On several levels, this was another incredible and exciting first for me with wild horses. From the mare that brought her foal right by me, to three horses rolling in the dirt directly next to me -- it's an encounter that will always rank highly as a personal favorite.

Not long ago, I had my first wild horse approach me and also roll around right next to me, and on this day three would do the same -- one was less than ten feet away. The group started roughly a quarter-mile away, and this is another "no-step" sequence where I remain in a fixed position for every image. No image has been cropped, and all are a fixed length 500mm. I love it when these situations unfold and the horses come directly to greet me.

Stunningly, they decided to roll around in the dirt directly behind me. I was focused on six other horses that had just followed the first four, and I could not believe my ears when I heard the closest horse lie down and begin to roll around right next to me. It all happened rather fast, and because I was seated and didn't want to spook any horses -- it was an awkward attempt to quickly turn around to try and catch a shot that was only ~15 ft away. My big lens isn't intended for such close range, hence the inability to widen the shot or depth of field in the closest shots. Despite the limitations of the big lens, I love the frame as the mustang begins to shake off the dust while rising to his feet.

Perhaps I should have kept my attention on the first four the entire time, because two others started rolling in the dirt shortly after the first. But the little foal and other horses were impossible to ignore. Such an incredible encounter. There are far too many images to post, so these 44 will have to do for the time being.