Capturing the Beauty and Spirit of Wild Horses: An Interview with Sandy Sisti

Sandy Sisti advocates for the innate wildness of all animals and their need to be free

"The Black Stallion" The wild mustang stallion, Mesquite, surveys the grand landscape of McCullough Peaks Herd Management Area outside Cody, Wyoming

EquuStyle:  What is it about wild horses that captivates you?

Sandy Sisti: Initially, I was taken in by their beauty. All horses are beautiful, but there’s just something about the wild ones. No matter how many times I see wild horse herds gallop past, their beauty alone never fails to bring me to tears. Once I began spending time with wild horses, I found that it was their toughness and their incredible ability to survive in the toughest of circumstances that really captured my heart.

EquuStyle:  Can you describe what it’s like to spend time wild horses?

Sandy Sisti: There’s nothing quite like spending time with wild horses. I find the experience to be very peaceful. When I’m upset about something, spending time with wild horses always makes me feel better. They really do have a calming influence. Most wild horses in Wyoming live in areas that are difficult to access, so you’re usually alone with the horses and I really enjoy that type of solitude.

"Lean on Me" This cute little colt was born in early September 2021 to the mare, Theya, and her band Stallion, Tahlequah.

EquuStyle:  How did you come up with name of Wild at Heart Images?

Sandy Sisti: I always liked the phrase “wild at heart”, especially after reading Tennessee Williams “A Prayer for the Wild at Heart…” while in college. To me it captures the idea of wanting to do something out of the norm, something that isn’t expected of you. The phrase also reminds me of the innate wildness of all animals and their need to be free. Now that I’m focused on wild horse photography and advocacy, the name really seems to fit.

EquuStyle:  How did growing up on Long Island influence your craft?

Sandy Sisti: Although there wasn’t much wildlife where I grew up, I always had a camera in hand and photographed whatever animals were around. This included our family pets, along with butterflies, birds, small mammals, and the turtles that frequented our local ponds. Once I started driving, Heckscher State Park and Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge were two of my favorite spots for photographing whitetail deer and birds. Although I didn’t go there often, the Bronx Zoo was my favorite place to visit as it exposed me to nature and wildlife that I would never see in my neighborhood.

EquuStyle:  Did you grow up with or around horses?

Sandy Sisti: Unfortunately, I didn’t grow up around horses, but was always crazy about them. I grew up in suburban Long Island, and there weren’t many, if any, horses in the area. My best friend attended horse camp one summer, but my mom wouldn’t allow me to go with her because she was worried that I’d get injured. I did finally start riding, but not until I was an adult.

"Summer Thunder" When you hear the sound of whinnying and thundering hooves and see a cloud of dust appear on the horizon, you know a herd of horses is galloping past.

EquuStyle:  Did you ever formally study photography? If so, where? 

Sandy Sisti: I never formally studied photography, but always considered photography one of my favorite hobbies, even as a child. When I was attending SUNY Stony Brook as an undergraduate, I was a fine art major (drawing, painting) before switching my major to Biology/Biochemistry. After working in the sciences for many years, I returned to the fine art field as a photographer.

EquuStyle:  How was your professional career impacted after being published in National Geographic and National Geographic Kids magazines?

Sandy Sisti: At the time of these publications, I was mainly focused on wildlife photography in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Being featured by National Geographic helped me to become more well known as a photographer and led to more clients using my work for print publications.

EquuStyle:  What was your experience like when you were honored by The Smithsonian for your image “Surveying the Kingdom”?

Sandy Sisti: It was an incredible honor for my work to be recognized alongside many of the nature and wildlife photographers I looked up to at the time. I visited the Smithsonian a few years prior to receiving this award and made a point to see the Nature’s Best Photography/Windland Smith Rice International Awards exhibit. Even then, I never thought a picture I had taken would ever hang in the Smithsonian. It’s still unbelievable when I think about it.

"Battle at Red Rock" The pinto stallion, TNT Dynamite, lunges at band stallion, Kiamichi, as they near the edge of a steep cliff.

EquuStyle:  Which creative individuals have most influenced your work?

