Matt Cohen – More Than Eight

Matt Cohen – More Than Eight – I came to rodeo from mainstream sports. They don’t let photographers in the clubhouse at MLB games. NFL players don’t put on their pads and tape up their wrists next to the competition. Emotional moments take place behind closed doors or at such distance that only a super-telephoto lens can catch them.

At rodeos, NFR qualifiers with airline tags on their gear bags get ready steps away from guys who hitchhiked all night to get on a bronc. Star ropers may arrive in sponsored RVs & horse trailers, but they hangout behind the chutes during slack with locals who earned their entry fees working cattle on a neighboring farm. I’ve been lucky enough to enjoy direct access to all of this.

What goes on in the arena is exciting, and my action pictures speak for themselves. But I made this book to feature pictures that tell a deeper story about the parts of the rodeo that most people never get to see. After all, it’s not as easy as standing 40 yards away, pushing the button once per ride.

This is rodeo.

Available now from Blurb in hardcover, softcover, and iPad/iPhone ebook download.

Matt Cohen – The Rodeo Trail

Matt Cohen – The Rodeo Trail – An 80-page rodeo picture book featuring pictures from 2007-2012 by award-winning photographer Matt Cohen. This book includes a variety of pictures from quiet moments behind the chutes to peak action, black & white to vibrant color, portraits to buck-offs. You simply will not find better rodeo photography anywhere.

Pictures in the book were made at the Red Bluff Round-Up, Reno Rodeo, Clovis Rodeo, Calgary Stampede, Mother Lode Round-Up, Livermore Rodeo, Oakdale Rodeo, Marysville Stampede, National Finals Rodeo, Grand National Rodeo, Best Buck in the Bay, as well as practice sessions at the Growney Brothers Ranch and B-Bar Arena.

Available now from Blurb in hardcover, softcover, and iPad/iPhone ebook download.