While visiting my sister, Ali, in June of 2009, I captured this image of her and a young filly in a pasture by her house. She has an amazing gift for communicating with animals; since she was young she has always had a strong sense of compassion for and desire to work with horses. Spending time on our aunt’s ranch and watching our mom do endurance rides as kids instilled a love of horses in each of us, yet Ali has turned her passion for animals into a career. Currently, she cares for the yearlings at Branscomb Farm in Half Moon Bay, CA, which is where this picture was taken.

On returning home to Seattle, I downloaded my trip’s photos and went through them as I normally do to crop, edit, rotate, etc. I reflected on Ali’s life, surrounded by the animals she loves, and realized that all of the care, compassion and gentleness I associate with her and her work could be seen in this light touch she gives the filly as it stands next to its mother. Inspired by the adage “a picture is worth a thousand words,” I wanted to create something that would convey this simplest of interactions between her and the animal.