Sandy Sisti: When I began pursuing photography seriously, I focused mainly on wildlife photography. At that time, world-renowned nature and wildlife photographer, Thomas D. Mangelsen, was my greatest influence. I studied his style and incredible body of work and was really taken with his images of grizzly bears. Grizzly bears became my favorite subject, as well, and I spent more than ten years focused on bears, as well as, the other megafauna living in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.

At the same time, I was also photographing the McCullough Peaks wild horses, who would eventually become the main focus of my photography. The incredibly talented and internationally recognized horse photographer, Carol Walker, was a big influence on my photographic work with wild horses. Over the years, Carol became a cherished friend. These days, I continue to look up to Carol, not only in her work as an amazing artist, but as a powerful and unwavering advocate for wild horses.

"Black Beauty" Frigid temperatures and frozen fog make foraging difficult for the horses in winter.

EquuStyle:  Do you have a safe distance that you maintain when photographing wild horses? 

Sandy Sisti: The requirement at McCullough Peaks is to stay at least 300 feet from the wild horse herds, and I do my best to comply with that. I usually don’t get any closer than 100 feet to any other of the more approachable wild horses. Many of the wild horses in Wyoming, run off when they hear a vehicle approach, so I photograph them from my vehicle or from a great distance with a super telephoto lens.

EquuStyle:  Have you ever found yourself in a precarious situation with a wild horse?

Sandy Sisti: In all the years I’ve been photographing wild horses, I’ve never found myself in a precarious situation.

EquuStyle:  Why is advocating for wild horses important to you?

Sandy Sisti: If we don’t continue to advocate for wild horses, in time there will be no more wild horses on our public lands, only livestock. This year, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) plans to remove more than 10,000 wild horses from public land with the majority of these horses moved to long-term holding facilities where they will live out the rest of their lives.

"Thunder and Lightning" Lead mare, Taboo, guides her band to a nearby draw as a fast-moving thunderstorm hits the range.

Currently there are more than 60,000 once wild horses stockpiled in long-term holding. If the BLM has their way, this eradication of wild horses will continue. I don’t want to live in a world without wild horses and I know I’m not alone. That’s why I continue to advocate for them.

EquuStyle:  Do you believe social media posts are effective for changing the hearts and minds of people about the need to protect wild horses? 

Sandy Sisti: Social media is a very effective tool to help educate people about the plight of our wild horses. The majority of Americans have never seen wild horses and many don’t even know they exist.

Through the use of social media, we can inform people about the BLM’s terrible mismanagement of our wild horses. In time, many of these people will begin to care about the wild horses and some may eventually become advocates. I’ve seen this happen many times thanks to social media.

"God of Thunder" The stallion, Thor, postures towards a rival stallion intent on stealing his mare, Shakira.

EquuStyle: How has your influence on social media helped with fundraising and motivating people to take action?

Sandy Sisti: I believe that the more people learn about the McCullough Peaks wild horses, the more they care about them.

Sharing stories and photos of these horses on social media gets people involved in their lives and over time they develop a real affection for them. The deep feelings people have for the McCullough Peaks wild horses motivates them to want to help them when they can, with donations, petition writing, etc. Many people who contact me about the McCullough Peaks wild horses have never seen them, but they know everything about them and care about them just as much as I do. Without social media, I don’t think this could happen.

EquuStyle: What would you like people to know about the McCullough Peaks wild Mustangs?

Sandy Sisti: The McCullough Peaks herd is a small population of wild horses that have been effectively managed with PZP immunocontraceptive vaccine since 2011.  Thanks to the use of PZP, their average yearly population growth rate has held at 2% for the last ten years. Because of this, there had been no roundups since a 2013 bait trapping operation where 20 young horses were removed.

"Ice Dancer" Graceful as a dancer, the black stallion, Chippewa, makes his way through the fresh snow early on a December morning.

During the winter of 2023/2024, the BLM initiated a bait trapping operation at McCullough Peaks and permanently removed 40 horses aged from 4 months to 15 years. During the removal of these horses, nursing foals were taken from their mothers, families were torn apart, bloodlines were expunged and horses were injured. One horse, a yearling filly named “Kat Ballou” died from acute head trauma after running into the side of a holding pen while in the care of the BLM.

