Book Review by Norman Fine
Memoirs of a Foxhunting Photographer by Catherine Power, hardbound, large format (8-1/2 x 11 inches), color, 202 pages, 55.00 euros shipped outside Ireland, order direct from the photographer or on the website.Inside this colorful book, Memoirs of a Foxhunting Photographer, is a collection of the best of Catherine Power’s foxhunting photographs. Accompanying the images are historical and descriptive pieces written by her husband and fellow hunting correspondent, Dickie Power. This large format volume showcases the mad-keen Irish hunting people, the hounds, the Irish hunters, the fox, and the glorious Irish landscape that makes foxhunting in Ireland so adventurous.
Having hung up her boots after forty-seven seasons hunting with the Scarteen, County Limerick, and the “Gallant” Tipps, Catherine Power decided to follow her other passion for photography. Many of the photos have been previously published The Irish Field, Foxhunting Life, Horse and Hound, The Field, Hounds Magazine, and other sporting journals. Her work takes center stage in The Irish Field where she is hunting correspondent, a role she shares with Dickie. The pair makes a complete package for any sporting publisher: exciting images and compelling text.
Maireade English, out with the Scarteen, smiles through it all at Garryspillane. / Catherine Power photoCovering more than twenty packs throughout Ireland, Powers takes readers on a pictorial hunting tour that includes the Scarteen, Duhallow, County Galway, and the Ward Union Stag Hounds in Meath. In addition to foxhunting, there are puppy shows, hunt balls and a visit to Punchestown for the National Hunt Festival. Forewords to the book have been contributed by David Lalor, Master of the Laois and chairman of the Irish Masters of Foxhounds Association, and John Ferguson, formerly a Joint-Master of the Scarteen for many seasons.
The photographs selected for the book were shot over multiple days and seasons of foxhunting. Using her long experience in the hunting field to good effect, Power manages to be in the right place at the right time to capture special moments. Many full days of hunting are covered, from the meet until the huntsman blows for home. The photos encompass hound work, the fox in his natural environment, stunning landscapes, and formidable obstacles. The glorious winter scenery, the gregarious Irish characters, and of course the thrills and spills of the chase are chronicled.
Power’s Memoirs of a Foxhunting Photographer will provide an enjoyable way of reliving good days of sport and catching up with old friends in the Irish fields in the comfort and safety of your armchair during the off-season. Order direct from the photographer or on the website.
Posted February 23, 2018
Chris Ryan, MFH, Scarteen / Catherine Power photo