Cool Shot! Photography has served as the official photographer for some of the largest events in the horse and rodeo world, including the NCAA Equestrian National Championships, the Rodeo Finals, ARHA World Show, Midwest Ranch Horse Championships, The Gold Star Arabian Show, Peruvian Nationals and World Championships, National Reigning Horse Association Midwest Championships, the Rolex Three-Day Event, the Defender Three-Day Event, the Kentucky Derby, the Keeneland Stakes Races, Hawthorne's Illinois Derby, the Arlington Million, the Triple Crown Races, and the Maker's Mark Million, along with regular coverage of AQHA, multi-breed, and speed shows. CSP has been shooting arenas since 1987, bringing a working sports photographer's eye to every run — the same instincts built covering national sports for ESPN and the Associated Press. Getting the shot means moving, not staying put: on the ground for a low angle, up in the stands, wherever the run actually happens, quietly enough that riders and handlers rarely notice. Every image is shot in natural and arena light only, no flash, because flash startles animals and can't keep up with a horse that's already moving. That combination — quiet, constantly repositioning, camera ready — catches the moment that actually mattered: the depth in a turn, the connection between horse and rider, not just a horse standing in an arena. Nothing is staged; it's the run itself, told through photos. A film-photography background means getting it right in the camera rather than leaning on heavy editing afterward, so the final images hold up to the same standard the run did. The work has been recognized nationally, with awards and features from publications across the industry. Booking Cool Shot! Photography means hiring someone who has spent decades learning exactly where to be and when to press the shutter at this kind of event.