An award-winning track photographer is bringing back some magic from the past by showcasing the work of the legendary Jim Raftery.
"She wanted to be on her own and she was dancy and prancy and black and tall and undefeated, and she remained undefeated. Right up until the end, she was still undefeated,” said Barbara Livingston of Ruffian. “So, how could a horse like that not just be magic?"
Snapping some great shots of Ruffian the summer before the champion racehorse died at 13 years old, Livingston was one of the lucky people who found what she loves to do and find she was really good at it.
"That made me realize I can put her here forever, and she's alive forever for me,” said Livingston.
Now chief photographer for the Daily Racing Form and considered one of the top horse racing photographers, Livingston is taking a look through someone else's lens. Raftery left behind millions of negatives when he died in 1994. His work dates back to the 1940s.
What You Need To Know
- Barbara Livingston is considered the country’s top racing photographer
- Jim Raftery’s family gave her the late photographer’s collection of negatives
- She’s digitizing all of them to make them accessible again
"History is so magic. I never get used to it,” said Livingston.
Unlocking the magic, Raftery's family passed along the collection to her in 2020, trusting her to share his life's work with the modern world.
"To me, I feel like I'm bringing Mr. Raftery back to life,” said Livingston. “I'd love to think somebody respected me enough to do that. He was a hundred times more important than any of us are."
Livingston has spent more than 1,000 hours turning the negatives into digital copies, unveiling an exhibit at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame and honoring some of Raftery's most notable work, including some shots that may have never seen the light of day before. She even recreated one shot 75 years to the minute in the same place of the track.
"The goal is to eventually put 100,000 of his pictures online for people to enjoy,” said Livingston.
She said seeing history through someone else's lens has become sort of an after-work obsession. Every night, she spends a few hours scanning negatives.
"I try not to get so absorbed with the past that I don't stay in the present, too,” said Livingston. “I love both. But that past is pretty spectacular."
The exhibit is on display at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame through the end of September.