Now, more than two months after the conclusion of the bait trapping, the McCullough Peaks horses are still in disarray after the traumatic removal of their longtime family members. Although I’m heartbroken about what happened at McCullough Peaks, this happens every time the BLM rounds up and removes wild horses from their rangeland homes. The BLM destroys the horse’s families and the tight bonds that have been formed over many years of living together. In time, the McCullough Peaks wild horses will adjust as best they can to their new circumstances, but we can’t forget what happened to them as we continue our fight for not only the McCullough Peaks herd, but all the wild horses

.

EquuStyle: Are there particular horses in the McCullough Peaks herd that you have come to know and they recognize you?

Sandy Sisti: I’ve spent thousands of hours with the McCullough Peaks wild horses in the 15 years I’ve been observing and photographing them. I don’t only photograph the horses when I visit, but I talk to them too. Because I’m an almost constant fixture on the range, I believe that many of the horses recognize my voice and scent. It would only seem natural that they would.

"Stormborne" The stallion, Washakie, rears up to protect his newly acquired family from curious bachelor stallions.

EquuStyle: What do you believe is the best way for people to advocate for wild horses?

Sandy Sisti: One of the best ways to advocate for wild horses is to contact your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators to inform them about the plight of our wild horses. The only way to truly protect our wild horses is for Congress to enact new legislation to protect wild horses and limit the grazing of private livestock on public lands.

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Saving the McCullough Peaks Herd: Interview with Sandy Sisti

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Unveiling Photographer and Advocate Carol J. Walker's Passion for Wild Horses

Carol Walker wild horse photographer, one of the world's top ten fine art equine photographers, discusses her unrelenting advocacy for wild horses.

"Picasso Runs Up" The iconic wild stallion Picasso runs up a hill in Sand Wash Basin, Colorado

EquuStyle: Photographer and magazine publisher of Top Teny, Alex Mitchell’s article “Hoofbeats in Focus: Celebrating the 10 Best Equine Photographers” includes you in the top ten. How does it make you feel to be recognized as one of the top fine art equine photographers in the world?

Walker: It’s nice to be recognized, and if it helps get the word out about wild horses that is great.

EquuStyle: What is the one thing you wish you knew when you started taking photos?

Walker: When I was young I always wanted to be a writer. I was passionate about reading and writing, and I also loved photographing animals. I wished I had known that there was a way a marry those two loves and that I would someday in my books and blogs.

"The Wild Family" A mare with her foal and yearling colt before dawn in Palomino Butte, Oregon

EquuStyle: At what point in your career did you decide to begin taking photographs of wild horses? #wildhorses

Walker: I started my business photographing horses and their people in 2000. I had been photographing wildlife all over the world, but decided to focus on horses since I knew them so well, owning horses since I was 12 years old, and running a horse boarding stable for 3 years before starting my photography business.

I had a friend ask me in 2004 why I wasn't photographing wild horses, and I said wild horses? I don't know anything about them. A week later I received an invitation to photograph wild horses in Adobe Town, Wyoming. I had no idea what to expect.

As we drove out through the dry high desert lands with dramatic landscapes, we suddenly began to see horses at a distance. And we spotted ears in the sagebrush. An entire family of wild horses lying down for a mid morning nap. When I got out of the pickup truck, the stallion, a battle scarred grey started running toward me. I barely breathed. He stopped, and one of his fillies came up next to him and it looked as though she was grinning at me. I was in love.

I kept going out to visit that area of the Adobe Town Herd Management area every month for over a year. I started to learn about the herd and their habits, and several families whom I encountered on just about every visit. Then I found out the Bureau of Land Management was going to roundup

and remove most of these horses I had come to know. I went to the roundup and was horrified to watch helicopters driving them into traps, separating the families, and trucking them away from their homes forever.

I could not even look at the photos until 4 months later, and I decided that I wanted to show people that these horses were not starving but incredibly well suited to these lands, that they were beautiful and proud and free, that they had relationships, and deserved to live out their entire lives in their

homes with their families. That was why I published my first book, Wild Hoofbeats: America's Vanishing Wild Horses in 2008. I honestly thought that those of us working as wild horses advocates would save our wild horses in a few years. And now it is 2024 and they are more in jeopardy of extinction than ever.

