Every year, Lake Norman Currents Magazine celebrates the pets of the Lake Norman area with their annual pet issue. They host a fun contest with tons of dogs - small to large, fluffy to bald. Judges from the area have the hard decision of picking just one that will land on the cover of the magazine. This year, Cuda walked away... (click on the image above to continue reading)
As most of you may know, Chihuahuas can be a little shy and tend to get nervous around new people and new big, black objects looking at them (aka, the camera). When I first met Lola and Charo, I took the safe approach and greeted them with treats and stayed down on their level. Charo, the long-haired fuzzy one of the pair, instantly was a fan! Anyone that gave her attention was a-ok in her book. Lola was a little more timid but I could tell she would eventually come out of her shell. As a matter of fact, I was 99% sure that she would be a camera ham by the end. (Spoiler alert! I was right!)
I introduce Charo...
...and Lola...
Charo instantly fell into her top model ways. I'm pretty sure she's done this before. ;) She was completely ready to show off her "frizzy cotton ball" look!
Lola hung back for a while but really started to come out of her shell once we reached the beach at Lake Norman.
She was pretty interested in the water and even got her toes a little wet at one point!
The sisters had a blast running around on the sand!
Such cuties!!!!
Right about this time, Lola really started to steal the show. She totally "got it" and was ready to work it!
Lola's like, "yeah, I got this!"
When we walked out to the peninsula, we were greeted with the most amazing sunset! Most of the session was shot with cloudy skies - something I normally avoid. However, they worked in our favor since we wanted to capture the background of the lake. As the clouds parted, the sky turned the most gorgeous shades of orange, pink, and purple!
And the family enjoying the lovely views...
I heart this sweet family and I hope you enjoyed their sneak peek!
Maverick's family booked their session back in June too make sure they got a prime session date for featuring the Fall leaves. I didn't want to disappoint! The day of our session, Hurricane Sandy was moving in and the clouds kept coming and going. We decided to go ahead with the session and it started out with sunny skies and very little cloud cover. Unfortunately, the clouds slowly moved in and the grayish light did little to make the golden hues of the trees sparkle. We ended up stopping the session early and reshooting a second day. I'm SO glad we did because the sun was out, the leaves were gorgeous, and Maverick looked stunning!
This handsome boy just turned 5 years old but still has the energy of a puppy! He had a good ol' time exploring the park and smelling everything he could. Don't you just love that adorable face?!?
One of the main objectives of the shoot was to get a picture of Maverick with his younger 2-legged brother. Before we could even think about Maverick being ready for that, we had to get some of his energy out...
And we got one!!! You never know what to expect when working with a dog and a very young child. They each are on their own schedule and want to do what they want to do. :)
Thanks Maverick and your family for being flexible and patient! I hope you love the results so far!
Velcro isn't easily torn apart - just as Carly isn't easily removed from her mom's side. At 12 years old, Carley has been through a lot with her mom including the inception of her marriage 2 years ago and now, *officially* a pregnancy! Congrats again, by the way! I'm so honored I got to capture their bond and I can't wait to see Carly give kisses to her new baby brother or sister!
Carly mid-bark...
This is the life!
Hehe...Carly's missing tooth is one of the many things her parents love about her.
And of course Carly has to thank her dad for making this all possible. I can't wait to see you all again and check on the belly!
...and, unfortunately, "Bubbles" isn't a new dog of ours! ;) As often as possible, I like to take some time to photograph my own dogs. After the busy holiday season, I finally had some spare time to take Eva out to a location I've had my eye on for several months. Back in November and December, this field was filled with gorgeous yellow flowers. The timing to shoot back then didn't quite work out but I ended up really loving the gold and brown tones that filled the field a few weeks ago. They complimented Eva's coloring perfectly! I love this first image so much that I had a 30x40 canvas made of it!
Time to bust out the bubbles! I've been wanting to play with these just to see how they would turn out in pictures. They are non-toxic, catnip bubbles meant to make your cat go crazy. Do they work on dogs? Yeah, not so much.
Eva thinks she's over it...
And that one just popped in her face. She's done.
Time to head back home! :) Next up will be Sadie!
I feel so lucky to work with some amazing animal lovers on a daily basis. Last Sunday was no exception. My clients, a pair of veterinarians with a practice in Charlotte, gathered their pack together and spent the evening with me at Jetton Park. The chemistry between the five of them was undeniable and it just warmed my heart! Each of these pups has unfortunate health issues but they are definitely in the best hands. I introduce Otis, Curtis, and Weber (from left to right).
Curtis got some extra loving during our photo shoot. At 10 years old and with health issues, it was really important to his mom and dad to get some images of just the three of them. Curtis is such a sweet old man and his handsome grey highlights make him look so distinguished. He is their heart-dog and I totally understand why.
Swiss Mountain Dogs aren't known to be water lovers but Otis thought he would test it out. He is such a goofy boy that makes me laugh!
Weber, being the young 2-year-old, took advantage of the situation and went fetching for sticks!
Curtis opted to stay on high ground.
After hanging out at the park, the pack jumped in the car and headed over to the Peninsula Yacht Club...
Yay, dad! We're going out on the boat!
Assume your positions!
These guys were exhausted but they took time on the boat ride to relax and take in the lovely scenery.
We finished the evening off with a beautiful sunset. This isn't enhanced...it was just that pretty. Just like Curtis, Otis and Weber and the love they have for their parents.
I recently had the pleasure of working with Jena from Jena's Place for Paws to get some fresh, fun artwork for the walls of her new doggy day care. To keep things personal, we used her fur babies as models. Rimmy, the Min Pin, and Grahm, the Boxer, were happy to work it for us on this HOT afternoon! They totally rocked it and showed off their skills in front of the beautiful green landscape in Jetton Park. I hope the clients of Jena's Place for Paws enjoy the fabulous new images as they walk in the door!
Ah! A Bernese Mountain Dog and a Golden Retriever. Two of the most lovable and cuddliest breeds. This is Dakota (the Bernese) and Max (the Golden), daughter and son to one very lucky man who is getting these images as a surprise Christmas present. Their mom contacted me because she couldn't think of a gift more meaningful than images of their furry pack. I couldn't agree more. We even included their cute human daughter, Avery, in a couple of the shots. Dakota, Max and Avery have basically grown up together as they are all between the ages of 5 and 7.
We secretly arranged the session while the dad was out of town and we got lucky to miss out on rain forecasted for the week. We spent the evening hanging out in the backyard which overlooks the golf course - a good source of entertainment for the dogs. They withstood the heat and relentless mosquitoes and were great models for their dad's new artwork. I hope he enjoys his wonderful and thoughtful present and cherishes these images for years to come.
PS - If you recognize these pups, don't forget to keep it a secret!
Don't miss the little drop of drool in this image. Hehe. Makes me giggle!
