A26-Umcaster Farming, Saturday, August 2,1986
Patience Creates Picture Perfect Cows In A Snap
BY ROBIN PHILLIPS
Berks County Correspondent
HAMBURG - “It’s a marketing
tool,” states Mark Jenson,
professional agricultural
photographer concerning
photographs of dairy cattle.
“Breeders should have in mind in
depth pictures of strong cow
families,” he says. Jenson
recommends a combination of
pictures over several generations.
“Then you have something to show
the bull stud,” he concludes.
Jenson, a professional
photographer for almost 14 years,
hails from New Hampshire.
Recently, he was in Berks County
where he was working at his
specialty, dairy cattle
photography, at several area
farms.
A graduate of Ohio State
University, Jenson brings to his
profession a wealth of experience
in working with and developing an
eye for well-bred dairy animals.
He was originally from
Massachusetts where a neighbor’s
dairy farm attracted him to dairy
cattle as he was growing up.
He began his college career at
the University of Massachusetts
and later transferred to Ohio State
where he majored in animal
science. After graduation, he
worked for the Central Ohio
Breeding Association and worked
his way up to district manager in
seven years. Several years were
also spent teaching vocational
agriculture in school.
Five people are needed to position and alert the cow for a
good picture. Helping to position the cow are: Connie
Troutman at the halter; Dolly Spatz at the tail; Mary Jo Brown
on the front side; and Matt James on the back side. Mark
Jenson works on the tailhead.
Before positioning the cow, Jenson combs the hair up on
the back of the cow to create a straight appearing topline.
Always interested in
photography, Jenson saw a need
for an agricultural photographer in
the New England area and after
working for another photographer
for a very short time, knew that a
career change was in order.
Moving back to the New England
area, Jenson has been very suc
cessful and in much demand for his
photography skills. Although he
describes himself as a commercial
agricultural photographer, 80
percent of his business is dairy
cattle. “My business is a bit dif
ferent,” he says. He does some
work in the poultry industry, for
equipment manufacturers, and
also for horse people.
“You have to have a lot of
patience with this,” Jenson goes on
to say, and also adds that an ex
tensive knowledge of judging dairy
cattle is a must.
He encourages breeders to
prepare for the photography
session well in advance of his
arrival on the farm. “The quality
of the photographs depends on how
much the owner has prepared the
animal,” he maintains.
“The big thing is to get the
animal used to the halter,” he
stresses. The photographer then
works at positioning the animal to
the exact position where she will
look her best in the picture. The
efforts can be frustrating, but
Jenson, as all good photographers,
has an eye for what he wants and
the patience to get it.
Jenson gave the following
guidelines for preparation for a
photographic session: 1. Clean and
wash the animal; 2. Clip the
animal, as for a show; and 3. Get
the animal used to a show halter
and train her to be led and held.
On the day of the pictures, he
recommends five people to be on
hand to assist in positioning the
cow.
A person accustomed to leading
and controlling the animal should
be at the halter. A person is also
needed at the tail to kneel on the
ground and use a fish line attached
to the tail and a bar to control the
tail and keep it from swishing at
the wrong time. One person is also
needed on either side of the animal
to position feet and steady her
after she is set. The fifth person is
needed in front of the cow, making
the noises to attract the cow’s
attention and get her ears up for
the camera. “It takes a very
uninhibited person out in front of
the cow,” Jenson remarks.
Often this job turns out to be a
big challenge. The “mooer” or
noisemaker, must wave a burlap
or black plastic bag, jump around,
moo like a calf or a bull, and at
tract the cow’s attention on
command, often in a split second
when the photographer has the
animal just the way he wants her,
and everyone backs away in time.
Sometimes a calf is needed to be
pulled around by the “mooer” to
get the cow’s attention properly.
A wrong noise, a miscalculation,
and the picture is lost when the
animal jumps and must be
repositioned all over again for
another try.
For the person holding the cow, a
stiff shoulder, and aching arms are
often the result of hours of trying to
get good pictures. Jenson repeats,
“a lot of patience is needed,” and
he also adds, “a little bit of work
makes a whole world of dif
ference,” referring to advance
preparation and training of the
animal. He also states that if the
dairyman is able to recruit some
friends that have helped take
pictures before, the session runs
smoother.
Jenson enjoys working with
Jersey cattle and visits many
Jersey dairies in the New England
area. Most likely because of their
size and disposition, he finds that
this breed is one of the easiest to
work with in a session. Guernseys,
he adds, are also nice to work with.
Taking many Holstein pictures
and visiting many of the well
known Holstein dairies, Jenson
finds that the larger Holsteins can
be a challenge to pose. Some of the
bloodlines develop high strung
individuals who are extremely
hard to maintain control of and
snap a picture at the right time.
But, often, this type of picture
A successful photo session develops pictures such as this one of Irish Creek GG
Monday which can then be used as a valuable marketing tool.
The tail must be held straight with fishline. A helper behind
the cow can then hold the tail still without interferring with
bag and making noise to attract the cow’s attention and get
her ears forward. Carol Dreisbach on the halter attempts to
keep the cow from moving her head up.
turns out very well since the
animal is extremely alert and
looking sharp, according to his
photographer. Again, Jenson
advises having a “workable
animal.”
Jenson recommends trying to
get a picture of a valuable animal
in the best part of her lactation.
The udder should be free of
swelling, full, and the cow should
be in top condition. Pictures of 2-
year-olds and then pictures of the
same cow as a mature individual
can be a valuable marketing aid.
He encourages breeders to use
photographic services in advertis-
7*
ing and marketing their valuable
dairy animals.
“A picture is worth a thousand
words,” is a well known idiom.
With valuable, well-bred, fancy
dairy cattle, a good photograph, or
a series of photographs over
generations of a cow family can
make a breeder’s goals become
reality.
As one breeder explained before
a picture session when a color
picture of their best cow appeared
in the breed journal it made all the
difference. Everyone noticed the
cow and her offspring were in
demand.