"Nuzzle" Wild mare Tradebead and her colt Tonkowa share a tender moment in the McCollough Peak, Wyoming

EquuStyle: How do you tell a story through your photographs?

Walker: A still photograph has to tell a story in one frame. when I select the images that I want to show people, and I often select images that show a close up of wild horses, that evoke their wildness, their power, or I love showing images that display a relationship, like a tender moment between a mare and a foal, two stallions who are wary friends, and entire family on the move to water together, for example.

EquuStyle: What do you believe makes your images successful?

Walker: I am able to capture the spirit of the horses in my images. My very favorite thing to photograph is horses running - I think that is when they are at their most joyous and elemental. But I also love the quiet moments I spend with wild horses, when they may look at me, let me sit with them and be in their world with them, and sometimes approach me and there is a sense of communion, connection. I want to show that to people who see my images.

EquuStyle: In what ways has your work as an advocate for wild horses impacted how you photograph wild and domestic horses?

Walker: It has changed everything. I have absolutely no interest in these days of photographing horses being ridden. What truly inspires me is seeing horses at liberty (for domestic horses) or in the wild, free like they should always be. I am now spending all my time photographing wild horses.

It's funny I had a friend ask me several years ago why I was still photographing domestic horses and I told him it was because people want to buy photographs of the "pretty" horses, the spectacular well-groomed Andalusians, or Friesians, not so much the rugged, dirty, and scarred wild horses. But more and more people are getting involved with wild horses these days, and I feel an urgency to be out there with them as much as I can before they disappear.

I have regrets that I did not spend more time with the wild horses of the Red Desert Complex, that I did not spend more time with them in 2022 before the horrific winter of 2022/2023 that killed over 50% of them. This year, the Bureau of Land Management is planning to hit Wyoming hard, rounding up and removing thousands of wild horses from herds that I Know and love. I plan to spend as much time out there as I can this year.

"Flying at Sunrise" Wild horses run at dawn in front of the sun in Salt Wells Creek, Wyoming

EquuStyle: You recently launched your podcast “Freedom for Wild Horses.” What has the response been like?

Walker: It's been almost a year, I can barely believe it! I launched in March 2023 and today my 26th episode came out. It has been a wonderful experience, getting to share my stories about wild horses as well as interview wonderful, committed people with a depth and breadth of knowledge about wild horses, helping educate people about the issues facing them. It's a work of love for certain. And it is an opportunity to meld several skills - writing, speaking and photographing. And it's a challenge and a new way to spread the word about wild horses and what is facing them today.

EquuStyle: You have authored four books including Horse Photography: The Dynamic Guide for Horse Lovers. What motivates you to write?

Walker: You can see what I wrote above for my first book, Wild Hoofbeats. I wrote Horse Photography after several years of going to Equine Events and Shows speaking about photographing horses. I saw a need for a book which would lay out simple guidelines to getting better photos of horses.

The next two books were about rescuing and reuniting wild horses families after they had been rounded up: Galloping to Freedom: Saving the Adobe Town Appaloosas was about 4 families rounded up in Adobe Town and removed in 2014, and then reuniting them at the Black Hills Wild Horse Sanctuary. Both of these are hardcover coffee table books full of my photographs of the horses in the wild and after the roundup and at the sanctuaries. #wildhorseadvocacy

The next book, my newest, is Blue Zeus: Legend of the Red Desert. I followed Blue Zeus for over 3 years in the wild, asked a sanctuary owner to take he and his family if I could find them in the BLM holding facilities, and he and his mares were reunited at a sanctuary.

"Blue Zeus on the Move" The wild Blue Zeus running to his family in his home in Arapahoe Creek, Wyoming

The books tell an important story about what is happening to our wild horses, and about the importance of family. And although they both have what you could call a happy ending, it is so so bittersweet. Those horses have lost their homes forever. The stallions are gelded. They won't be raising the next generation to follow them. 

EquuStyle: Is there one wild horse you have photographed more than any other? What captivates you about this particular horse?

Walker: That would have to be Blue Zeus. Blue Zeus is a blue roan pinto whom I met in the Red Desert Complex, and when I first saw him I  thought he was the most beautiful wild horse I had ever met. It wasn't just his color and his striking high stocking markings, but a calm, wise and proud presence that absolutely captivated me. Every time I visited the area, I looked for him and his family. and I spent time just sitting with him, photographing him, breathing him in. Every time I go there now that he is no longer there, I miss him.

