faltered as it slipped over his head. They quickly popped through the treble of planks thereafter, and I just happened to be lucky enough to be in the perfect spot to capture this good-natured reaction seconds thereafter, when Harriet realised she just wasn’t going to be able to steer to the final fence. Sometimes photography is about meticulous planning; sometimes, it’s really down to a touch of luck. This was one of those latter moments."
Second: Julian Portch
"Oliver Townend on Ballaghmor Class coming out of the Trout Hatchery at the Defender Burghley Horse Trials 2023. I wanted to get a low level photo of the winner over water, using a remote camera, that nobody else had. I feel that the water splash emphasizes the power of the combination, whilst there is seemingly still in the wooded parkland. Just not your usual eventing photo, I feel. I also like the double image, symbolic of their second victory at Burghley."
Third place: Trevor Meeks
"I decided to set my camera up in a position that , to the best of my knowledge, I had never seen images from."
Fourth place: Jonathan Clarke
"An abstract idea I had during Defender Burghley with the idea to do something different from the usual standard dressage image. I feel it tells a story of the event from a different perspective."
Fifth Place: Tilly Berendt
"Moments after the jump-off round that won Marcus Ehning the Aachen Grand Prix with Stargold, I captured this shot of the legendary German rider focusing fully on his horse, with whom he’d also won the CHI Al Shaqab Grand Prix earlier in the year. I’d been aiming to get a shot of him framed by this fence, with its distinctive branding, and this one worked out perfectly. "
There will be a few changes to the format of the competition next year, but we look forward to seeing even more entries for Kit Houghton POTY 2024.