Photographer of the Week - Jaana Vuola, Finland

I got into photography by accident, 

even though I have always been interested in it and been basically taking pictures

all my life (using film but let’s not get in to that age thing). 

A couple of years ago I started to take it seriously when the life I had planned didn’t go 

as that, I found something new. Good example how life guides as, 

we just have to grab it. 

Horses have always been in my life but when I started to photograph horses 

I found the thing. You know, the thing that makes other things somewhat less important.

Something special that I could do all day and never get tired of it. 

Photography and travelling go so well together, just money getting in the way of it all but 

when it’s possible, I take my camera and laptop and hit the road! Last year I did some 

travelling around Iceland. My favourite place definitely, there is something in that place 

that you can't explain, have to see it for yourself. Also did a trip to the US and met some 

mustangs for the first time. Very special place that impressed me but will write 

about that in a different post.

I used to have horses of my own but now I have only two miniature shetlands, my guys, 

Retu and Wilburi. 

They are in my pictures time to time but as they say in Finland 

“suutarin lapsella ei ole kenkiä - the shoemaker's children go barefoot”, I take 

pictures of other peoples animals. Not enough time or what ever excuses but this 

summer I try to photograph my own animals more. 

Couple of interesting ideas that I try to make happen, so let’s see what crazy 

stuff I come up with this spring and summer. 

See more:

Homepage: jaanavuola.com

Facebook: Photos by Jaana Vuola

Instagram: photosby_jaana

Photographer of the Week - Johanna Vaurio, Finland

I have always been very interested in animals, especially horses. As born in sixties here in Finland, the idea having a pony of my own was an uthopie. But I never stopped wanting one. I got to go to the riding lessons, though, and spent all my time at stables. In the country I cared and groomed Finnhorses, in the harness racing events I groomed racing horses and with a girlfriend of mine I went to test ride ponies for sale - just to get on a back of a horse.

In the college I had to concentrate more in studies as I wished to become a vet. It all went well and I started my studies in the university to become one. With my first student loan I bought a Finnhorse. Quite soon I realized that I would like to live in the countryside and suddenly the amount of horses started to accumulate.

And other animals.

And children.

2 x white and fluffy

So now I am a mother of four children, live in Nurmijärvi and work as a veterinarian here in Klaukkala. At home I have had horses for over thirty years, sometimes more, now less - only ten. Two of my children have ridden very actively, also competing with Shetland ponies, big ponies and horses. For the other one of my children horses became a profession, my son Ville Vaurio works as a trainer of dressage horses in Germany and also as a coach here in Finland a couple of weekends per month.

I have bred Shetland ponies, miniature Shetland ponies and Finnhorses and we have seen more than 50 foals to be born. Nowadays only a few mini Shetland pony foals are born at our stables and for riding we have Icelandic horses.

Icelandic horse

Icelandic horses

Shetland ponies

So I´ve been quite busy! When the children, one by one, moved away from home I had more time for my own hobbies and discovered photographing. First I was more interested in processing images, for me it was like a coloring book is for children, but I had to learn to take pictures to process. I also needed pictures for the website of my stud farm. 

An ordinary pocket camera wasn´t enough any more and I bought my first DSLR camera and it totally went out of my hands... I went to courses three nights a week and spent all my free time learning to photograph. 

I still do photograph a lot, almost every day, and I love to participate workshops and courses. 

Mostly I photograph horses, but also people and other animals in milieu, and in my little studio children and dogs, too.

Girl with huskies, workshop with Elena Shumilova 

White reindeer in Lapland

Iceland. 

I´m crazy about Iceland.

It´s a paradise for a photographer and I wish I will have a possibility to live there for a year and just to take photos. I visit Iceland several times a year, riding and photographing.

Iceland

Visit Johanna´s Facebook page to see more
Photography by Johanna

Website
photosbyjohanna.galleria.fi

Johanna in Instagram

johannavauphotography

And if you are in Finland and need a vet in Nurmijärvi...
Eläinlääkäriasema Taikatassu