EquuStyle: Which is your most memorable sighting?

Walker: One of the most amazing encounters I had was with that wild family I mentioned when talking about my first trip to Adobe Town. The family was the scarred grey stallion, his beautiful grey mare and their two year old and yearling fillies.

In the afternoon, the mare was heavily pregnant and when I found them the next day, there was an hours old new foal, a colt, by the mare's side. She was lying down, and I approached slowly and watched. Mares are very protective of their newborns but she let me watch. The whole family was gathered around, and the stallion drove off two bachelors stallions who wanted to take her. She got up and the foal started nursing. It was a beautiful spring day with the sun shining, and truly a magical time with this family I had come to know.

"Thor Rears" the wild stallion Thor in McCullough Peaks, Wyoming rears up to chase away another stallion

EquuStyle: Where is your favorite place to photograph wild horses and why?

Walker: That is a tough question. I have several favorite places in Wyoming. Salt Wells Creek for one - it is such a beautiful location, the horses are fairly used to people so it is not difficult to approach and spend time with them, and there are the curlies. Wild curly horses with curling manes and coats, they are gentle giants.

One of my other favorite places is the Red Desert Complex, that is where Blue Zeus is from, and it has some of the most beautiful colorful wild horses I have ever known.

EquuStyle: Over the years how do you think your style has evolved?

Walker: I know I have become a better photographer because I am better at finding the good light, getting settings, etc. but I also have become more experienced at predicting behaviors of wild horses, being able to find them, which of course is important, and I also have better equipment now which allows me to get close without being close - the long lens is essential for photographing wild horses. And I think I am known for my style with the close ups.

EquuStyle: How do you maintain your creative edge and stay inspired?

Walker: I really love what I do, and spending time with wild horses never gets old for me. It is the most peaceful place in the world for me, just sitting with wild horses. Every day with them is different, and I consider it a gift.

EquuStyle: Do you still carve out time to teach photography workshops? If so how often do you teach?

Walker: I do not teach workshops anymore.

EquuStyle: How do you balance all of the time you spend advocating for wild horses, creating your podcast, and posting on social media with photographing horses?

Walker: That's a good question. Sometimes the advocacy takes a lot of time and energy, and can be quite exhausting. I have a routine for posting on social media daily and that's the easy part. As far as photographing I take week long trips several times a year and that's where I get my images.

"Sable Island Stallion's Long Mane"

EquuStyle: What does a typical day look like for you?

Walker: That's hard - there is not usually a typical day. Right after waking up I walk my two Australian Shepherds,  throwing the ball for them in my pasture after feeding my three adopted mustangs.

The couple of months before the holidays I do a lot of shipping and filling orders. Returning emails and posting on social media is daily no matter where I am.

Sometimes I work on new images and fill orders, work on the podcast, do billing. It all depends.

EquuStyle: Whose work has influenced you the most?

Walker: One of the most inspiring wild horse advocates I know is Ginger Kathrens who is a filmmaker and has done more to raise awareness about wild horses and show people that they have lives and families and deserve to be protected more than anyone else I know. A wildlife photographer I find extremely inspiring whose work is to show the beauty of marine life and he works to protect it is Paul Nicklin.

"Black and White Stallion" the iconic wild stallion Washakie of McCullough Peaks, Wyoming chases a rival away from his mares

EquuStyle: The image of Black and White Stallion is incredible. Did it take a long time to get this shot?

Walker: This is an image of Washakie, who was always my favorite stallion in McCullough Peaks. He was a stunning black and white pinto stallion with a huge personality. From the very first time I saw him I was captivated by him.

On this morning I was near a waterhole watching the horses that had come in to drink. Washakie and his family had already drunk and were grazing nearby. A bachelor stallion approached Washakie's family and he was not having it. He started chasing this stallion away and I was right in their path. I hid behind my vehicle and as he ran by I captured him - one eye looking at me, mane flying. It was an amazing moment.#livingimagesbycarolwalker

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Wild Hoofbeats is Carol J. Walker's wild horse education website, where the podcast is hosted: http://www.WildHoofbeats.com

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